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What Documents/Information Must an Employer Share With Their Employee During a Disciplinary Investigation?
Published on: 09/05/2024
Issues Covered: Discipline
Article Authors The main content of this article was provided by the following authors.
Chris Fullerton
Chris Fullerton

What Documents/Information Must an Employer Share With Their Employee During a Disciplinary Investigation?

Whilst specific information requirements may be outlined in the employment contract or internal policies, adherence to the statutory minimum statutory disciplinary procedures is mandatory for all employers in Northern Ireland.

After completing the initial investigation and gathering evidence to aide their decision, the employer should formally inform the employee in writing about:

  1. the allegations being made against them;
  2.  the time and place for the disciplinary meeting; and
  3. their rights to be accompanied and to rearrange another meeting within five days if the employee or their accompanying person cannot attend on the initial date proposed.

Following the disciplinary meeting (in which the employee should have set out their case and provided any relevant supporting evidence), employers must issue a written decision to the employee which clearly states the decision and the grounds for same. Within this written decision, the employer must present the employee with an opportunity to appeal the decision.

Should the employee choose to appeal this decision, the employer should issue a similar formal appeal decision in writing.

In any event, employers should keep records of all investigations carried out, evidence obtained and correspondence exchanged between the parties to narrate the key procedures followed. Such records can serve as crucial evidence in the event that a disgruntled employee brings a Tribunal application against their former employer. This is of critical importance as in the event that the Tribunal determines that statutory procedure has not been followed, the employee will normally be entitled to a 10-50% uplift in any compensation awarded.

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Disclaimer The information in this article is provided as part of Legal Island's Employment Law Hub. We regret we are not able to respond to requests for specific legal or HR queries and recommend that professional advice is obtained before relying on information supplied anywhere within this article. This article is correct at 09/05/2024