Thus, the imposition of discipline should be imposed in a way that reduces the chance that the discipline will be perceived as an adverse employment action motivated by an impermissible or illegal motive.įor the vast majority of employers, the starting point for a disciplinary policy should be a progressive written discipline policy. – are triggered by an “adverse employment action.” The vast majority of claims for illegal discrimination charge that the discipline imposed by the employer was the adverse employment action. But if the employer wants to build a relationship with the employee that is premised on mutual respect and a commitment to improvement in job performance, it is recommended that the employer adopt a discipline policy that is progressive and carefully stated in writing.Īlmost all of the prohibitions on illegal discrimination – disability, age, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, marital status, genetic information, religion, national origin or ethnicity, race, receipt of workers’ compensation benefits, concerted work activity, whistleblower, etc. Because Illinois is an employment “at-will” state, the employer can, if it wants, fire an employee for any reason that does not constitute illegal discrimination or retaliation.

There are no specific “legal” requirements with respect to a disciplinary program. The definition of a progressive discipline policy the future value of what it might do and what message the employer wants to send for future purposes.This goal requires the employer to be mindful of: Granted, that acknowledgement will not always happen, but if the documentation is in place, it will be evident to any third party looking at the documents that the employee should have expected some level of discipline.įinally, the disciplinary policy and the administration of discipline should be perceived as fair from the perspective of the disciplined employee and his or her co-workers. A well-developed policy that is implemented correctly should almost always result in an employee acknowledging that he or she knew better. The imposition of discipline should never be a surprise to the employee. The employer should think through what it wants to reward and what it wants to discourage and then communicate these thoughts. Articulating the company’s values and expectations for supervisors and managers may have to be quite detailed and should probably be re-enforced in the written job description for the position.Įxample - Does the supervisor or manager understand that his or her job performance is based, in part, on how well he or she evaluates subordinates’ performance and how well the supervisor imposes discipline? Articulating the values the employer may want to encourage is more subtle: respect for co-workers, hygiene, appropriate use of computer time, etc.

Some of the prohibitions are obvious: unexcused absences, theft, substance abuse, etc. Rather, the employer should start by identifying what it wants to encourage and then, by identifying what it wants to discourage or prohibit. The development of a policy for employee discipline should not start with the punishment that the employer might impose for various offenses. Discipline is a tool to help the employer produce a happy, productive workforce. Inaction in response to unacceptable behavior can be very discouraging for those employees working hard for the employer and may lead to poor morale.ĭiscipline is not and should never be the goal. This investment can be quickly undone with poorly executed discipline. Typically, a productive employee likes his or her work, derives self-worth from his or her work, and looks forward to coming to work. That said, arbitrary and unfair imposition of discipline – even if legal – can have dramatic, adverse consequences for the employer.įor many employers, their largest investment is in the training and development of their employees. Legally, Illinois is an employment-at-will state, leaving the employer enormous discretion in the imposition of discipline, including termination of employment. With the obvious exception of compensation and benefits, the administration of discipline is probably the single most important dimension of the employment relationship.

Unjustified write up