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Objectivity is recognised as a cornerstone of any fair disciplinary system. It stands for all areas of discipline in life, whether as a matter of law or in the world of sport. Any hr management company will emphasis that, in business, a proper structure must be applied to any system at work. It is only to be expected that issues of discipline will crop up, but it is essential that any breaches in conduct are treated fairly and firmly. Today, companies will often look to a hr outsourcing company with expertise in this field, in the knowledge that any disciplinary procedures recommended will be based on the cold realities of employment law and effective disciplinary standards. As with any area of management, disciplinary issues need to be carefully handled. The specifics of a particular event that may require disciplinary action are varied, with some far more serious than others. However, for all situations there are usually two sides to the story and with the help of proper structures, issues can be resolved constructively. With that in mind, there are a number of aspects to discipline that need to be considered, with communication of polices and punishments, consistency in decision making, and attention to employee points of view the principal ones. Consultants who are knowledgeable in the area of employee discipline will understand only too well the need to properly facilitate each of these, as insufficient disciplinary mechanisms can bring about discrimination or unfair dismissal claims from disgruntled employees. Communication is where improvement begins, but it does not refer only to management informing employees of the likely consequences of breaches of conduct in the workplace. Communication flows in two ways, with management also allowing itself to listen to the concerns and preferences of the employees themselves, through their selected representative. What this means is that consequences that may be viewed as too harsh can be amended. For example, a scuffle between two workers might be punishable by immediate dismissal, a punishment applied even in cases where the scuffle is over a minor thing. To reduce the punishment to a written warning might be viewed as fairer. Through this constructive communicative approach, employees will feel more appreciated as their concerns are listened to, which can lead to greater cooperation in other areas. The significance of consistency cannot be understated as it has a direct impact on the consequences of any action taken against an employee. There is an acute need to treat employees equally, and for employees themselves to see management doing so. This is where the advantage of having set disciplinary measures known in advance lies. Not only can the policy be pointed to, but there can be no argument relating to favouritism or discrimination on any grounds. However, any consultant will also point out that any punishments must be fair in the first place. Finally, a proper disciplinary mechanism will involve full consideration of the point of view of an employee. The reason for this is that no sound judgement can be made unless all of the parties have been spoken to. It is very unwise, as well as being quite unfair, to punish without first spending time to establish the truth of the situation. If we look at the example of the scuffling employees again, there may be mitigating circumstances that may have led to the argument. It means affording those involved with the opportunity to explain. In some cases, stress caused by work itself may have simply overflowed, in which case a fair conclusion would be to discuss how to relieve stress in the workplace. This may mean changing work practices, but such a move has its advantages as it can only be considered a constructive and cooperative move on the part of management. More importantly, by listening to the employees it reveals how to avoid allowing a similar problem from occurring again. For companies of any size, disciplinary procedures are necessary if problems amongst staff are to be dealt with justly and quickly. Often, businesses will state that they have them in place, using common management guides to address every problem. But it is the depth and efficiency of such procedures that need to be addressed, and the objectiveness that comes from the services provided by a hr outsourcing company that can ensure that the maximum sufficiency is achieved. As any hr management consultant will testify, disciplinary mechanisms work best when objectivity is their cornerstone. Kathryn Dawson writes articles about PosiSure, one of the leading hr management companies in the UK. Posisure is an hr outsourcing company which can provide a total solution from employing the right staff to managing working relationships, so that you can streamline the focus on your business instead. PosiSure also ensures that there are grievances and disciplinary procedures in place to handle any issues that cannot be resolved informally.
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