As an employer, you have the responsibility to ensure that correct and fair procedures are in place when it comes to enabling your staff to raise grievances and when dealing with disciplinary issues. At Percy Hughes & Roberts, we can provide the expert disciplinary advice for employers you need to handle these cases.

Our employment lawyers can help you to ensure you are up to date with the latest legislation, so that you can draft accurate disciplinary and grievance procedures to make sure you are fully covered in these situations. You can rely on our team to provide disciplinary defence and disciplinary hearing advice for employers that matches your needs.

Speak to our lawyers today for advice by calling 0151 666 9090 or complete our online enquiry form and we will contact you at a time that is convenient for you. 

How we can help with your disciplinary & grievance procedures

Our lawyers have provided disciplinary advice for hundreds of employers, covering the following important procedures: 

• Drafting disciplinary and grievance documentation: We can define procedures that meet the specific needs of your business, as well as drafting documentation such as letters for disciplinary or grievance meetings and outcome letters. 
• Drafting wider employment documentation: We will review or draft employment contracts and policies to minimise the risk of future grievances. 

We can also provide disciplinary hearing advice for employers, as well as instruction on how to apply disciplinary and grievance procedures. All documents we produce comply with the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary & Grievance Procedures, so you can rest assured that your procedures will fulfil the requirements. 

Why choose Percy Hughes & Roberts Solicitors? 

Percy Hughes & Roberts Solicitors has been assisting businesses across the Wirral, Merseyside and further afield by offering disciplinary defence and procedural advice for more than a century. We understand the cost and time involved with sorting processes and implementing policies, which is why we are on hand to take the stress off you. 

We also hold a number of industry accreditations, including Lexcel, the Law Society's quality standard. This means we are recognised for providing a high standard of legal services to our clients.

We understand that as a business, you want your legal issues to be resolved swiftly and efficiently. Our experienced lawyers can help you to do this and will work tirelessly to ensure that you have the support you need. 

FAQs 

What are my responsibilities regarding grievance procedures? 

An employee can raise a grievance at any time, and employers must have a written policy in place.

You must have these procedures in writing somewhere your employees can readily access them; for example, in the employee handbook, on the company intranet, etc. This must also tell members of staff who they need to contact in order to raise their grievances.

The procedure for grievances is as follows:

• Your employee should raise the grievance formally in writing, which will outline their issues. 
• Following this, a date must be decided for a formal meeting at which you will discuss the issues, consideration should be given to adjourning the meeting for any investigation that may be necessary 
• Following the meeting, decide on what action, if any, to take. Decisions should be communicated to the employee, in writing, without unreasonable delay and, where appropriate. 
• The employee should be informed that they can appeal if they are not content with the action taken.

Our employment solicitors will ensure that you initially have the correct policies in place, and then they will advise you throughout any grievances that are pursued against you.

How should disciplinary procedures be handled? 

If an employee has done something that you feel is worthy of disciplinary action, there is a certain set of measures that must be followed. In addition, the offence must be backed up by evidence; otherwise, depending on the outcome, this could lead to unfair dismissal claims.

The procedure is:

• Establish the facts
• Consider whether suspension of the employee is appropriate
• If it is decided that there is a disciplinary case to answer, the employee should be notified of this in writing. You must start by sending the employee a formal letter outlining the potential course of action (sanction) you are planning to take, telling them what the offence is and setting a date for a formal meeting, during which you will talk to them about the issue
• The meeting will then be held, during which the individual will be entitled to bring a colleague or union rep. 
• You will make a decision on how to proceed based on all the evidence including the evidence presented during the disciplinary meeting and inform the employee accordingly in writing of the same and their right of appeal

Our lawyers will honestly and impartially advise you every step of the way to ensure that you do not leave yourself open to claims of victimisation, or unfair or constructive dismissal if the proceedings lead to the termination of the contract of the employee.