Discipline and grievance at work

Disciplinary and grievance procedures offer a structured and formal approach to resolving workplace issues, ensuring fair and equal treatment for all employees.

They also ensure that employers comply with current law and follow the Acas Code of Practice: Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures.

They help to:

• ensure fair and consistent treatment
• support legal compliance
• ensure compliance with the Acas Code of Practice
• reduce the risk of employment tribunal claims.

Disciplinary procedures are needed to:

• clarify expectations for performance and conduct (and the consequences of ongoing failure to meet these expected standards)  
• address issues early to avoid escalation to an employment tribunal  
• provide evidence of fair process in dismissal cases.  

Grievance procedures are needed to:

• offer a formal route for employees’ unresolved complaints
• set clear contacts and timelines for resolution
• resolve issues internally and reduce tribunal risk (and potential cost).

Employer responsibilities:

• Have clear, accessible dispute resolution procedures.
• Communicate disciplinary and grievance procedures to all employees.
• Train managers in applying the procedures.
• Ensure fair and consistent handling of disputes across the organisation.

In addition, an employee’s written statement of employment particulars must include reference to any disciplinary, dismissal or grievance procedures. The availability of proper, fair procedures is central to unfair dismissal law.

In addition to these legal requirements, employers should be conscious that suspension and/or dismissal can significantly affect an individual’s wellbeing. Employers should provide immediate and ongoing support to safeguard their health and wellbeing.

Disciplinary procedures typically address two areas:

Capability/performance: when an employee cannot meet job expectations due to lack of training, health issues, or other factors.

Conduct: when an employee breaches workplace rules or behaves inappropriately.

Dealing with capability/performance issues

Employers should identify the root cause and offer support before initiating formal action. See our guides for people managers and people professionals on managing performance.

Health-related capability concerns should be handled with empathy. Employers should ensure they comply with the Equality Act 2010 in cases of absence where the individual has a disability or health condition, including the duty to make reasonable adjustments.

Dealing with conduct issues

Employee misconduct could cover a wide range of issues that vary in their level of seriousness, including:

• persistent lateness
• failure to follow a reasonable management instruction
• misuse of IT systems
• bullying or harassment
• theft or criminal offence.

In all cases, an employer should follow their own procedures as well as the Acas Code.

The more serious offences may constitute gross misconduct, which could involve theft, physical violence or serious insubordination. Although the employer can dismiss an employee with immediate effect for gross misconduct, it’s still important to follow a fair procedure and investigate the alleged offence. There should also be an opportunity for the employee to respond before deciding to dismiss.

Stages of the disciplinary process

Disciplinary action typically involves three core stages:

• Written notification.
• A formal meeting.
• The right to appeal.

Before taking action, employers must conduct a full and fair investigation. Acas recommends that investigators be properly trained for the role.

Record-Keeping

Accurate records are essential, especially if the case proceeds to tribunal. Employers should keep:

• meeting minutes
• emails and texts
• attendance notes
• call logs
• copies of correspondence.

Handling disciplinary interviews – key points:

• Train line managers to conduct interviews confidently and fairly.
• Employees have the right to be accompanied by a colleague or trade union representative at formal interviews. It’s good practice to offer this at investigatory meetings too.

The CIPD has a guide on the stages of a disciplinary and grievance process.

Organisations must handle all employee grievances fairly and consistently, ensuring managers are trained in the grievance procedure. Additional care is required when addressing bullying, discrimination or harassment-related complaints.

Handling grievances informally

Employees should be encouraged to discuss differences informally with their line manager, so that concerns can be dealt with as soon as possible. Many employees and employers are open to more informal and positive ways to resolve conflict at work, such as mediation. Our guide on mediation has advice on the skills needed to resolve disputes informally. 

If informal resolution is unsuccessful, the issue should be handled through the formal grievance procedure.

Handling grievances formally

Employers should ensure employees understand the formal grievance process, including:

• all stages of the Acas Code as well as the organisation’s own procedures
• how to raise the complaint and where to seek support
• expected timescales for dealing with the complaint
• the escalation process if the issue remains unresolved (eg raising it with a more senior manager).

Employees and workers have the right to be accompanied to grievance hearings by a colleague or trade union representative.

As with disciplinary matters, employers should maintain accurate records and follow the Acas Code throughout the process.

For more information, see our guide on how to conduct a grievance process.

Contacts

Acas – Disciplinary and grievance procedures

GOV.UK - Handling an employee's grievance

GOV.UK - Taking disciplinary action against an employee

nidirect - Resolving workplace disputes(for Northern Ireland)

Books and reports

Acas. (2020) Discipline and grievances at work. London: Acas.

Aylott, E. (2022) Employee relations: a practical introduction. 3rd ed. HR Fundamentals. London: Kogan Page.

Barnett, D. (2017) Employee investigations: how to conduct - and train others in conducting - grievance and disciplinary hearings. (Employment Law Library 1). London: Nielsen.

Barnett, D. (2020) Resolving grievances. (Employment Law Library 8). London: ELS.

Bennett, T., Saundry, R. and Fisher, V. (2020) Managing employment relations. 7th ed. London: CIPD and Kogan Page.

Visit the CIPD and Kogan Page Bookshop to see all our priced publications currently in print.

Journal articles

Bourne, C. (2021) Disciplining staff for misconduct outside the workplace. People Management (online). 26 April. 

Bowen, J. (2020) How to carry out a disciplinary investigation. People Management (online). 29 January. 

Copeland, H. (2022) How to tackle gaslighting grievances in the workplace. People Management (online). 20 October.

Faragher, J. (2018) The ultimate guide to disciplinaries and grievances. People Management (online). 13 December.

Heal, A. (2021) How employers should respond to conflict at work. People Management (online). 26 July.

Hogan, C. and Thompson, S. (2019) How to manage internal disciplinary procedures. People Management (online). 30 April.

Hoyle, S. (2022) How to conduct an effective grievance investigation. People Management (online). 9 March.

Jones, C. and Saundry, R. (2012) The practice of discipline: evaluating the roles and relationship between managers and HR professionals. Human Resource Management Journal. Vol 22, No 3, July, pp252-266.

Moore, L. (2022) Handling discrimination-based grievances. People Management (online). 9 November.

Morton, M. (2022) Four top tips for disciplinary and grievance investigations. People Management (online). 14 November. 

Netherton, H. and Bramall, F. (2020) How to get disciplinary investigation reports right. People Management (online). 3 February. 

Sewell, M. (2022) Dealing with frivolous grievances and unfair dismissal. People Management (online). 15 February. 

CIPD members can use our online journals to find articles from over 300 journal titles relevant to HR.

Members and People Management subscribers can see articles on the People Management website.