Disciplinary Hearings
Preparation is vital in employment law matters. You must take steps to make sure that you gather the evidence that will be used in any disciplinary action and prepare your case. First, you need to ensure your employer has given you a full explanation of the reason for the disciplinary hearing. Don't make the mistake some of our employment law clients make and assume you know what it is about - ask your employer questions if the information you have been given is unclear and ensure you know the characteristics and sources of any allegations against you.
You should also ask your employer what investigations have been carried out. Your employer may have interviewed other people or may have reviewed records and you should ask to see any witness statements or other documents (either that you need or that your employer is intending to rely on) in good time before the hearing. You should also ask, if there are witnesses, whether the witnesses will be present at the hearing so that you can question them.
Once you have all of the evidence and understand the allegation against you, consider everything carefully.
We advise our employment law clients to make a short chronology at this stage, setting out everything that has happened and who was involved. You can then cross check this against what your employer has given you to find any inconsistencies, or highlight any areas where you disagree. It can also form the basis of a statement that you can prepare to read out at the disciplinary hearing (reading from a statement can help with nerves). You may find you can provide evidence for your version of events - e-mails, appraisals and other documents or even a statement from a colleague.
Always remember to be constructive when putting your version of events - for example, if you are going through a disciplinary process for performance, emphasize how much you enjoy your job, any good points on your appraisals and how keen you are to improve, as well as setting out any mitigating factors, (for example, you have been under a lot of pressure or have problems at home or need more training). If you accept the allegation against you then your statement should only set out the mitigating circumstances such as the fact this is the only time it has happened, or that other employees did it as well or that you were unaware that you had broken a company rule. If you think the real reason for the disciplinary action is, for example, as a result of discrimination, you should say this but provide concrete examples of why and consider raising a grievance.
This type of preparation can be essential if you think it may lead to your dismissal or may seriously affect your career with your current employer, leading to a smaller bonus or stopping you getting a promotion. In those circumstances, we believe, as experienced London employment lawyers, we can add a lot of value in helping you prepare and that time spent utilising our expertise will either result in a successful outcome to the hearing or a successful unfair dismissal claim. If you call us, we promise not to take you on unless we believe we can genuinely help you.
In employment law you are entitled to have someone attending the meeting with you - either a trade union representative or a colleague. Your employment lawyer is not allowed to attend. You should think carefully whether you do want someone to attend with you and, if you do, make appropriate arrangements.