Staff Handbook UK

If it is necessary for the Company to take action under this Procedure, you will be issued with disciplinary warnings only following a formal disciplinary meeting at which you will have been given the opportunity to be accompanied by a fellow employee or an accredited trade union representative. Throughout the Disciplinary Procedure you will be given the opportunity to respond to any complaint before any decision on disciplinary action is taken. The Company may commence disciplinary action at any of the following levels: Written warning A written warning will be issued and a copy placed in your personnel file and it will be disregarded after 12 months. This is the first formal stage and will usually apply where informal intervention has not been effective, or where the misconduct is sufficiently serious to warrant a formal warning. Final written warning A final written warning will be issued and a copy placed in your personnel file. Normally it will be disregarded after 12 months but the timescale may be extended if it is considered necessary in the circumstances. A final written warning will normally be applied when a further act of misconduct occurs within 12 months of a first written warning being issued. Dismissal Dismissal may be with or without notice depending on the circumstances, and may occur whether or not warnings have been issued. Dismissal will normally apply when a further act of misconduct occurs within 12 months of a final written warning being issued. Summary dismissal (i.e. dismissal without notice) may apply in cases of gross misconduct (see below). You will be entitled to appeal against any disciplinary decision taken, such appeal being held in accordance with the Appeal Procedure which is detailed below. Appeal You have the right to appeal against any disciplinary outcome, including dismissal, within 5 working days of receiving it. Your appeal should be made in writing to the Proprietor and set out the grounds for your appeal. Where appropriate a meeting will be held normally within 5 working days of receipt of your appeal. You are entitled to be accompanied by a fellow employee or accredited trade union representative at the appeal hearing. The outcome of the appeal will be provided to you in writing. The decision reached at the appeal stage is final and there is no further right of appeal. At any time during the first two years of employment, application of the above process may be departed from in full or in part, at the Company's absolute discretion

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