Index

,

Absenteeism, 133, 134–136, 137

documenting, 89–90, 92

Action plan, 36–37, 68, 76, 77, 92

Adjudication, in disciplinary process, 36–37

Age discrimination, 13

Agenda, for performance counseling session, 68

Alternatives, disciplinary process and, 34–36

Americans with Disabilities Act, 137

Anger, diffusing, 77

Appeal, right of, 12, 54–55, 56

Approvals, of disciplinary action. See Review process

Argumentative employee, handling, 76–77

as outlined in this letter, 88

as we have discussed, 89

At will employment, xviii, 12–15

disclaimer, xvi

Attendance records, 134

Audit exercise, 147

Audit team, xv

Availability, counseling and, 75

Behavior

influence factors, 21–22

optimal state vs. actual state of, 22

Behavior modification, discipline as, 4–5

Case participation exercise, 31

Change

five R’s of, xiv

gaining commitment to, 77–78

Change expectations, 91

Checklist

performance counseling session preparation, 66–67

termination, 123

Clarity, in documentation, 80

Closure

final discussion disciplinary letter, 100–101

performance counseling session, 70–71

verbal discussion disciplinary letter, 87, 93, 94

written discussion disciplinary letter, 96, 97, 98

Coaching, 19–23. See also Performance counseling session

defined, 9–11

exercise, 11

ground rules, 49

COBRA, 123

Completeness, in documentation, 81

Compliance, discipline to encourage, 5. See also Non-compliance

Comprehension gap, 44, 133

diagnosing, 23–26

discipline and, 19, 23

vs. execution gap, 20

Confidentiality

discipline and, 36

rules, 122

Consistency, 45, 53

discipline process and, 30

documenting, 38

vs. fairness, 50–51

ground rules, 51

procedural, 11–12

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, 123

Constructive criticism, 23, 24, 26

Constructive discharge, 119

Constructive feedback, 61

Content, of disciplinary discussion, 62–63

Conversations, documenting, 36

Correction, discipline as, 3, 5

Criticism, 61

Daugherty, Carroll, 56

Daugherty’s rules, 56–58

Defensible language, 104, 105

Deliberation, disciplinary process and, 34–36

Discharge. See Termination

Disciplinary action form, 38, 63, 101–104

vs. disciplinary letter format, 83–85

exercise, 109–112, 147

filling out, 103–104

sample, 84, 102

Disciplinary discussion, 7, 24. See also Performance counseling session

Disciplinary ground rules

coaching, 49

communicating, 51–52

equal treatment, 50–51

as legal safeguards, 55–58

need for process, 48–49

open-flame analogy, 52–53

right of appeal, 54–55

rule of relevance, 53–54

Disciplinary guidelines, investigation of performance issues and, 33, 36

Disciplinary letter, 38, 63

sample, 94

Disciplinary letter format vs. action form, 83–85 final discussion, 98–101 verbal discussion, 86–94 written discussion, 95–98

Disciplinary process, 26–32, 133. See also individual behavior issues; Performance counseling session

Discipline

defined, 2–5

introduction to, xi–xii

phases of, 32–42

positive change and, xiii–xiv

recognizing need for, 17–26

vs. training, 25–26

Discipline variety, 30, 32

Discrimination charges, 113

Discussion. See also Final discussion; Verbal discussion; Written discussion

defined, 5–8

documenting, 38

Document validation, 82

Documentation, 29–30, 79–80

action form, 101–104

defined, 8–9

of disciplinary discussion, 63–64, 67. See also Disciplinary letter format

of disciplinary process, 37–40

effective use of language in, 104–108

employee-provided, 41

of immediate termination, 126, 127, 129

letter format vs. action form, 83–85

of performance-related termination, 117–118

primary goal of, 80–82

of termination meeting, 116

Drug use, immediate termination and, 48, 124, 133

Due process, 7, 44, 55, 117

Daugherty’s rules and, 56–58

defined, 11–12

four-step disciplinary process and, 27

EAP. See Employee assistance program, 141

Efficiency, discipline as, 2

Emotions, 23, 25

Empathy, counseling and, 75

Employee assistance program, 141

Employee behavior

influence factors, 21–22

optimal vs. actual state, 22

Employee development, 143–144

Employee handbook

disciplinary ground rules and, 52

employment at will and, 15

immediate termination offenses and, 124

policy limiting raises, transfers, promotions in, 130

right of appeal and, 54–55

rule of relevance and, 54

Employee notification

of disciplinary meeting, 65, 67

of immediate termination, 128

regarding absenteeism and tardiness, 134

of termination meeting, 115

Employee signature

on disciplinary documentation, 39

on disciplinary letters, 95, 101

document validation and, 82

procedure for obtaining, 131

Employee-provided documentation, 41

Employer audit, to assess liability, xiv–xviii

Employment at will, xviii

defined, 12–15

Enterprise Wire Company, 46LA, 56

Equal treatment, ground rules, 50–51

Evaluation, 40–42

Execution gap, 44, 133

comprehension gap, 20

diagnosing, 23–26

managing, 23

Exercise

Disciplinary Action Form, 109–112

team building and communication, 146–147

using four-step disciplinary process, 31

Fairness, vs. consistency, 50–51

Falsification of company documents, immediate termination and, 124

Family Medical Leave Act, 137

Federal legislation, employment at will and, 13

Feedback, 8, 24

handling, 71–73

handling reactions to, 73–74

poor, 42–43

quality, 42, 43–44

Fighting, 33, 137–139

immediate termination and, 48, 53, 124, 133, 138

Final action

discussing, 100

documenting, 99–101

Final discussion, 28

disciplinary letter, 99

documenting, 85

outline, 99

Final notification, 48

Final paycheck, 123

Firsthand observation, immediate termination and, 125–126

Follow-up

in disciplinary process, 40–42

performance counseling session and, 71

timetable for, 68

Follow-up meetings, 70, 93

Forewarning, 56, 57

Forms

disciplinary action, 84, 102

Performance Enhancement Plan, 78

Goals, 91

documenting, 38

Hand delivery

document validation and, 82

of final discussion disciplinary letter, 101

Harassment, 139–142. See also Sexual harassment

immediate termination and, 140

types of, 139

Hostile environment harassment, 139, 142

Human resources department, 36–37, 123, 126, 128

Immediate termination

documentation of, 129

fighting and, 48, 53, 124, 133, 138

harassment and, 140

investigation of, 125–128

procedure for, 128

violence and, 138

Impact words, 105–108

Inattentive employee, handling, 75–76

including, 91

Influence factors, 19, 21–22

Intimidated employee, handling, 75–76

Introduction

verbal discussion disciplinary letter, 87–89, 94

written discussion disciplinary letter, 95, 97, 98

Investigation, xvii, 57

for immediate termination, 125–128

of harassment, 140–142

of performance issues, 33–34

regarding resignation, 121

Issue definition, 91

Issue development

verbal discussion disciplinary letter, 87, 89–91, 94

written discussion disciplinary letter, 96, 97, 98

Issue identification, on disciplinary action form, 103

Joint problem solving, discipline as, 5

Language

defensible, 104, 105

effective use of, 104–105

impact words, 105–108

Learning, discipline as, 2, 5

Legal safeguards, disciplinary ground rules as, 55–58

Letter of resignation, 119–121

Letter of termination, 117, 126, 128

sample, 129

Liability

documentation and, 29, 38, 79

employer audit to assess, xiv–xviii

Main text

verbal discussion disciplinary letter, 87, 91–93, 94

written discussion disciplinary letter, 96, 97, 98

Manager

as coach, 9–11

coaching exercise, 11

Managerial rule, 56

Manager’s Coaching Self-Profile, 11

Manager-employee signature area, on disciplinary letter, 86, 94, 98

Meeting place, preparation of, 65–66, 67, 116

Meeting procedure, for performance-related

termination, 116–117. See also Performance

counseling session

Mentoring, 26

Motivational tool, discipline as, 5

Negative-performance notification, discipline as, 5

New hire orientation, employment at will and, 15

Non-compliance

final discussion and, 99

sample statements regarding, 118

Notes

for disciplinary discussion, 63, 67

for termination meeting, 115

Notice, 53

Objective comments, vs. subjective comments, 6

Objectivity, documentation and, 38, 81

Offer letter, employment at will and, 15

Open-flame analogy, 52–53

Opening statements

performance counseling session, 69

verbal discussion disciplinary letter, 87–89, 94

written discussion disciplinary letter, 95, 97, 98

Organization guidelines, regarding termination, 115

Orientation, employment at will and, 15

PEOPLE anagram, 143–144

PEP. See Performance Enhancement Plan

Peptalk, 60, 76, 77

per our discussion, 89

Performance counseling session, 59

follow-up, 71

format, 68–71

gaining commitment to change, 77–78

handling feedback, 71–74

preparation checklist, 66–67

preparation for, 61–67

purpose of, 60–61

Performance Enhancement Plan, 75, 76, 77, 78

Performance issues, diagnosing, 23–26

Performance plan, 91

Performance review policies, 131

Performance reviews, review of, xvii

Performance-improvement planning, 70

Performance-related issues, 133

documenting, 90–91

Performance-related termination

documenting, 117–118

meeting procedure, 116–117

preparation, 114–116

sample letter, 120

Personality types, handling difficult, 75–77

Personal-progress report, 41

Personnel files, xvi, 33, 53–54

Policy and procedures manual

disciplinary ground rules and, 52

employment at will and, 13, 15

policy limiting raises, transfers, promotions in, 130

right of appeal and, 54–55

rule of relevance and, 54

Positive change, xiii–xiv

Positive reinforcement, 24

Praise, 23, 61

Precedent, 33, 34, 58

Pregnancy Leave Statutes, 137

Preparation

for performance counseling session, 61–67

for performance-related termination, 114–116

Preventive methods, regarding absenteeism and tardiness, 135

Problem behavior, response to, 19–23

Procedural consistency, 11–12

Process, ground rules, 48–49

Promotions, policy on, 130, 131

Quid pro quo harassment, 139, 142

Raises, policy on, 130, 131

Records, regarding absenteeism and tardiness, 134

Reference checks, 122

Rehearsal

of disciplinary discussion, 64

for termination meeting, 115

Reinforcement theory, 8, 61

Release agreement, xvii

Relevance, rule of, 53–54

Resignation, 119–121

Review process, xvi, xvii. See also Right of appeal

of immediate termination, 126, 127 regarding violence and immediate termination, 138–139

of termination, 36–37

Right of appeal, 12, 54–55, 56

Rules

coaching, 49

communicating, 51–52

confidentiality, 122

consistency, 51

Daugherty’s, 56–58

equal treatment, 50–51

as legal safeguards, 55–58

need for process, 48–49

open-flame analogy, 52–53

right of appeal, 54–55

rule of relevance, 53–54

system of as discipline, 3

Salutation, disciplinary letter, 86

Samples

disciplinary action form, 84, 102

final discussion disciplinary letter, 100–101

immediate termination letter, 129

non-compliance statements, 118

performance-related termination letter, 120

verbal discussion disciplinary letter, 88–89, 93, 94

written discussion disciplinary letter, 98

Self-control, discipline as, 2–3

Sexual harassment. See also Harassment

immediate termination and, 124

investigation of, 33

Skills enhancement, 26

State legislation

employment at will and, 13

regarding termination, 114

Statute of limitations, 53

Subjective comments, vs. objective comments, 6

Suspension, xvii, 29, 133

System of rules, discipline as, 3

Tardiness, 133, 134–137

documenting, 90

Terminable offenses, xvii

Termination, 28, 38, 113. See also Employment at will; Immediate termination; Performance-related termination

problems with, 129–131

review of, 36–37

rules of confidentiality and, 122

voluntary, 119–121

Termination checklist, 123

Termination letter, 117, 126, 128

sample, 129

Termination meeting, documenting, 116

Theft, immediate termination and, 124, 133

Third party, as witness to termination meetings, 115, 127, 128

360-degree feedback exercise, 146

Time allowances, 30

Timelines, 92

disciplinary action form, 104

written discussion disciplinary letter, 96

Training, 133

comprehension gaps and, 19, 20, 23

vs. discipline, 19, 25–26

discipline as, 2

Transfers, policy on, 130

Unexcused absence, 135–136

Verbal discussion, 5, 28, 48

documenting, 85

outline, 86–87

sample disciplinary letter, 94

Violence, 137–139

immediate termination and, 124, 138

Voluntary termination, 119–121

Warning, 29

Weapons, immediate termination and, 124

Webster’s New World Dictionary, 2

Witness

immediate termination and, 127, 128

to termination meeting, 115

Workers Compensation Statutes, 137

Worksheet, Employer Audit to Assess Liability, xvi–xviii

Written discussion, 5, 28, 48

documenting, 85

outline, 95, 97

Wrongful discharge lawsuits, 113