Dealing with Conduct Issues in the Workplace

Today we are going to tackle effectively handling conduct issues in your workplace.

Now I gotta tell ya…NOTHING is a surprise to me anymore. I have seen people lose their job for as little as theft of a soda, and as much as embezzlement of over a quarter of a million dollars. I have seen an all out “cussfest” during an argument between two employees, and a literal chick fight with fists flying in the middle of the department (I ended up throwing myself into the middle of it to break it up). I have participated in countless investigations over the years regarding various degrees of sexual misconduct in the workplace including sex in the bathroom, porn on company computers and all out groping. I have helped many associates deal with substance abuse, domestic violence and stalking. But the scariest situation of all came when an employee on the verge of termination chose to bring a loaded gun into the workplace. Thank goodness she confided in a coworker who immediately came and told me. The police showed up and she was arrested on the spot. My journey has been an all out education from the school of hard knocks.

This goes to show you the broad range of issues our employees may be dealing with on a daily basis. For many, coming to work is just what they do to survive. Their lives outside of work can be playing out in a manner that is incomprehensible to many of us. Remember, you never really know the people you are working with. I have seen employees with impeccable reputations absolutely implode due to a divorce, financial problems or even the onset of mental illness. Lives can change with every breath we take. Don’t assume what was reality yesterday will continue to be so today!

Critical Elements Of Dealing With Conduct Issues

Knowing exactly how to deal with conduct related issues in the workplace tends to be a struggle for many leaders. Let’s face it, recognizing that an employee has violated a rule is the easy part; knowing what to do about it is a whole other story. Let's the critical elements to consider when dealing with conduct related issues in the workplace.

As a leader, you are acting on behalf of your company
Your employer expects that the rules are enforced consistently across the organization. That means it is not up to you to decide when you will apply the rules and when you will look the other way. You are treading on dangerous ground if you start overlooking the indiscretions of some and not others. I have seen this time and time again over the years when issues arise with otherwise top performers. Although in my humble opinion, an employee’s track record for performance and conduct should certainly be considered when it comes to any disciplinary action that may need to occur, but you cannot simply dismiss an allegation without giving it a thorough review. Inconsistency in addressing issues puts you and your company in jeopardy of serious legal action. Sounds kind of ominous when you put it that way…doesn’t it?

Not every issue has the same severity
Although every issue that is brought to your attention carries its own unique circumstances and seriousness, you will not know the true scope of the issue until you take the time to thoroughly investigate it. I have seen countless issues that initially looked to be relatively minor, but once I began to dig, Pandora’s box exploded all over me!!  STOP….URGENT….HIGH PRIORITY…DO NOT PASS GO….DO NOT COLLECT YOUR $200 BUCKS- If you uncover an issue that deals with general harassment, sexual harassment or discrimination, most organizations would expect you to immediately contact senior management and Human Resources. These situations require a more in-depth investigation, and insanely detailed documentation that may later be required to answer some type of charge from an agency (EEOC, Dept of Labor) or used to fight a potential lawsuit.

So let’s review this one more time- Issues related to harassment or discrimination that occur under your watch will be highly scrutinized. You will certainly be asked what you knew and when you knew it. If you cannot show that you acted in a timely and appropriate manner upon discovering the issue, your leadership will be called into serious question. This is not something to mess with!! Reach out and partner with a senior manager or your HR team the minute you hear of an issue like this! Ok…..so…did I sufficiently beat this issue into the ground???

Just the facts Ma’am
Looking into an allegation requires complete objectivity. I would have to say that 99% of all issues that I investigated in my career were not exactly what was initially reported to me. Let’s face it, the majority of issues are brought to the leader by the trustiest of business sources….THE RUMOR MILL.

Most of us remember playing the telephone game when we were kids. One six year old whispers something into the ear of another six year old and by the time it gets to the end of the chain, it is nothing like the initial sentence. Everybody giggles and the game starts all over. Little did you know you would be playing the adult version of the telephone game virtually every day of your management career. Your job as an effective leader is to listen to the allegation and ask a lot of good questions to get the full story.

So let me stress this again- raise your right hand and repeat after me…..I (insert your full name including any alias’) promise that every time an employee comes to me to rat out a fellow employee I will remain completely calm. I will listen with an unbiased ear and will act as a sponge to take in all the facts. I will not incorporate, include or consider anyone’s opinion until I have successfully completed a thorough review of the facts. By doing this, you will increase your credibility with your employees because they will see you as a fair boss who addresses issues in a timely manner. 

  

Statement Schmatement
I never received more eye rolls in my life then when I had to ask an employee for a written statement. It always fascinated me, until I got a taste of that medicine when I was asked to write a statement on somewhat of a senior manager. I was absolutely freaking out after that. Every time I saw his name pop up on my phone I went into minor shock. I had to continue to remind myself that even if he did find out, I did the right thing by complying with the company’s request for a statement. Nonetheless, it was a good lesson for me about how nerve-racking the process can be.

Getting a comprehensive statement is critically important because it provides the supporting documentation needed to allow you and your company to make an accurate and fair decision on the situation. For more significant and potentially litigious situations, it will provide senior management and Human Resources an opportunity to evaluate whether they have sufficient information that may be needed to fight an employment charge or law suit. Once the employee or witnesses have left your employment, there is no way to go back and get further information.

Even though it sometimes seems HR is asking for a ridiculous amount of detailed information, you are better off coughing it up now, rather than during the limited time you will be given if it comes to legal action. Finally, have you ever been asked to write a statement on an issue that occurred months or even years ago?? I can’t remember what I ate for breakfast this morning let alone what happened last month! Getting a statement at the time of the issue mitigates a great deal of risk in the long run.

Listen here Judge Judy
One of the things I have had to personally work on throughout my career is maintaining objectivity and removing any personal judgments from situations. The fact of the matter is you are dealing with an employee who made a mistake. As stated above, your job is to get to the facts, not render a personal judgment on what you are hearing. While investigating the situation, the employee may be completely honest with you (those are the easy ones), or they may look you square in the eyes and lie through their teeth (these are the tough ones). Maintain a clear focus on the fact that your role is to determine whether the employees behavior was a violation of policy.

I have been involved in some of the most amazing and disturbing investigations imaginable, but at the end of each day, I had to remind myself that it was not my job to judge the employee. It is tough to do sometimes, but essential to maintain the right balance between you as a leader and you as a fellow human being. No one who has the heart of a true leader should take any enjoyment in creating pain for another human being. And trust me, having to endure a detailed investigation and then face subsequent termination must be an awfully painful experience for an employee. So as my Grandma Mary used to say- Don’t add insult to injury

So what’s the hurry
Time and time again managers would complain to me about how long it was taking for a decision to be made on the fate of one of their employees. Their biggest complaint was how torturous it was for the employee to have to wait out the decision. Here is what I have to say about that….TOO BAD!! Sometimes when we decide we gotta play, then we gotta pay! Just kidding…but what you need to understand is most often, the time it is taking to make the decision is spent escalating the issue through the senior ranks of the organization. I would much rather know that everyone possible is weighing in on my issue, rather than leaving my fate in the hands of one individual. Your job as a leader is to communicate that to your employee. If the decision comes back to retain the employee, then it was time well worth the wait. If termination is the outcome, then you can assure the employee that a great deal of time and scrutiny went into the making the final decision.

HOW TO CONDUCT A THOROUGH INVESTIGATION
This can be the most overwhelming part for many leaders. I have to admit that it took me at least a year to get completely comfortable with how to conduct an effective investigation (AND THAT WAS MY WHOLE JOB) so I understand the uneasiness that comes with this process. So let’s see if we can break this down into manageable pieces that make it less overwhelming:

Fact Finding

As we reviewed above, the most important part of any investigation is getting ALL the facts. It would be great if every piece of information that came your way was accurate, but that is rarely the case.

Your first step is giving your undivided attention to the person who is providing you with the information about the potential issue. If you are busy at the time, either stop what you are doing, or ask the employee to come back at a specific time to discuss the issue. Make sure that meeting occurs the same day or they may think you don’t care about them or the issue. Most companies recommend that you have a witness in the room if you are dealing with a member of the opposite sex. You may also want a witness present to help you take good notes. Make sure the witness is a member of the management team. When the discussion occurs, make sure it is in a private setting and you will need to take very detailed notes . Follow the who, what, when, where trail.

•  Ask who was there when it happened (all potential witnesses)
• Ask what specifically occurred (as many details as possible)
• Ask when the situation happened (specific times)
• Ask about the specific location of the event - Many companies use various types of equipment that can be used in conducting an investigation (camera’s, key card readers, electronic time records, etc) so having this information is critical.

Take good notes because you may need them later. Don’t roll your eyes, don’t huff and puff, and please don’t make any commentary about the situation to the person reporting it. It’s tacky, caddy and does nothing more than diminish your credibility.

You should thank the employee for the information, make a commitment to look into it and send them on their way. Then you can begin to put your plan together for how to effectively investigate the allegation. Just keep in mind that the entire allegation may be a complete and utter lie. You never know what you are about to walk into.

Statement Time
So now is the moment of truth. You have taken your notes and it is time to ask the employee to write a statement. At this point, many employees start breathing heavily, their palms start sweating and they officially freak out! Your job is to keep them calm and reassure them that the employee in question will NEVER get to read their statement, or even know they wrote a statement. Inform them that their statement will help you focus on the key elements of the issue. In many company’s a witness is required to comply with the company's request for a written statement. Check your company policy to verify expectations within your organization. If your company has a specific form to use, then make sure you use it. It often contains legal language and a place for the employee and a witness to sign. If not, just a plain piece of paper will do.

The trickiest element in taking statements is getting the employee to write all of the pertinent information in their statement without telling them what to write. Although it seems intuitive that you cannot tell an employee what to say in their statement, you will need to be able to give them specific instructions about what you want them to cover. Otherwise many employees write some high level nonsense on a piece of paper and think they have fulfilled their obligation. Here are some tips for getting an employee to provide you with a complete statement:

• Give the employee a piece of paper beyond the form they will use to write their statement. Ask them to make a list of the things you would like them to address is their statement. Make sure you have the list documented as well so you can check to see if they covered everything
• Explain to the employee that you want them to take their time and include as many details as possible. You may want to read back excerpts from your notes of what they said on each topic.
• Tell the employee that you will review the statement when they are done to ensure it includes everything you have discussed. This subtly informs the employee that they might as well get it done right up front because you are going to be checking it
• If there are many elements to the statement, you may choose to have the employee only tackle one issue at a time. Have them write their statement on that issue and then you can review it. If they missed anything, ask them to address it. Then move on to the next issue and repeat the process. This is also a good process to follow when dealing with employees who struggle with writing skills.
• Now for the most important point in the statement process. You need to read each and every line of what the witness has written and make sure it addresses what you talked about. If it does not, hand the statement back and ask the employee to add additional remarks about the missing facts. This process may take quite awhile, so sit back and be patient
• If the witness suddenly includes a new fact that has not been discussed, you will need to start probing into that . Once you know more, ensure their statement included sufficient information. If not, hand it back and ask for additional information.
• Always close the meeting by thanking the employee for their cooperation. Make a commitment to the employee that you will only be sharing the information with those who have a need to know. If possible, let the employee know who those people are.
• Ask the employee for their commitment of confidentially as well. Let them know that sharing information about what was discussed can compromise the integrity of the investigation. Get their verbal commitment. That way if they run out and blab, you may have the opportunity to hold them accountable for their behavior.
• Repeat this entire process with each and every employee that has been mentioned as a witness or a participant in the issue.
• If a witness says they were not there and did not see or hear anything, then you need to ask them to write a statement specifically saying that. Example: I, Marie Haley-Twaddle was not working on 6/4/2010 and did not witness Susie Smith leave work two hours early with a company laptop in her backpack.

Once you have interviewed all of the witnesses and collected THOROUGH statements from each of them, you are ready to talk to the employee(s) about whom the allegation was made. You will need to make a master list of questions that should be compiled from all of the statements. Preparation for this meeting may be time consuming, but is critical for a fair outcome. You will also want to mentally prepare yourself for the meeting. There are times that the alleged conduct angers you. You must remind yourself that you really do not know the whole story until the last statement has been made. Also remember that it is not your job to judge the employee(s), it is your job to determine whether their actions violated company policy.  Once all your interviews are done, you will need to follow your company’s protocol for next steps. Often times you will partner with your HR representative.

Although many managers make no bones about proclaiming their distaste for having HR in their business, as a line manager, I absolutely cherished my relationship with my HR Manager! She bailed me out of more jams, and set me on a path for success for the issues I was tackling. Your goal should be to make your HR Manager a trusted business partner. If you always keep in mind that you are acting on behalf of your company, there should be no inner and outer circle. You should both be working towards the same end; doing the right thing for the company and the employee.

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