A line manager has just learnt that one of their clinical staff has allowed their professional registration to lapse. What should they do?
- For a number of clinical professions, registration is a legal requirement. A list of those professions can be found in the Professional Registration Policy.
- Failure to keep this registration up to date is a disciplinary matter.
- Whilst the registration is lapsed, the employee must not undertake clinical or any other duties and will be sent home with no pay until registration is confirmed. Please refer to section 3.7.1 of the Professional Registration policy.
- Depending on the outcome of the investigation, disciplinary action may follow which may result in dismissal.
- A record of the lapse should be held on the employee's record regardless of the outcome of the investigation as detailed in the Ongoing Monitoring of Professional Registration Policy. If the individual is a member of agency staff, the line manager will need to advise the agency of the lapse in registration and immediately inform the individual and their agency that they will no longer be required to work for us.
- Please refer to the Professional Registration section for further information.
An employee is not doing their job properly. What should the line manager do?
- This should not be managed under the Disciplinary Policy but under the organisation's Capability Policy. (Please refer to the Capability section for further information).
- Before the line manager makes a judgement, they need to meet informally with the employee to discuss their performance, and discover whether the employee is experiencing any problems in doing their job, for example, lack of sufficient equipment or support.
- If this is the case, then the line manager should try to resolve these problems.
- If the problem is one of incapability due to ill health, the line manager needs to refer to the attendance management section (please refer to the organisation's Attendance Management Policy) for further information on how to manage this.
- If, however, the employee can identify no specific problems, the line manager should refer to the Capability Policy and discuss the member of staff's poor standard of work during this informal meeting and the need for satisfactory improvement within a set timescale. (Please refer to the Capability section for further information).
Does an employee excluded from work accrue annual leave during their exclusion?
Yes, they still accrue annual leave as normal. Any request for annual leave during this period must be submitted as per the standard local procedure.
Is there a special procedure to follow at a disciplinary hearing?
Yes, please refer to the Disciplinary Procedure found near the bottom of the Disciplinary homepage.
The line manager thinks a nurse on their ward is negligent and should be suspended. Does the line manager have to go through all the informal and formal stages of the procedure before doing that?
- The line manager should immediately inform the head of service/lead clinician and the HR Team.
- Suspension from duty is not an alternative form of disciplinary action but a precautionary measure to enable a thorough investigation to take place and is intended to protect the interests of employees and patients.
- For an employee to be suspended from work or have their professional practice restricted, this can only be authorised by a manager at Grade 8b or above, with Director, Deputy Director or Assistant Director approval. Suspension or restriction is a precautionary act not a disciplinary one and will be for the minimum period possible
- The employee should be given the right to be accompanied at the suspension meeting and a letter confirming the reasons for suspension sent to them.
- The manager should ensure an investigation is conducted and all stages of the Disciplinary Procedure are followed.
- Depending on the outcome of the investigation, disciplinary action may be taken.
What are the differences between the “informal” and “formal” stages of the disciplinary procedure?
Informal:
- Managers should always discuss conduct issues with their employee at the earliest opportunity and where appropriate should first attempt to deal with any minor misconduct informally before resorting to the formal procedure. If employees commit a minor infringement the manager will usually issue a Verbal Warning and advise that a further breach may result in the Formal procedure being instigated. A note of the conversation should be placed on the personal file for reference purposes.
- Managers will summarise concerns and expectations in the form of a letter, a copy of which will be placed on the personal file. If informal action does not bring about the required improvement, or the misconduct is too serious to be classed as minor, formal disciplinary action will be considered.
Formal:
- The formal stage is when the line manager conducts a formal meeting with the employee as per the disciplinary procedure, which could result in the employee being disciplined following a full investigation. (Please refer to the Disciplinary Procedure for further details).
- The line manager should only initiate the formal stage if there has been no resolution at the informal stage, or if the case is sufficiently serious to omit the informal stage.
What happens when the investigation is over?
- Once the investigation is complete the investigating officer will make a recommendation to the Senior manager as to whether or not there is a case to answer based on the findings of the investigation report.
- If the investigating officer recommends that there is no case to answer, the employee will need to be informed of the outcome of the investigation.
- If the investigating officer recommends that there is a case to answer, the Senior manager will need to invite the employee in writing to a formal disciplinary hearing.
What is the role of Human Resources in the disciplinary process?
The role of Human Resources in the disciplinary process is to offer expert advice and guidance to line managers as per the organisation's policy. Human Resources must be involved at all stages of the formal (but not informal) disciplinary process up to and including dismissal.
Will the line manager have to carry out an investigation?
- The line manager may not have to carry out the investigation themselves, but they will have to ensure that an investigation is done into the allegation (or incident) before any formal action is taken.
- The investigating manager may work in the same area as the employee, but must not be involved in the allegations or have a conflict of interest with the employee in any way. They also cannot act as a witness at any subsequent disciplinary hearing.
- The investigating manager also needs to have a number of skills such as sensitivity, and the ability to take witness statements.
- It is the investigating manager's responsibility to investigate and obtain all relevant information and take all reasonable steps to determine the validity and accuracy of the complaint/allegation made against the employee.