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chapter
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16
Managing Employee
Discipline
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Categories of Difficult Employees
1. Those whose quality of work is unsatisfactory,
owing to lack of abilities, training, or motivation
2. Those whose personal problems off the job
begin to affect their productivity on the job
3. Those who violate laws while on the job
4. Those who consistently break company rules
and do not respond to supervisory reactions
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Possible Causes of Deficient
Employee Behavior
 Problems
of intelligence
and job knowledge
 Emotional problems
 Motivational problems
 Physical problems
 Family problems
 Problems caused by the
work group
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 Problems
originating in
company policies
 Problems stemming
from society and its
values
 Problems from the work
context and the work
itself
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Category 1: Ineffective Employees (1
of 2)
There are three general questions a manager
might use to analyze the performance
problem:
1. What is the discrepancy?
2. Is it important?
3. Is it a deficiency in skills?
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Category 1: Ineffective Employees (2
of 2)
If
there is a deficiency in skills, then it must be
corrected
If the problem does not have to do with skills,
then it must be addressed in terms of:
 removing
obstacles
 creating a more positive motivational climate
 bringing about some type of job change
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Category 2: Alcoholic and SubstanceAbusing Employees (1 of 2)
Substance
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abuse affects 12 percent of the
workforce
It costs organizations about $150 billion per
year in lost productivity and related expenses
Substance abuse is one of the leading causes
of recent increases in workplace violence
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Category 2: Alcoholic and SubstanceAbusing Employees (2 of 2)
Alcohol
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and drug testing
 Omnibus
Transportation Employee Testing Act of
1991
 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
considerations
 Fourth Amendment considerations regarding
unreasonable search and seizure
Employee
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assistance programs (EAPs)
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Characteristics of EAPs
Employees
needing assistance are identified
and referred to the program
The employee is introduced into the program,
and his or her problem is evaluated
 The
employee receives counseling and may be
given a referral for treatment
Employees
receive professional diagnosis
and treatment
 Usually
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provided by outside agencies
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Category 3: Participants in Theft and
Other Illegal Acts (1 of 3)
Employees
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engage in illegal acts including:
 employee
theft
 misuse of company facilities or property
 disclosure of trade secrets
 embezzlement
 sabotage of products
 use of company telephones and credit cards for
personal use
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Category 3: Participants in Theft and
Other Illegal Acts (2 of 3)
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Employee
theft costs employers over $25
billion annually
To deal with employee dishonesty problems,
HR managers use:
 discipline
 termination
 rehabilitation
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Category 3: Participants in Theft and
Other Illegal Acts (3 of 3)
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HR
departments have responsibility for crime
prevention
 security
programs
 pre-employment screening mechanisms
Employee
Polygraph Protection Act of 1988
 Prohibits
the use of polygraph tests to gauge the
honesty of current and prospective employees in
most situations
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Category 4: Rule Violators
Consistently
violate company rules, e.g.,
 sleeping
on the job
 having weapons at work
 fighting at work
 coming in late
 abusing the supervisor
Workplace
violence is a particularly difficult
issue
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U.S. Post Office’s Program to Prevent Violence
1. Selection
2. Security
4. Climate
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3. Policy
5. Employee
Support
6. Separation
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HR Department Programs to Prevent
Workplace Violence
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Zero-tolerance
policies
Crisis management teams
Pre-selection screening tools
Employee assistance programs
Reduce legal liability
 Occupational
Safety and Health Act (OSHA)
 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
 Negligent hiring or retention
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Elements in a Disciplinary System
Employer
Establish rules
and goals
Communicate
rules and
goals
Assess
behavior
Modify
undesirable
behavior
Employees
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Examples of Rules For Employees’ Behavior:
Rules Directly Related to Productivity (1 of 2)
 Time
 Starting and
 Prohibited
late times
 Quitting time
 Maximum break and lunch
times
 Maximum absenteeism
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Behavior
 No sleeping on
the job
 No leaving workplace without
permission
 No drinking on the job
 No drug taking on the job
 Limited non-employer
activities during work hours
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Examples of Rules For Employees’ Behavior:
Rules Directly Related to Productivity (2 of 2)
 Insubordination
 Penalties for refusal
 Safety
to obey
supervisors
 Rules against slowdowns
and sit-downs
 Illegal
Behavior
 Theft
 No smoking
 Safety regulations
 Sanitation requirements
 No fighting
 No dangerous
weapons
 Falsification
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Examples of Rules For Employees’ Behavior:
Rules Indirectly Related to Productivity
Prevention
of moonlighting
Prohibition of gambling
Prohibition of selling or soliciting at work
Regulations for clothing and uniform
Rules about fraternization with other
employees at work or off the job
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Approaches to Discipline
Hot Stove Rule
Progressive Discipline
Positive Discipline
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The Hot Stove Rule (1 of 2)
1. Warning system
 Before
any behavior has occurred, a good
manager has communicated what the
consequences of the undesirable behavior are
2. Immediate burn
 If
discipline is required, it must occur immediately
after the undesirable act is observed
 The person must see the connection between the
act and the discipline
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The Hot Stove Rule (2 of 2)
3. Consistency
 There
are no favorites – stoves burn everyone
alike
 Any employee who performs the same
undesirable act will be disciplined similarly
4. Impersonality
 Disciplinary
action is not pointed toward a person
 It is meant to eliminate undesirable behaviors
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Progressive Discipline
Discipline
approach in which a sequence of
penalties is administered
 Each
one slightly more severe than previous one
Goal
is to build a discipline program that
progresses from less severe to more severe
punishment
Objective is to create and maintain a
productive, responsive workforce
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Progressive Discipline: Recommended Steps
to Document Progressive Disciplinary Actions
1. Identify the problem and explain how the employee’s
behavior detrimentally affected the organization
2. Provide a clear warning and explain the consequences of
failing to make the necessary behavioral changes
3. Document progressive disciplinary actions taken to prove
the employee’s failure to make behavioral changes
4. Demonstrate that disciplinary actions were consistently
applied to others under similar circumstances
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Problems with Hot Stove Rules and
Progressive Discipline
They
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focus on past behavior
There
is the possibility that employees who
are disciplined in a punitive way:
 will
not build commitment into their jobs
 will not feel better about the job or the company
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Positive Discipline
Future-oriented
approach
Working with employees to solve problems so
that problems do not occur again
Recognizes that people make mistakes
Deemphasizes punitive action by
management
Employee termination is a consequence
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The Disciplinary Interview: A Constructive
Approach
1. Root out the causes
2. Analyze the reasons for poor performance
3. Prepare for the disciplinary interview
4. Conduct the interview with care and professionalism
5. Prescribe the disciplinary steps to be taken in specific
terms and with a specific timetable
6. Do not expect to win a popularity contest
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Employment at Will
 An
employee is hired for an indefinite duration
in the absence of a written contract, and either
the employer or the employee may end the
employment relationship for any reason at any
time
 Exceptions:
 The
existence of an implied contract
 Covenant of good faith and fair dealing
 Violation of public policy
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Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Use
of methods other than formal court
litigation to resolve a dispute
Used extensively in the labor-management
arena
Advantages over traditional litigation
 less
time consuming
 less expensive
 more confidential
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Most Common ADR Methods
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Mediation
Arbitration
Summary
jury trial
Minitrial
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Summary
 Some
of the most difficult human resource
management problems involve handling difficult
or ineffective employees
 Discipline is an area in which help is needed in
many areas:
 supervisors,
HRM, the work group, arbitrators, top
management
 Each
has a crucial role to play if the discipline
system is to be effective
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