Effective management of employee misconduct

Authored by the Lexis Nexis Legal Writer team and updated by Erin Lynch, Partner, Grace Gunn, Senior Associate, and Jessica Smith, Lawyer, Gadens.

Managing conduct

Best practice employers will take steps to ensure acceptable behaviour in the workplace.

If applicable standards of behaviour are not met, employers may need to manage employees' conduct, which includes providing opportunities for the employee to improve.

If insufficient improvement is made, employers may need to consider taking steps to deal with the situation fairly which may include disciplinary action. In some situations, the conduct may be so serious that the employee's employment is terminated.

What are the goals of managing conduct?

If employers manage their employees effectively, then employees are on notice that:

• there is a standard of behaviour that is expected of them;
• certain behaviours may be considered misconduct or serious misconduct; and
• disciplinary action may be taken for employee misconduct or serious misconduct.

If employers can demonstrate that they have effectively managed instances of employee misconduct in a manner which is procedurally and substantially fair, this may assist with defending an unfair dismissal claim if the employment is ultimately terminated. See Guidance Note: When is misconduct a valid reason for dismissal?

Appropriate workplace behaviour will also support a safe, healthy and productive workplace.

Is it misconduct per se or is the behaviour caused by something else?