St Thomas’ Pre-school Playgroup
Disciplinary and Grievance procedure.
Minor disagreements.
Minor disagreements among Pre-school staff, or between staff and owner, can usually be resolved at the regular staff meetings, or informally by discussion.
Disciplinary procedure.
A more serious situation arises when a dispute cannot be resolved, or when the owner is dissatisfied with the conduct or activities of an employee.
Any disciplinary matter will normally be dealt with in the following way. At every stage the employee should be given reasonable notice (5 days) that a disciplinary hearing is due to take place to give them an opportunity to prepare their case, and they should be offered the opportunity to be accompanied by a colleague or union representative if they wish. The disciplinary panel will usually consist of the Owner/manager and the Deputy.
1. Oral warning.
i) The employee should be interviewed by the disciplinary panel who will explain the complaint.
ii) The employee will be given full opportunity to state their case.
iii) After careful consideration by the owner, and if the warning is considered to be appropriate, the employee needs to be told:
a) what action should be taken to correct the conduct
b) that they will be given reasonable time to rectify matters
c) what training needs have been identified, with timescales for implementation
d) what mitigating circumstance have been taken into consideration in reaching the decision
e) that if they fail to improve then further action will be taken
f) that a record of the warning will be kept
g) that they may appeal against the decision within a limited time period (5 days).
2. Formal written warning.
If the employee fails to correct their conduct and further action is necessary, or if the original offence is considered too serious to warrant an initial oral warning:
i) The employee will be interviewed and given the opportunity to state their case. (Reasonable time must be allowed for the employee to prepare their case).
ii) If a further formal warning is considered to be appropriate, this will be explained to the employee and a letter confirming this decision will be sent to the employee
iii) The letter will:
a) contain a clear reprimand and the reason for it
b) explain what corrective action is required and what reasonable time is given for improvement
c) state what training needs have been identified, with timescales for implementation
d) make clear what mitigating circumstances have been taken into account in reaching the decision
e) warn that failure to improve will result in further disciplinary action which could result in a final written warning and, if unheeded, ultimately to dismissal with appropriate notice
f) explain that they have a right to appeal against the decision.
3. Final written warning
If the employee fails to correct their conduct and further action is necessary, or if the original offence is considered too serious to warrant any initial warnings:
i) The employee will be interviewed and given the opportunity to state their case. (Reasonable time must be given for the employee to prepare their case).
ii) If a final warning is considered appropriate, this will be explained to the employee and a letter confirming this decision will be sent to them.
iii) The letter will:
a) contain a clear reprimand and the reasons for it
b) explain what corrective action is required and what reasonable time is given for improvement
c) state what training needs have been identified, with timescales for implementation
d) make clear what mitigating circumstances have been taken into account in reaching the decision
e) warn that failure to improve will result in further disciplinary action which could result in dismissal
f) explain that they have a right to appeal against the decision, within 5 days.
4. Dismissal.
If the employee still fails to correct their conduct then:
i) the employee will be interviewed as before
ii) if the decision is to dismiss, the employee will be given notice of dismissal, stating the reasons for dismissal and giving details of the right to appeal.
If progress is satisfactory within the time given to rectify matters, the record of warnings in the individual’s file will be destroyed.
Suspension.
If the circumstances appear to warrant instant dismissal, an employee may be suspended with pay while investigations are made. These should consist of obtaining written statements from all witnesses to the disciplinary incident, and from the employee who is being disciplined. Obviously these investigations should be made in a short a time as possible. Ofsted will be informed if this action is necessary.
Instant dismissal is possible only in extreme circumstances of gross misconduct. Examples of such misconduct would be:
a) ill-treatment of children, either physical or verbal
b) theft or fraud
c) assault
d) malicious damage
e) being unfit through the use of drugs or alcohol
f) gross carelessness which threatens the health and safety of others.
Otherwise, an employee should not be dismissed without appropriate warnings.
Appeals.
At each stage of the disciplinary procedure the employee must be told that they have a right to appeal against any disciplinary action, and that the appeal must be made in writing to the Pre-school owner/manager within 5 days of a disciplinary interview. The appeal hearing should be heard, if possible, within ten days of receipt of the appeal. The appeal panel will consist of the Owner/manager and two other senior members of staff. The employee may take a colleague or trade union official to speak for them.
a) The employee will explain why they are dissatisfied and may be asked questions.
b) The Owner/manager will put their point of view and may be asked questions.
c) Witnesses may be heard and may be questioned by the panel, the employee and the owner/manager.
d) The panel will consider the matter and make its decision known.
A written record of the meeting will be kept.
Grievance procedure.
If an employee is dissatisfied they must have the opportunity for prompt discussion with the owner/manager. If the grievance persists, a panel should be set up for further discussion, at which the employee may, if they wish, be accompanied by a colleague. The panel will consist of the owner/manager, the deputy and a senior member of staff.
There must be the right of appeal to the owner/manager, at this level the employee may bring a colleague or trade union official.
The aim of the above procedure is to settle the grievance fairly and as near as possible to the point of origin. It is intended to be simple and rapid in operation.
Reviewed Oct 06.
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