WHAT IS MISCONDUCT?
Misconduct is employee behaviour that breaks your rules and/or breaches the terms of the employment contract and/or causes excessive harm to the employer.

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF DISCIPLINE?
The primary purpose of disciplinary action is to correct behaviour and simply not to punish (See Schedule 8 of the Labour Relations Act). You must tell the employee what he/she is doing wrong and what the right way is.

The purposes of having discipline in the workplace include:

• the maintenance of work standards.
• the maintenance of appropriate standards of conduct.
• ensuring consistent, fair treatment of all employees.
• the provision of corrective coaching where standards are not met.
• where necessary, to formally express dissatisfaction for breaches of discipline.

WHAT IS A DISCIPLINARY CODE?
A disciplinary code records the standards of conduct an employer expects of its employees. The infractions for which discipline may be administered are not limited purely by the listed code. The code serves only as examples of the types of infractions that will result in disciplinary action.

DISCIPLINARY HEARING
Is a formal enquiry to determine whether the allegations of misconduct have been committed by the employee. The employer initiates the process by providing the employee with a Notice of the hearing and a charge sheet. The Notice contains the details of the hearing. The charge sheet contains the details of the allegations against the employee. A chairperson is appointed to chair the hearing with the line manager being the initiator (prosecutor). There are Guidelines assisting Chairpersons and Initiators in the process.