Conducting a faulty investigation can lead to an employee’s success in an unfair dismissal claim
Conducting a faulty investigation can lead to an employee’s success in an unfair dismissal claim
The AIRC found that the investigation was faulty and had been conducted in a “completely unprofessional” way by the Hospital’s HR practitioner. Part of the reasons for the decision was that the HR practitioner had refused to make copies of all records available to Ms Nicolson, including copies of all of the allegations made against Ms Nicolson. The AIRC also found that a senior employee was biased in his evidence against Ms Nicolson in the investigation. The AIRC specifically stated that Ms Nicolson was entitled to full disclosure of everything that was going to be used against her. The AIRC was particularly critical of the Hospital’s HR Practitioner, finding that her actions smacked of a poor concept of Ms Nicolson’s rights, particularly in light of the HR Practitioner’s claimed experience.
The AIRC concluded that there was no basis for the finding in the investigation that Ms Nicolson had assaulted a fellow employee during a rostering dispute. In fact, the AIRC found that Ms Nicolson was the victim of assault by a fellow employee rather than the perpetrator of the assault.
The AIRC also found that the HR practitioner’s conduct was in breach of the Hospital’s own Code of Conduct and the values expressed by the Hospital.
The AIRC ordered that Ms Nicolson was to be either reinstated to her former position or to a different but equivalent position. The AIRC provided the option of reinstating her to an equivalent position because of the poor attitude of the more senior employees in the area Ms Nicolson had worked in the Hospital. The AIRC also ordered that the Hospital pay to her compensation for lost earnings.
HR Tip : Employers must ensure that investigations conducted by the Company are procedurally fair and that any findings made from the investigation can be supported by the evidence provided in the investigation. Usually, this does not require providing an employee with all material relating to allegations against the employee, however, the employee should be informed of all details of the allegations against her.
Conducting a faulty investigation can lead to an employees success in an unfair dismissal claim - To learn more about this author, visit Jessica Lee's Website.
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In this case the Hospital’s HR practitioner conducted an internal investigation in which it wrongly accused Ms Nicolson of assaulting a fellow employee during a dispute over rosters. As a result of the internal investigation Ms Nicolson’s employment was terminated.
The AIRC found that the investigation was faulty and had been conducted in a “completely unprofessional” way by the Hospital’s HR practitioner. Part of the reasons for the decision was that the HR practitioner had refused to make copies of all records available to Ms Nicolson, including copies of all of the allegations made against Ms Nicolson. The AIRC also found that a senior employee was biased in his evidence against Ms Nicolson in the investigation. The AIRC specifically stated that Ms Nicolson was entitled to full disclosure of everything that was going to be used against her. The AIRC was particularly critical of the Hospital’s HR Practitioner, finding that her actions smacked of a poor concept of Ms Nicolson’s rights, particularly in light of the HR Practitioner’s claimed experience.
The AIRC concluded that there was no basis for the finding in the investigation that Ms Nicolson had assaulted a fellow employee during a rostering dispute. In fact, the AIRC found that Ms Nicolson was the victim of assault by a fellow employee rather than the perpetrator of the assault.
The AIRC also found that the HR practitioner’s conduct was in breach of the Hospital’s own Code of Conduct and the values expressed by the Hospital.
The AIRC ordered that Ms Nicolson was to be either reinstated to her former position or to a different but equivalent position. The AIRC provided the option of reinstating her to an equivalent position because of the poor attitude of the more senior employees in the area Ms Nicolson had worked in the Hospital. The AIRC also ordered that the Hospital pay to her compensation for lost earnings.
HR Tip : Employers must ensure that investigations conducted by the Company are procedurally fair and that any findings made from the investigation can be supported by the evidence provided in the investigation. Usually, this does not require providing an employee with all material relating to allegations against the employee, however, the employee should be informed of all details of the allegations against her.
Conducting a faulty investigation can lead to an employees success in an unfair dismissal claim - To learn more about this author, visit Jessica Lee's Website.
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Dianne CramptonDianne Crampton is an executive leadership coach, team consultant, author and president of TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Dianne has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down go here. - Visit Dianne Crampton's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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