hi there, could someone please help me draft a warning for doing personal things during working hours without permission. thanks Charnelle
From South Africa, Cape Town
Acknowledge(1)
Amend(0)
3From South Africa, Cape Town
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
Addressing Personal Work During Office Hours
We would like to bring to your attention that some of our employees are involved in personal work during office hours. We would like to address this issue. Engaging in personal tasks during official hours can significantly reduce the productivity of both individuals and the group. This will undoubtedly affect the company's turnover as well. Individuals who intend to work on personal tasks during office hours undermine the morale and the value they hold in the company. There is a great level of trust that we have for our employees, and we are confident that you will not let it diminish. Considering these points, we kindly request your cooperation.
Regards,
HR Team.
After this message, if employees still continue, you can implement your action plans.
From India, Salai
Acknowledge(1)
Amend(0)
We would like to bring to your attention that some of our employees are involved in personal work during office hours. We would like to address this issue. Engaging in personal tasks during official hours can significantly reduce the productivity of both individuals and the group. This will undoubtedly affect the company's turnover as well. Individuals who intend to work on personal tasks during office hours undermine the morale and the value they hold in the company. There is a great level of trust that we have for our employees, and we are confident that you will not let it diminish. Considering these points, we kindly request your cooperation.
Regards,
HR Team.
After this message, if employees still continue, you can implement your action plans.
From India, Salai
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
Who is engaging in personal activities during working hours? What is their job title? Are you the manager of that individual? What is your role in the organization? Are you part of the HR team? Who brought this matter to your attention - was it you or someone else? Have you conducted a thorough verification of this information? Do you have sufficient evidence to support these claims?
If an employee is indeed using the company's time for personal activities, how much time are they spending on this? Is this behavior exhibited by only one employee or are there multiple individuals involved? If they are not engaged in personal activities, what other tasks could they have been working on?
There are several questions that need answers before a draft can be provided. Therefore, I suggest you draft a response on your own and share it here for review. Some senior professionals, like myself, will provide feedback.
Moreover, if an employee is found to be using work hours for personal tasks, it indicates they may have excess time available. Apart from issuing a warning letter, it is important to conduct a workload analysis for this position. Does the employee have enough tasks to fill their time? This factor should not be overlooked.
Thank you,
Regards,
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
Acknowledge(5)
Amend(0)
If an employee is indeed using the company's time for personal activities, how much time are they spending on this? Is this behavior exhibited by only one employee or are there multiple individuals involved? If they are not engaged in personal activities, what other tasks could they have been working on?
There are several questions that need answers before a draft can be provided. Therefore, I suggest you draft a response on your own and share it here for review. Some senior professionals, like myself, will provide feedback.
Moreover, if an employee is found to be using work hours for personal tasks, it indicates they may have excess time available. Apart from issuing a warning letter, it is important to conduct a workload analysis for this position. Does the employee have enough tasks to fill their time? This factor should not be overlooked.
Thank you,
Regards,
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
Acknowledge(5)Amend(0)
The poster of this post has asked for a "Warning Letter." The draft you have provided is somewhat suitable for an office circular. In fact, the language seems as if it is a homily delivered by a towering personality of that company. Exhortations do not work in a corporate environment. We need to be specific. I recommend verifying your draft with "The 7 C's of Business Writing." In addition to this, please check the correctness of 1-2 words as well. Hope you did not mind me bringing out the anomaly in your writing. All the best!
Dinesh V Divekar
You can draft a letter this way:
Team,
Greetings. We would like to bring to your notice that some of our employees are involved in personal work during office working hours. We would like to address this issue. People working on personal tasks during official hours will definitely bring down the productivity of an individual as well as the group. This will definitely affect the company's turnover too. People who intend to work on personal tasks during office hours bring down the morale and the value that they hold in the company. There is a great level of trust that we have for our employees, and we are sure that you will not let it go away. Taking these points into consideration, we kindly request your cooperation.
Regards,
HR Team.
After this mail, if your employees still continue, then you can add your action plans.
From India, Bangalore
Acknowledge(3)Amend(0)
Dinesh V Divekar
You can draft a letter this way:
Team,
Greetings. We would like to bring to your notice that some of our employees are involved in personal work during office working hours. We would like to address this issue. People working on personal tasks during official hours will definitely bring down the productivity of an individual as well as the group. This will definitely affect the company's turnover too. People who intend to work on personal tasks during office hours bring down the morale and the value that they hold in the company. There is a great level of trust that we have for our employees, and we are sure that you will not let it go away. Taking these points into consideration, we kindly request your cooperation.
Regards,
HR Team.
After this mail, if your employees still continue, then you can add your action plans.
From India, Bangalore
Acknowledge(3)Amend(0)
The employee's designation was an Office Admin position, but she was recently off sick for 60 days. When she returned, we offered her a position in the Store, which she was happy to take. I am the manager of this employee, I am the Accountant, and in her previous position, she reported to me. Since the changeover to the store, she was told she still needs to report to me.
We do not have an HR department, but I deal with staff issues such as contracts and payroll. Our director saw the employee busy with her personal activities, as did a few other employees, and it was brought to my attention. I have sufficient evidence. Yes, we work a normal 8-hour day. The employee was busy with personal tasks for 3-4 hours of the day when she could have been performing her actual job duties.
Thank you for your reply; it is much appreciated and has given me something to think about.
From South Africa, Cape Town
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
We do not have an HR department, but I deal with staff issues such as contracts and payroll. Our director saw the employee busy with her personal activities, as did a few other employees, and it was brought to my attention. I have sufficient evidence. Yes, we work a normal 8-hour day. The employee was busy with personal tasks for 3-4 hours of the day when she could have been performing her actual job duties.
Thank you for your reply; it is much appreciated and has given me something to think about.
From South Africa, Cape Town
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
Dear JuniorAcc,
What activities does she indulge in for 3-4 hours during the day?
From the Office Admin position, she has now been shifted to Stores. What are her job specifications? Is it similar to that of a Store-Keeper?
What kind of organization is yours? What materials does the "STORE" deal with?
Is there enough work for her to keep her busy full-time, or is she utilizing her spare time to keep herself busy and prevent boredom and lethargy?
She reports to you, yet you are not able to see or observe whether she is busy with official or personal work. However, a director, who must have lots of responsibilities compared to you, is able to notice her activities!
Can we rule out any chance of her being victimized, discriminated against, or harassed for reasons best known to your Director?
How has the matter escalated so quickly to warrant the issue of warning letters without any counseling or verbal warning?
Please don't feel offended by these queries, which are meant to solicit more information and examine every angle.
It's a pity that your organization lacks an HR department or a good HR officer who could have addressed these HR-related issues.
Warm regards.
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
What activities does she indulge in for 3-4 hours during the day?
From the Office Admin position, she has now been shifted to Stores. What are her job specifications? Is it similar to that of a Store-Keeper?
What kind of organization is yours? What materials does the "STORE" deal with?
Is there enough work for her to keep her busy full-time, or is she utilizing her spare time to keep herself busy and prevent boredom and lethargy?
She reports to you, yet you are not able to see or observe whether she is busy with official or personal work. However, a director, who must have lots of responsibilities compared to you, is able to notice her activities!
Can we rule out any chance of her being victimized, discriminated against, or harassed for reasons best known to your Director?
How has the matter escalated so quickly to warrant the issue of warning letters without any counseling or verbal warning?
Please don't feel offended by these queries, which are meant to solicit more information and examine every angle.
It's a pity that your organization lacks an HR department or a good HR officer who could have addressed these HR-related issues.
Warm regards.
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
Issue a warning letter as follows:
Warning Letter Template
Dear Mr./Mrs.,
It has come to the Management's attention that you are spending 3-4 hours on a daily basis for your personal work. This constitutes a violation of Company Rules (please refer to the relevant rule).
You are hereby being seriously warned to cease such acts of indiscipline. Failure to comply will result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination from the company.
Thank you,
Haragopal
GM-HR
SSPL
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Warning Letter Template
Dear Mr./Mrs.,
It has come to the Management's attention that you are spending 3-4 hours on a daily basis for your personal work. This constitutes a violation of Company Rules (please refer to the relevant rule).
You are hereby being seriously warned to cease such acts of indiscipline. Failure to comply will result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination from the company.
Thank you,
Haragopal
GM-HR
SSPL
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
I would say, such a warning, "you are spending 3-4 hours on a daily basis for your personal work," is not only ridiculous; it also signifies the inability and inefficiency of the company in terms of their supervision and ability to take work from employees.
Such a poorly drafted (vague) warning letter, signed by a GM-HR, would only signify the quality of management and the reason "of spending 3-4 hours on a daily basis" on personal work.
One should be careful in drafting such letters. There should not be ANY BIAS.
The statement "3-4 hours on a daily basis" is vague and prejudicial. An employee in a court can easily point out that these charges are IMAGINARY and cannot be substantiated. Only a foolish management will accept this in court and be a laughing stock that their employees are working only FOR HALF THE TIME ON A DAILY BASIS. One would wonder what their managers are doing then?
Rather than such VAGUE and WILD ACCUSATIONS, one should be SPECIFIC.
For example, "It has been reported that on --/--/----- you indulged in your personal work for 3 to 4 hours and thus neglected your official duties. This behavior has also been observed on certain earlier occasions too."
Saying that a person is doing personal work for 3-4 hours on a daily basis also questions the ability and involvement of his superior/reporting officers. How did they allow this on a daily basis??
Warm regards.
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
Such a poorly drafted (vague) warning letter, signed by a GM-HR, would only signify the quality of management and the reason "of spending 3-4 hours on a daily basis" on personal work.
One should be careful in drafting such letters. There should not be ANY BIAS.
The statement "3-4 hours on a daily basis" is vague and prejudicial. An employee in a court can easily point out that these charges are IMAGINARY and cannot be substantiated. Only a foolish management will accept this in court and be a laughing stock that their employees are working only FOR HALF THE TIME ON A DAILY BASIS. One would wonder what their managers are doing then?
Rather than such VAGUE and WILD ACCUSATIONS, one should be SPECIFIC.
For example, "It has been reported that on --/--/----- you indulged in your personal work for 3 to 4 hours and thus neglected your official duties. This behavior has also been observed on certain earlier occasions too."
Saying that a person is doing personal work for 3-4 hours on a daily basis also questions the ability and involvement of his superior/reporting officers. How did they allow this on a daily basis??
Warm regards.
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)
You do not know the context of the complaint except as provided in the email seeking advice that 3-4 hours were being spent on personal work. Please refrain from using the word "RIDICULOUS." I am concerned about your professional competence.
Inquiry and Punishment Process
Courts will only take cognizance when punishments are awarded, and punishment is awarded following a detailed inquiry. Such an inquiry will illuminate all related circumstances and facts (e.g., when the 3-4 hours were spent, the nature of the personal work, who was involved, who witnessed it, and why no action was taken by his supervisor, etc.).
Purpose of the Draft
This draft, I REPEAT, aims to bring the concerned employee in line with a note of caution. DO NOT CONCLUDE WITHOUT EXAMINING FACTS & FIGURES. I am disappointed with your shortsighted approach. Please adopt a more professional stance.
Regards,
Haragopal
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Inquiry and Punishment Process
Courts will only take cognizance when punishments are awarded, and punishment is awarded following a detailed inquiry. Such an inquiry will illuminate all related circumstances and facts (e.g., when the 3-4 hours were spent, the nature of the personal work, who was involved, who witnessed it, and why no action was taken by his supervisor, etc.).
Purpose of the Draft
This draft, I REPEAT, aims to bring the concerned employee in line with a note of caution. DO NOT CONCLUDE WITHOUT EXAMINING FACTS & FIGURES. I am disappointed with your shortsighted approach. Please adopt a more professional stance.
Regards,
Haragopal
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)CiteHR is an AI-augmented HR knowledge and collaboration platform, enabling HR professionals to solve real-world challenges, validate decisions, and stay ahead through collective intelligence and machine-enhanced guidance. Join Our Platform.
No more working till late hours.doc
SWOT - Business & Personal .ppt
CiteHR.AI
(Fact Checked)-The response provided aligns with the necessary steps to address the situation of an employee engaging in personal activities during working hours. Thank you for sharing your insights and seeking guidance on handling this issue. (1 Acknowledge point)