Handling Employee Misconduct: Should I Issue a Warning Letter or Memo for Sleeping on Duty?

Hi, I am working in the hotel industry as an HR Manager. I need your help. I need to know what the procedure is for a warning letter and memo because one employee was caught sleeping on duty. Should I issue him a warning letter or a memo and ask for an explanation? Also, how many warning letters are required to terminate an employee? Please help me.

Thank you,
Gaurav

Hello,

I am attaching the format of a warning letter; you can change it according to your needs. Please check the attachment.

It's not correct that just because of sleeping in the office, you cannot terminate them. Think from an HR point of view; it's a common occurrence that sometimes employees may feel sleepy due to tiredness, not feeling well, or other personal issues.

ALL THE BEST

Regards,
Tejesh

Thank you for replying. I need to know how many warning letters are required to terminate an employee.

Mr. Gaurav Arora,

There is no hard and fast rule about it. Either you can issue a warning letter for sleeping during duty hours, or you can issue a show cause notice and ask for his/her written explanation for such indiscipline.

Usually, three or more minor misconducts constitute major misconduct, but even the repetition of minor misconduct on three or more occasions does not warrant the termination of an employee's services.

For termination or dismissal of an employee, there have to be valid reasons such as fraud or indulging in an act of violence, etc.

Even when an employee is involved in the above act of indiscipline, certain procedures falling under the purview of the Industrial Dispute Act must be followed.

A brief summary of the steps involved is as follows:

1. Issue of a charge sheet asking for a written explanation.
2. Management not satisfied with the explanation.
3. Notice of a domestic inquiry to judge the gravity of the misconduct.
4. Appointment of an Inquiry Officer.
5. Inquiry Proceedings.
6. Submission of a report by the Inquiry Officer to the Management with findings.
7. Show cause notice to the employee clearly stating that they are guilty and requesting a written explanation.
8. Finally, the order.

I hope you now have a better understanding of it.

Hi,

Regarding the issue of warning letters, please refer to your company's service rules, if any, governing the same. In the absence of any specific service rules, you can terminate an employee for any misconduct after issuing a charge sheet and conducting a domestic enquiry with a recommendation from the enquiry officer. You shall follow industrial jurisprudence in this regard, i.e., give the errant employee a full opportunity to be heard.

Thanks,

R. Sreenivasan

Hi,

I need to issue a warning letter as the employee is not performing well, not taking his duties seriously, running away from them, and not reporting to his senior in a proper manner. Could you please forward me a letter for this?

Thanks

What is the procedure in case an employee refuses to accept a warning letter twice - first hand-delivered, second time by registered A/D? Do we go for a charge sheet directly?

Refusal to accept any kind of official written communication itself constitutes an act of indiscipline. In case of refusal of any official communication, the same can be published in the local newspaper, and that is deemed to be served to the employee.

Hi Gauravarora,

To me, I think the solution is not to rush for a warning letter. As a proactive HR professional, try to talk to the employee. Nowadays, efforts should be made to correct employee behavior through a system of graduated disciplinary measures such as counseling and warnings. The purpose of a warning is to notify the employee that a further offense of a similar nature may result in major disciplinary action being taken. If a final warning is given, it should apply for a specified period of time.

But if you want to issue a warning letter:

i. Issue a charge sheet to the employee for the allegations.
ii. Conduct a domestic inquiry.
iii. Appoint the inquiry officer.

All in all, as an HR manager, focus on a graduated disciplinary system, especially counseling. You will get to know many things instead of rushing into those procedures.

Elisante Yona

Dear Gaurav,

I am also working in the hotel industry as an HR Manager. Files are not getting uploaded. If you can give me your email address, I will forward you some formats.

Regards,
Shilpa:)

I need to issue a warning letter as the employee did not attend to the work schedule and also did not show concern for their supervisor’s directives.

Thank you.

Hi,

Can anyone suggest how to write a warning letter? Below are some points to consider:

1. Not listening to instructions.
2. Performing prohibited tasks.
3. Ignoring work conditions.

Please provide more details for further assistance.

Request for Sample Warning Letter for Alcohol Consumption

Hi, this is Venkat, an Assistant Manager in HR. We are in need of a sample warning letter for alcohol consumption during duty hours.

Regards,
Venkat

Hello, can you help me create a warning letter format for staff? The letter should address the employee's failure to follow company rules and procedures, disclose customer information, and make the required deposit on 29/12/2014. Please assist me in drafting this letter format. Thank you.

I need to issue a warning letter to an employee for
• Insubordination.
• Severe lack of coordination and communication.
• Improper reporting pattern even after several warnings and instructions.
• And above all poor performance.
Can someone help me. Its a kind of urgent.