How Do I Draft a Show-Cause Letter for Employee Negligence That Led to Heavy Losses?

Hi, I appreciate your advice. I need to draft a show-cause letter for my employee's negligence of work due to not carrying out the job properly. As a result, the company has incurred a heavy loss.

Re: Show Cause Letter – Negligence of Duty

We have received a report from your Head of Department that you are not performing the duties assigned to you. As a Senior Superintendent of Technical, your role is to ensure that vessel conditions and maintenance standards adhere to company procedures.

This letter is in strict reference to the incident reported against you. Please find below the narration of events that amount to negligence in attitude and quality of work assigned to you.

On 11 May 2019, an audit on the vessel took place where it was found that the M/E condition and failure occurred because the spare solenoid valve was requested on 10th Dec 2017 under RQ-E-017089. However, the parts were only supplied on 23rd April 2018 and connected to the vessel on 28th April 2018. It took almost 5 months to replace the urgent spares. The parts are considered critical for the maintenance of the vessel. The matters were not reported to the Technical Department or any respective department. The vessel had run without proper parts for 5 months, which poses a danger to the vessel and any person on board.

As a superintendent of the vessel, you are in charge of obtaining the spare parts on time and reporting any delays to the Technical Department. However, this was not reported, and no appropriate actions were taken by you, which led to damages and costs during breakdowns, which is not acceptable by the company.

You are hereby required to provide the company with a written explanation within seven (7) days from the date of receipt of this letter as to why disciplinary action should not be taken against you. If you fail to respond within the stipulated time frame, the company will assume that you have no explanation to offer and will proceed to take appropriate action against you, including, where deemed appropriate, dismissal.

Yours faithfully,

I really appreciate your advice.

It seems like you've done a decent job of drafting the show-cause letter. Just a few adjustments to make it more effective:

1. **Opening paragraph**: After stating the purpose of the letter, it would be beneficial to mention the seriousness of the situation and the potential impacts on the company. 🏭💼

2. **Narration of events**: You've provided a detailed description of the events. However, it would be clearer to list each incident separately. This will make it easier for the employee to respond to each point. 📝✅

3. **Request for explanation**: You've already requested a written explanation from the employee. However, it might be helpful to specify what you expect in their explanation. For instance, they should provide reasons for their actions, steps they took to rectify the situation, and measures they will implement to prevent similar occurrences in the future. 📬🗂

4. **Consequences**: You've mentioned disciplinary action, including dismissal, if the employee fails to respond. It's important to also remind the employee about the company's right to take further action if the given explanation is not satisfactory. ⚖️💼

Remember to keep the tone of the letter professional and non-confrontational. While it's necessary to communicate the seriousness of the situation, it's equally important to maintain a respectful tone throughout the letter.

Also, ensure that the letter is in line with Malaysian labor laws and your company's policies on disciplinary action and employee negligence. This will protect your company legally in case the employee decides to challenge the show-cause letter or any subsequent disciplinary action.

Remember to have the letter reviewed by a legal expert or someone familiar with labor laws in Malaysia to ensure that it's legally sound.

Remember, the goal is to rectify the situation and improve the employee's performance, not to punish them.👨‍💼👩‍💼📈

Here is a revised version of your show-cause letter:

```Dear [Employee's Name],

This letter serves as a formal notice regarding the negligence you have shown in your assigned duties as a Senior Superintendent of Technical. Your actions have led to significant losses for the company.

On 11 May 2019, an audit revealed that the M/E Condition and Failure, where Spare Solenoid Valve was requested on 10th Dec 2017 under RQ-E-017089, took almost 5 months to replace. This delay, coupled with the lack of communication to the Technical Department about this issue, resulted in the vessel running without proper parts for 5 months, posing a significant risk.

As Senior Superintendent, it was your responsibility to ensure the timely replacement of these parts and to communicate any delays to the Technical Department. The failure to do so has caused damage and unnecessary costs during breakdowns, which is unacceptable.

You are hereby required to provide a written explanation within seven (7) days from the date of receipt of this letter. This explanation should include reasons for your actions, any steps you took to rectify the situation, and the measures you will implement to prevent this from happening again in the future.

If we do not receive a response within this period, or if the explanation provided is unsatisfactory, the company retains the right to take further action, including disciplinary measures or dismissal, as deemed appropriate.

Yours faithfully
```

I hope this helps! Feel free to ask if you have any more questions. 🤝🚀