Handling Abusive Language Towards HR: What Actions Can We Take and How to Address It?

Handling Abusive Language Towards HR

If a resource uses abusive language with HR, what action can we take, and is there anything we can penalize them for? If yes, please suggest urgently. In which code of conduct will this misbehavior be covered?

Dear Saara Kaushal,

Whether HR or otherwise, nobody should be given abusive treatment. All team members must be treated with fairness, and respect in the workplace must be valued.

Nevertheless, if an employee strays and uses abusive language, issue a stern warning letter immediately. If the employee remains incorrigible, then issue a show-cause notice. If the reply is unsatisfactory, you may impose a penalty.

However, when issuing a warning letter or a show-cause notice, ensure you have valid proof of the misconduct.

Abusive treatment in the workplace often stems from a lack of a culture of business etiquette. You may approach your management to:

a) Create a manual of the code of conduct
b) Organize a training program on workplace etiquette

A culture of etiquette serves as a motivating factor. The top leadership must strive to foster a culture of respect.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

Thank you for the support provided above. However, this employee was laid off on 8th June 2021. During the exit formalities, he began to abuse others through phone calls, which were not recorded. In this scenario, can we take action against him, or do we still have the authority to issue a warning letter?

Dear Saara,

If the employee was removed from his job, then possibly he might have made you the target of his frustration. If you have studied the subject of Organizational Behavior, then you might have read the chapter on Defense Mechanisms. The defense mechanism displayed by the employee was displacement.

Occasionally, we become the recipient of someone's anger through no fault of our own. Nevertheless, we need to take these incidents in stride and move on. After the cessation of the employer-employee relationship, we cannot initiate disciplinary action unless it is grave misconduct.

The termination from employment is a delicate issue. It has to be handled with due sensitivity. Much depends on how the termination was handled. Anyway, take it as a lesson and move on.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

Dear Madam,

In an employer-employee relationship, terms like laid off, retrenched, discharged, or dismissed have distinct legal connotations. It is not clear what you mean by 'laid off'. Perhaps the alleged misbehavior on the part of the person occurred after he legally ceased to be your employee.

In that case, you cannot take any punitive action as he allegedly used abusive language after his employment had ended, and there was no employer-employee relationship subsisting at the material time.

What is in your hands is perhaps you may reveal these facts during background verification (BVG) or, if possible, delay his settlement and the issuance of a service certificate.

Alternatively, you could let it go, forgive and forget, and move forward.

Regards,

Vinayak Nagarkar
HR and Employee Relations Consultant

Dear Saara,

A learned senior member has written, "What is in your hand is perhaps you may reveal these facts at the time of background verification - BVG or if it is possible, delay his settlement and issue of service certificate."

The senior member recommends taking revenge. However, I strongly oppose that. We should never waste our time being vindictive. Vindictiveness takes us nowhere. Who knows, we might pay a price for being revengeful. If you read the biographies of famous leaders like Jyotiba Phule, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Nelson Mandela, etc., you will find that though they faced the worst discrimination, they never spent their time on settling the score.

Those who provide services bear the brunt of the roughshod treatment from the customers or those who avail of their services. The counter clerks working at the airport or cabin crew, hospital staff, etc., are the recipients of the abrasive behavior by their customers. Sometimes you might have witnessed people fighting with the traffic police too. HR professionals are no different. They too bear the brunt of the irascibility of the staff working at various departments.

Therefore, once again, I reiterate my suggestion to ignore the incident and move on. There are better things to do in life, and the time spent doing positive activities gives a positive result.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar