Gross Misconduct

What is gross misconduct?

Gross misconduct is defined as any substandard action which is not bearable even by mistake. For example, a heinous crime against the rules causes a big mishap within or outside the organization.

Gross misconduct can be an immoral and unscrupulous performance that is considered non-professional, which resultantly may cause not only negative relationships with an employer but may lead to dismissal without notice from the services.

When a code of conduct is predetermined at onboarding and performance standards are soundly defined cum well communicated to each employee, then is the responsibility of each and everyone working in the organization to follow that in true letter and spirit avoiding troubles for own selves as well as for the company.        

Some offensive actions are terrible and warrant immediate counter actions to remedy the wrong done and save the organizational cultures to revise any such incidents in the future. That remedy is sometimes such monstrous as per the wickedness of the employee performance that necessitates removal from the duties that is known in HR language dismissals, even if the case is for the very first time first violation.      

Criminal actions, in HR inappropriate behaviors / unprofessional attitude capacities, might be of different nature but if that results in trust and confidence issues and it merits for instant dismissals, like one national security reasons, etc., that crime can be awarded the employee with immediate dismissed from the job. That immediate dismissal means neither any notice from the employer nor any compensation in lieu of that. However, as per

 

What Employers can do to Employee’s Unemployment Allowance?

As an employer, you are required to pay taxes. The taxes have diverse dominion within the account heads. Those account heads, one of those is unemployment allowance. If your employee leaves you fired with no fault of her / his own – which is a separate case to discuss what is it stands for – you have to be liable to pay more in that tax domain of unemployment allowances, which further the State department bestows upon the unemployed workers fired from the job because of no fault of their own.

In case, if you find your employee at gross misconduct in the workplace, with dismissal proceedings you may also hinder that employee to gain further unemployment allowances from the State as well if only the firing of the employee is for her / his own fault; and if not so the case may be treated as otherwise.

What are the actions that are treated as Gross Misconduct?   

While it differs from company to company as the business may be, generally the employers believe the following are the potential actions of five types categorically which are treated under the acts gross misconduct proceedings:

Counterfeit, Stealing, and Dishonesty

Counterfeit, stealing, and dishonesty are crimes that not only harm organizational financial and other assets but may also result in loss of relationship with clientele.

Offensive-Behavior

Offensive behaviors consequently outcome in relationship problems between colleagues, workers, and whosoever joins the organization in person. This includes sexual harassment, fighting, bullying, aggressiveness, violent threatening; and dangerous exuberance.   

Health and Safety Breach

Employers do believe that health and safety rules must not be breached. When these standard operating procedural code of conduct is breached, this may result in human deadly incidents, further causing reputation, liabilities, and even embargoes upon organizations.

What could be health and safety breaches are driving not carefully on sites, PPEs compromises – personal protective equipment – which encompass helmet (hard hat at site yellow, green, blue, white and red in colors – as per the zonal circles requirement), dress up of nuke radiation-free, radiometers not standardized, long safety shoes for onsite working, - machinery guards unused, siblings not timely greased, blockchains not lubricated, fall hazard not covered, room temperature of chemicals not maintained, pass-through gates not technologically checked timely – related to safety as well as security for weapons, gas cylinders not calibrated and put away the bursting ones in different places, fire check alarms not working not checked, emergency exits routine checkup, electricity and techno chips not in air-conditioned environment keeping, wrought materials not color-coded, rubber material not expiry checked, petrochemicals not labelled properly, measurement tools not attuned; and anything relevant to your business.

Property Damages

Anything substantial or gross level which may be treated as a loss or damage to organizational property is under this category and dealt with as gross misconduct. 

Alcoholism and Drugs

Anything related to alcoholism or drugs is dealt with a heavy hand. This includes taking off, transportation in and out, or trading drugs, alcohol, or similar things. This distresses organizational culture and resultantly is disastrous indeed therefore considered as gross misconduct.

How to deal with Gross Misconduct fairly?

Employers must follow the below mentioned to ensure they are not doing anything wrong to condemn and award a wrong, and for carrying a fair proceeding in terms of employee dismissal upon gross misconduct:

• Ensure that the misconduct done is a gross one
• The grounds must be checked for on which the gross misconduct is done
• Carry on reasonable and adequate inquiry
• Be fair, and a party to none, in all the proceedings and dealings
• An employer must mention that the dismissal falls under the “band of reasonable responses”

However, Employment Tribunal is referred to for such proceedings, if any. The employees with at least two years of service experience with you can file a legal case against the employer for unfair dismissal if the employee believes so. Moreover, the Employment Tribunal is the final decision maker for declaring the employee’s gross misconduct is either under the category of “band of reasonable responses” or otherwise unfair dismissal by the employer.