At Will Versus Mandatory Arbitration or Appeals

HR Discipline One of the less than attractive parts of being a human resources professional is engaging in the discipline or even firing of employees that cannot or will not abide by the required rules and regulations that employees are required to follow. Whether it be doing the job the right way, treating colleagues with respect or other things, it is important that human resources professionals follow the right procedures and flowcharts when it comes to terminating employees.

Indeed, skipping steps and/or not documenting the process, among other things, can lead to lawsuits or other headaches along the way. While problem or ineffectual employees do need to be dismissed, it is imperative that human resources professionals follow all of the required and recommended best practices while punishing or firing people. Analysis The assignment that is being completed via this report asks the author to compare and contrast two different disciplinary systems.

For each system, it will be assessed what steps are taken before terminating an employee, how corrective measures are taken, whether the employee has a right to appeal, how the appeal process works (if it exists), whether either or both styles are best for specific industries or job types and what legal or ethical factors should be considered on termination.

At a high level, there are basically two common methods and systems that come to mind when it comes to discipline of employees and that is union/arbitration situations and at-will employment. When it comes to unions, it is rather rare for the company to be able to unilaterally fire someone with no due process unless the action is truly egregious and severe such as employee violence or something of that nature.

In short, employers have a right to say that a person needs to be done but there is an appeal or arbitration process whereby the decision is reviewed based on whether the collective bargaining agreement was followed, what corrective measures were taken prior and so forth.

When it comes to such situations, all of the normal legal and ethical concerns present in an at-will disciplinary situation hold true and the collective bargaining agreement and "rules of the road" for the union and its arrangement with the employer also have to be complied with. In short, the collective bargaining agreement (in addition to the law) dictates the steps that are taken, what corrective measures can be executed, when those measures can be executed and so forth (Washington, 2016). At-will employment situations are much different.

There are legal limitations and anyone can file a lawsuit. However, the absence of a collective bargaining agreement and/or mandated arbitration or due process really puts the ball in the employer's court and leaves the employee with little to no recourse in most situations. Indeed, an at-will employee can be fired for just about any reason so long as it does not pertain to something that is legally protected in terms of status or traits such as age, race, gender, etc.

Even so, employers should cross their t's and dot their I's. All disciplinary action needs to be documented and there typically needs to be a progression in terms of level when it comes to discipline. Except for the most egregious acts, there should be at least a warning or two before termination and the date and content of those warnings should always be meticulous and in writing. The termination process itself should also be documented and it should be approved and witnessed by at least two people.

Of course, the fired employee can always sue and/or complain to the EEOC or other relevant agencies. Industries that would tend to be union/arbitration-minded would be working class and blue-collar jobs while professional jobs are rarely union, although some can be (Guerin, 2016). Conclusion As far as the ethics and legal factors that.