the charges against them) and 2) that employees should be given a reasonable opportunity to respond to those allegations before any decisions are made regarding imposition of discipline. What is due process? In the employment context, due process involves two basic principles: 1) that employees are entitled to know the nature of their alleged misconduct or performance deficiencies (i.e. Not only does it provide consistency, but due process is an added layer of protection to ensure both that the employee is treated fairly and that the employer is making a wise business decision. However, there is no harm and much benefit that derives from providing all employees with basic due process protection. Some, but not all, public employees are entitled to pre-termination due process as a matter of law. Employers who are cognizant of these realities often pay an emotional toll arising from uncertainty over whether they made a fair and correct decision.Ī significant step towards providing employees with fair treatment is to assure that they receive due process prior to imposing discipline. Loss of employment resulting from unfair treatment takes an emotional toll on the employee and his or her family. The financial stability of families can be significantly damaged when an employee is unfairly terminated. There is a lot riding on discipline decisions. Public employees do no less deserve fair treatment than the members of the public they serve. The public deserves fair treatment and will accept nothing less. Public officials are charged with the evenhanded enforcement of laws, regulations, and policies. Unfair treatment of one employee tends to demoralize his or her peers, resulting in inefficiency and lost productivity.īut it is more than about the money. Not only does this cost money in legal fees, it costs the public employer the time of its officials and employees who are tied up in proceedings. In addition, unfair treatment of employees is more likely to lead to grievances and the risk of legal liability. If an employee’s period of service is unnecessarily shortened, those costs will never be recovered and additional monies will be expended on turnover costs. Those costs are only recovered in the community benefits from those up front costs over time. Recruitment and training of employees is expensive and time consuming. From a purely economic perspective, unfair treatment of employees results in a waste of public dollars. Public sector employers owe a duty to the taxpayers to see that public employees are treated fairly.
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