Disciplinary cases within the business are important processes that should be set as standard company-wide, meet legislation and offer fairness and transparency to both the employer and the employee in question.
Within any HR disciplinary case, there is a need for fairness and accuracy and one way in which this process can be achieved is through the use 3rd party mediators such as outsourced HR teams and impartial legal transcription services. A third-party approach removes all bias and could be key in ensuring all parties are treated fairly throughout the process, from start to finish.
The process of a disciplinary hearing
A proper and effective disciplinary process that follows set guidelines and standards is the best way to ensure complete fairness when undertaking an investigation and putting forward disciplinary proceedings. There are often cases of unfair dismissal brought against a previous employer, and this is why a business must set out its disciplinary procedures in its handbook and provide a fair hearing during the process itself. This is where the involvement of HR is important, and where the use of transcription services can provide a fair and accurate document of everything that has been said by both sides throughout the entire disciplinary process.
HR involvement in disciplinary cases
Working in HR means dealing with a whole range of sensitive, personal matters, some more delicate than others, and also providing that balance and fair presence in any disciplinary hearings that might occur within the business. Discussing a problem with HR should be an outcome that is available to every employee, without worry of it coming back to bite them. HR should be in place to keep track of proceedings, to ensure that both sides have their voices heard.
HR acts in an advisory role during the disciplinary process, not as an active participant in the hearings. There should be a clear outline of who will carry out the investigation, the hearing, and any future appeal hearing. A HR person should not be in any of these roles, instead carrying out the function of providing advice on law, procedure and process to the individuals.
Transcription services could be the missing piece to ensure that levels of fairness and transparency remain at a consistently high standard throughout disciplinary hearings.
The benefits of legal transcription services for disciplinary cases
Outsourcing the transcription of any disciplinary hearing involving a company helps to protect the integrity of the HR team involved in. Any type of hearing where there is disciplinary action potentially being taken can be highly charged affairs, with tension in the air and unhappy employees and employers potentially involved in a hot-tempered situation.
A transcript provides a clear, accurate, impartial record of everything that has been said at every single stage of the disciplinary hearings. It helps to protect the HR team and provides accuracy for both the employer and the employee. This helps to legally protect all sides. Choosing to work with a professional UK transcription service is the best approach to ensuring high standards for your disciplinary processes and HR dealings at all times. Some businesses might be enticed by low prices and automatic speech to text recognition software, but you can’t beat the human touch and the transcription of audio by seasoned professionals. This helps to ensure utmost accuracy for the entire conversation being transcribed.
This helps to clear the waters, leaving no grey areas to argue over in terms of what was said and when, which is the best way to come to a fair result for either side at the end of the process. When beginning the process of transcribing every meeting, your HR team should follow certain rules:
Make it clear about recordings – before starting any meeting ensure that every person present is fully aware that the meeting is being recorded in full. By pressing record on a meeting, it automatically makes everything more professional and from a legal standpoint it covers every person.
Think about security – professional transcription services understand the importance of security and the storage and processing of data and information that could be of a sensitive and legal nature. Choose to work with a company that has a track record of success and has worked within these types of situations before, knowing all about different layers of security and secure logins to ensure the safety of everything being recorded.
Legal protections – a good transcription service provides security guarantees and the most accurate transcripts. By recording a disciplinary hearing, you are ensuring that all parties act on their best behaviour and that accuracy is confirmed. This helps to de-escalate any potential disagreements and arguments over items that have previously been discussed.
It is very important that every HR disciplinary case is conducted with fairness and transparency. Keeping accurate notes at every single stage of the process is important and outsourcing to third-party UK transcription services is the best way to ensure that both sides of the case are treated in the same manner. There must always be an accurate record of what has been said by both sides and in the name of fairness these transcriptions are best coming from a completely impartial, professional service from outside the company in question.
