Russell Drake Consulting
Conflict within the workplace is never a pleasant experience, but it can be made more manageable with professional and empathetic guidance from our highly experienced team of consultants.
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When resolutions are difficult to reach, we offer expert solutions to guide you through disciplinary and termination processes that are exacting and professional, leaving your business’ reputation watertight and reducing potential liability. We make it simple to address, mediate and resolve your employee’s grievances.
How We Can Help
Below you will find some of the most common situations employers are faced with, and you can rest assured that we have tried and tested solutions to help you through every single one of them.
How to: Make an employee redundant
Making an employee redundant may be a necessary step to ensure that you can structure your business in the manner that you wish; however, redundancy cannot occur until you have completed a procedurally fair consultation process where employees have the opportunity to provide feedback on the proposed changes. We can help you understand and structure how to make an employee redundant in a fair and reasonable way.
How to: Handle disgruntled employees
Disgruntled employees place stress on company management and other staff members. Either addressing the employee’s concerns or moving them on will enable you to create a more productive and satisfying workplace, however addressing the employee must be managed in a procedurally fair manner. There are several ways to handle disgruntled employees based on their specific grievances and the level of escalation.
How to: Performance manage my employee
To effectively performance manage an employee is to seek to improve their skills and knowledge to the level required for their role. Some staff may be able to reach this standard, and others may fall short despite all their best efforts. Achieving the desired outcome requires the use of a well-constructed performance improvement plan.
How to: fire an employee (terminate employment)
If you are seeking the correct way how to fire an employee, correctly referred to as terminating their employment, getting your process right is critical to ensure that you do not end up having to pay compensation to resolve a personal grievance. The first key thing to note is that you must never use defamatory language such as ‘firing’ in your workplace, in emails, or with your staff, as it leaves you open to liability and sought compensation. It is also important not to discuss the details of said employment termination with the rest of your staff. Learning how to terminate employment correctly and with some grace requires management to follow the correct process, ensuring that you can achieve your desired results without unnecessary risk and liability. Terminating employment is never an easy conversation, but we can help you understand what to say, how to say it, and what legal obligations and pre-planned exit details you will need to organise for your employee to make the transition as smooth as possible without leaving either party in an uncomfortable limbo.
How to: Do a company restructure
Effectively performing a company restructure involves genuine consultation with the affected staff, and careful consideration of their feedback before any final decisions are made. Decisions cannot be predetermined and must be based on sound information and rationale. How to perform a company restructure that leaves you protected against serious complaints can be a delicate process, and we can assist with your specific requirements to ensure you can restructure the way you need to without making a difficult situation worse.
How to: Deal with a personal grievance
Addressing an employee’s personal grievance can be very costly if not handled well; gaining professional representation can ensure that all options are considered and the best outcomes can be achieved. How to deal with a personal grievance can take different approaches, depending on the particular circumstances and how far escalated the grievance is.
How to: Deal with an employee complaint
All employee complaints must be treated as genuine and must be investigated through a robust and transparent process where decisions can be made based on the gathering and assessment of facts – this is often assisted through the engagement of an independent professional investigator who can look at the situation in an unbiased and objective manner. How to deal with an employee complaint correctly can be a sensitive procedure and requires level-headed, empathetic treatment at every step to avoid further complaints.
How to: Deal with an employee conflict
Employee conflict can take many different forms and always takes the focus off productive work practices. Knowing how to deal with an employee conflict can be tricky, especially if it’s already escalated and emotions are running high. Addressing conflict early and proactively will ensure that the work environment can stay focused on productive rather than destructive activities.
How to: Set up an employment contract
Every employer is legally required to ensure that every employee has a written employment contract or agreement – however, this is not a one-size-fits-all situation with agreements needing to actually reflect the terms and conditions specific to each employee – as well as all relevant legislative requirements.
How to: Give an employee a warning
Providing written warnings about inappropriate behaviour or conduct requires the employer to use a procedurally correct disciplinary process. Employees must be able to provide responses to the allegations and exercise their rights to support and representation before any final decisions are made. How to give an employee a warning while maintaining a good working relationship is a delicate balance. Still, it’s what we can help you strive for to create as little disruption to other employees as possible.
How to: Take disciplinary action towards an employee
An employer can take disciplinary action against an employee where there has been a breach of company policies, procedures or rules. This can result in either the provision of a written warning or dismissal, however following a procedurally fair process is critical to ensure that the final outcome can be justified if challenged through a personal grievance. We can address how to take disciplinary action towards an employee, providing detailed help and information pertaining to your specific situation and the breach in question.
How to: Negotiate an employee settlement
At times, it is evident that an employment relationship must come to an end; achieving this in an amicable manner can be accomplished through the use of a full, final and enforceable settlement agreement – however, getting to the stage of being able to negotiate the employee settlement must be handled with extreme caution in order to avoid unwanted liability.
How to: Deal with an employee misconduct
How to deal with employee misconduct involves a disciplinary process aimed at resolving less serious behavioural or attitudinal breaches and has the objective of correcting behaviour before events become more serious. However, the approach must still be completed in a procedurally correct manner in order to reduce liability or claims of unjustified disadvantage.
How to: Deal with a serious employee misconduct
Dealing with a serious misconduct situation can result in the termination of an employee’s employment. Therefore care needs to be taken to ensure all relevant facts are gathered and considered. The employee must have the opportunity to provide responses and exercise their right to seek support and representation before any decisions are made. There is no one rule on how to deal with a serious employee misconduct, and must be approached individually based on the severity and nature of the misconduct in question.