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1) Repeal of the statutory disciplinary, dismissal and grievance procedures

The current statutory disciplinary, dismissal and grievance procedures are set out in the Employment Act 2002. The procedures have been widely criticised since their introduction in 2004 and the Gibbons Review recommended that the procedures should be repealed in their entirety.

A new ACAS Code of Practice will be introduced in place of the existing statutory procedures. The Code requires both employees and employers to act consistently and deal with issues promptly and without unreasonable delay. The Code advises employers to keep a written record of any disciplinary and grievance cases that they deal with and also to develop and use written rules and procedures for handling disciplinary and grievance situations. Employers should give help to managers and employees to ensure that they understand the rules and procedure and know where they can be found.

There continues to be encouragement to resolve workplace disputes internally and at an early stage. The statutory right to be accompanied at disciplinary, dismissal, grievance and appeal meetings also remains. In general terms, a summary of the procedural requirements set out in the proposed Code is as follows:

1) The employer should establish the facts of each case by carrying out necessary investigations;

2) If it is decided that there is a disciplinary case to answer the employee should be notified of this in writing. The notification should contain sufficient information and its possible consequences to enable the employee to prepare to answer the case. The notification should also confirm the time and venue for the meeting and the employee's right to be accompanied at the meeting;

3) A meeting should be held with the employee to discuss the problem, allowing the employee to set out their case and answer any allegations;

4) The employer should make a decision on the appropriate action and inform the employee of this decision in writing. If the employee is dismissed, they should be informed of their right of appeal;

5) The employee should be provided with an opportunity to appeal (although whether this delays the termination date will depend on the circumstances).

Employees will no longer have to raise a grievance before presenting a claim to an employment tribunal. However if they do decide to raise a grievance, the Code of Practice sets out the following steps that should be followed:

1) The employee should let the employer know the nature of the grievance in writing;

2) The employer should hold a meeting with the employee to discuss the grievance. The employee should be able to explain their grievance and how they think it should be resolved;

3) The employer should decide on appropriate action and communicate the decision to the employee in writing, whilst also informing the employee of their right to appeal if they are not content with the action taken.

4) The employee should be provided with the opportunity to appeal.