What to Include
- Employee information
- Description of incident
- Relevant policies or guidelines
- Details of previous issues or warnings
- Constructive feedback
- Corrective action and follow-up plan
How to Serve an Employee Reprimand (4 steps)
1. Give Verbal Warning
Because a written reprimand is a form of serious disciplinary action, a verbal warning should be provided to the employee. The employee, in good faith, may not understand their lack of performance, the policy that is being violated, or inappropriate behavior. A private conversation advising the seriousness of their actions, or lack thereof, could hinder the issue from progressing further.
2. Hand Down a Disciplinary Action
When the employee fails to improve as previously requested, the employee should be met with disciplinary action. The employer will need to review the employee’s disciplinary action. The employer can then determine if additional commentary or details need to be added to the disciplinary action.
3. Give Corrective Actions to Be Taken
After all facts have been received and details pertaining to the incident have been collected, the employee should be provided with corrective action. The corrective action should encompass steps the employee can take to correct the behavior with set guidelines on when the behavior is expected to be modified.
4. Serve and Obtain Signature
Upon full discussion and understanding of the Employee Reprimand Form, all parties involved should sign the form. The form should be signed by the employee, who will acknowledge and agree to comply with the requested corrective action. The employer or appropriate party should also sign the form as it acknowledges that all issues on the form were addressed. The employee should then be given a copy of the signed form.