How to Discipline an Employee using Progressive Counseling
No matter you are a supervisor, team leader or even the owner of an organisation, it is very important to keep your employees/ subordinates disciplined. Though, it can be an uphill task but there are couple of methods to correct their behaviour.
You may issue them a warning letter, termination letter or just give a verbal warning. However, if you have a labour union in your organisation then these methods can be inappropriate. In this situation, you should go for progressive counselling method as it gives the employee a fair chance to make amends before the consequences.
Using progressive counselling method is not difficult as all you need to do is to follow a well-defined procedure.
Instructions
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1
Talk to them in private:
If you feel that the behaviour of some employee needs to be corrected then pull him or her aside and talk. However, do not make it a formal conversation otherwise the person will consider it a verbal warning. You must keep in mind that the basic purpose of this step is to make them realise that they did something wrong. However, do not humiliate them by giving the impression that they are unprofessional. After having a casual talk with the employee, make a note of this incident and put it in his/her file. This will help you in deciding the employee’s future if the problem continues. -
2
Practice coaching:
At this stage, you become bit formal as you call the employee in office and have a session. However, you do not need to look angry or upset. Just be straight and ask about the reason of his/her behaviour. Give the person an impression that you are here to listen but you won’t accept the indiscipline. You should make note of this conversation and then get it signed by the employee. This will ring a bell that any further mistake can lead the person to deep trouble. Give the employee a copy of this document and ask him/her to resume the work. -
3
Take action:
If previous steps do not yield favourable results, then you need to show some strictness to discipline your employee. This time call him in the office, do the paper work, have a to-the-point discussion and make him realise that any further violation of same nature will result in immediate termination. -
4
Termination:
In progressive counselling method, termination is the final step and you should take this decision when things are at point of no return.
