Disciplinary action at work is sometimes unavoidable. Moreover it is needed to protect the organisation and maintain standards across the workforce. However, new Acas research suggests employers are dealing with a broad range of problematic behaviours, from absenteeism to bullying, theft and rudeness.
The findings raise a wider question for employers and HR professionals. While a disciplinary procedure provides a mechanism for responding to misconduct, could more be done to prevent these behaviours from developing in the first place?
Effective management requires more than responding to misconduct with warnings and sanctions. By establishing clear expectations, addressing workplace conflict early and understanding the factors contributing to problematic behaviour, employers may be able to prevent some issues from escalating to the point where formal disciplinary action at work becomes necessary.
What Did the Acas Research Find?
New research from Acas provides an insight into some of the behaviours employers consider serious enough to result in disciplinary action.
Acas commissioned YouGov to survey 1,050 senior decision-makers at British businesses. When asked about the worst examples of behaviour they had witnessed resulting in disciplinary action at work, 34% identified employees not turning up to work, making it the most commonly reported behaviour.
Theft or stealing from work, bullying and being rude to colleagues or customers were each reported by 30% of employers. A further 27% cited employees taking sick leave when they were not genuinely ill. Other reported problems included being drunk at work, sexual harassment, physical violence, being under the influence of drugs and leaking confidential information.
The findings arrive as Acas consults on proposed changes to its Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures. It is evident that greater emphasis is being placed on addressing workplace problems early and, where appropriate, informally.
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Why Do Employees Engage in Misconduct in the Workplace?
There is unlikely to be one explanation for misconduct in the workplace. Some behaviour, particularly deliberate theft, violence or serious harassment, may require immediate formal intervention. Other problems can develop gradually and may be influenced by wider issues within the organisation.
Repeated rudeness, for example, may emerge in teams where poor communication or workplace conflict has been allowed to continue unchecked. Bullying may become more prevalent where managers fail to challenge inappropriate behaviour. Moreover, employees believe that high performance excuses poor conduct towards colleagues.
Absenteeism can be similarly complicated. An employee repeatedly failing to attend work without authorisation is clearly a management concern. However, employers should investigate what is happening before assuming deliberate misconduct. Poor mental health, workplace stress, caring responsibilities, conflict with colleagues or dissatisfaction with working conditions may sometimes contribute to attendance problems.
This does not excuse inappropriate behaviour. It does, however, demonstrate why understanding the cause can be important when determining the most appropriate response.
Why Disciplinary Action at Work Alone May Not Solve the Problem
A disciplinary procedure is primarily reactive. It enables an employer to investigate allegations and decide whether formal action is justified after a problem has arisen.
That function remains essential, particularly in serious cases. However, issuing a warning to one employee will not necessarily address an underlying cultural problem affecting an entire team.
If bullying repeatedly occurs under the same manager, sickness absence is unusually high within a particular department or employees frequently complain about disrespectful behaviour, HR teams should consider whether the individual incidents indicate a wider problem.
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Acas itself has emphasised the importance of dealing with concerns as early as possible, noting that early intervention can reduce both costs and stress.
The aim should therefore be to combine an effective disciplinary policy with preventative measures that reduce the likelihood of misconduct occurring.
Set Clear Standards of Behaviour
Employees need to understand what their employer expects of them.
A disciplinary policy should clearly identify conduct that may result in formal action and explain the procedure the organisation will follow. Policies concerning bullying, harassment, sickness absence, equality, social media and workplace behaviour should complement the disciplinary framework.
However, simply uploading policies to an intranet is unlikely to influence workplace culture. Expectations should be communicated during induction, reinforced through training and reflected in everyday management.
Managers also need to lead by example. An organisation that states it has zero tolerance for bullying but allows senior employees to behave aggressively towards colleagues risks undermining its own policies.
Consistency between written standards and actual workplace behaviour is therefore fundamental.
Address Bullying Before It Becomes Embedded
With 30% of employers in the Acas survey identifying bullying among the worst behaviours they had witnessed leading to disciplinary action at work, prevention should be a particular priority.
Employers should create reporting mechanisms that allow employees to raise concerns without fearing retaliation. Managers should also understand how to recognise behaviours that could indicate bullying rather than waiting for a formal grievance to be submitted.
Informal intervention can sometimes be effective where relationships are beginning to deteriorate and the conduct is not sufficiently serious to require immediate formal action. A manager might facilitate a conversation, clarify expectations or seek HR support before matters escalate.
Serious allegations should not, however, be pushed towards informal resolution simply because it is more convenient. Where bullying, harassment or discrimination is alleged, employers should assess the circumstances carefully and conduct an appropriate investigation where necessary.
The key is early intervention combined with a proportionate response.
Tackle Rudeness and Poor Workplace Behaviour
Rudeness may appear less serious than theft or violence, but persistent disrespectful behaviour can have a considerable impact on workplace culture.
Thirty per cent of employers surveyed by Acas reported rudeness towards colleagues or customers among the worst behaviours they had witnessed resulting in disciplinary action.
Employers should avoid allowing inappropriate behaviour to become normalised as workplace “banter” or simply part of someone’s personality. Managers who repeatedly overlook disrespectful conduct can inadvertently signal that it is acceptable.
Early conversations can be particularly valuable here. Employees may not always recognise the impact of their communication style, and constructive management intervention may resolve the issue before formal action is required.
Where behaviour continues despite clear expectations and previous intervention, progressing through the disciplinary procedure may become appropriate.
Take a More Informed Approach to Absenteeism
The Acas findings also highlight attendance as a major concern. Not turning up to work was the most commonly reported behaviour, while 27% of employers identified employees taking sick leave when they were not genuinely ill.
Employers need clear attendance and sickness absence procedures, but distinguishing misconduct from genuine ill health is essential.
An employee who deliberately fails to attend work without authorisation may require disciplinary action. An employee whose attendance is affected by a health condition requires a different approach.
Return-to-work meetings can help managers understand the circumstances behind an absence and identify recurring patterns. Where health concerns emerge, occupational health input or workplace adjustments may be appropriate.
Employers should be particularly careful where absence may relate to a disability, pregnancy or another legally protected situation. Treating genuine health-related absence automatically as misconduct can create significant employment law risks.
Train Managers to Intervene Earlier
Managers are often the first people to notice that employee behaviour is deteriorating.
A manager may observe tension between colleagues, repeated lateness, changes in attendance or inappropriate interactions long before the issue reaches HR. If managers lack the confidence to intervene, relatively manageable concerns can develop into formal disputes.
Training should therefore extend beyond explaining how to conduct disciplinary hearings. Managers should understand how to hold difficult conversations, document concerns, distinguish conduct from capability or health issues and recognise when HR involvement is necessary.
They should also know when informal resolution is inappropriate. Allegations involving serious misconduct, discrimination, harassment, violence or safeguarding concerns may require formal investigation from the outset.
Giving managers the skills to make that distinction can support both early conflict resolution and fair disciplinary decision-making.
Follow a Fair Procedure When Disciplinary Action at Work Is Necessary
Prevention does not eliminate the need for disciplinary action at work.
Where misconduct occurs, employers should investigate the allegations fairly and establish the facts before reaching conclusions. Employees should understand the case against them and have a genuine opportunity to respond.
Any disciplinary sanction should also be proportionate to the misconduct and applied consistently. An employer should consider relevant circumstances rather than assuming that a particular allegation automatically requires dismissal.
The disciplinary policy should be followed alongside the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures where applicable. Acas’ current consultation is particularly relevant for employers, as the organisation is seeking to modernise a Code that was last fully revised in 2009.
Employers should therefore keep their procedures under review as the proposed changes progress.
Look for Patterns, Not Just Individual Incidents
HR data can provide employers with valuable warning signs.
Repeated grievances within one department, high sickness absence under a particular manager or unusually high employee turnover may indicate a problem that cannot be resolved through individual disciplinary cases alone.
Exit interviews, employee surveys, absence records and grievance data can help organisations identify these patterns. Employers can then investigate whether workload, management practices, workplace culture or another underlying issue requires attention.
This is where effective conflict management and disciplinary procedures should work together. Formal procedures provide accountability where employees breach workplace standards, while preventative strategies address the organisational conditions that may allow problems to develop.
Conclusion
The latest Acas findings demonstrate the range of difficult behaviours employers continue to encounter. From employees not turning up for work to theft, bullying, rudeness and dishonest sickness absence, misconduct in the workplace can create substantial operational and employee relations challenges.
However, disciplinary action at work should not be the only tool available to employers. A robust disciplinary policy remains essential, but organisations should also focus on setting clear expectations, training managers, identifying underlying causes and addressing emerging problems before they escalate.
The objective is not to avoid disciplinary action at work where it is justified. Instead, employers should create workplaces where misconduct is less likely to occur and where managers have the confidence to respond appropriately when it does.
By combining prevention with a fair and consistent disciplinary procedure, employers can protect workplace standards while reducing the human and financial costs associated with unresolved conflict and repeated misconduct.
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