Angry about an employee’s misconduct? Anger will lead you nowhere – taking disciplinary action will. If the employee in question has not indulged in misconduct before, you cannot simply fire him. You have to write a formal warning letter to him, detailing why s/he is being disciplined and what repercussions s/he will have to bear if similar behavior is displayed another time.
There are times when employers overlook employees’ mistakes that are not too big in nature. When something big happens however, employers have no choice but to reprimand the employee in question. If this is what you are going through, you may want to mention the “not so big offences” in the past as well. By doing this, you are actually preparing a comprehensive case against the employee and giving him a picture of his offence.
So what actually goes in a warning letter? If it is misconduct you are dealing with, you will need to address the issue directly. Spell out what constituted as “misconduct” and warn him / her about the repercussions on his job or status in the company will be. Be specific and be straight. There is no need to mince your words. Looking for a sample warning letter to get you started? Here is one:
Sample Warning Letter to Employee for Misconduct
April 15, 2015
Ms. Katy Holmes
Sales Manager
K-Mart
739 Denali Road
Taylorsville, UT 72836
Dear Ms. Holmes:
It has came to my notice that you have indulged in some serious misconduct over the course of the past week. Through 4 different sources, I have been informed of your negative attitude towards work, indulgence in racist remarks and your tardiness in reaching office – all of which are highly unacceptable to someone representing the sales department at K-Mart.
Even though there were some serious issues with your attitude since you were being hired 3 years ago, we were reluctant to take any action because you were successfully performing your work and exceeding your sales goals. However, we cannot overlook this, now that your attitude has started to degrade the morale of other employees and customers – two customers and one of your colleague has complained against you in writing, which is why your offences are being deemed serious now.
K-Mart is one of the best shopping arenas in Taylorsville and we would like to keep it that way. Our customers and employees are very important to us and we cannot run a business if either are unhappy with the way things are run. Please consider this as your first and final warning to change your attitude towards your fellow employees and customers, failure of which will result in termination of your employment with K-Mart.
Bradley Cooper
Sales Director
K-Mart – Regional
739 Denali Road
Taylorsville, UT 72836
(000) 999-0987
bradley @ kmart . com