When Minor Issues Become Major: Handling Dismissal - Disciplinary
- William Slivinsky
- Sep 10
- 5 min read
This article focuses on disciplinary misconduct.
For issues of incapability or ill health, UDO provides separate step-by-step guides within this series. You can find them in the index at the bottom of the page.
Many people think a small or trivial allegation could never lead to dismissal. Only when discriplinary actually leads to dismissal do they look back, analyse the process, and try to defend themselves. By then, the line of defence has already been weakened — during the investigation, suspension, hearing, and outcome. This is too common to ignore.
Don’t worry if you find yourself in this situation. There is still time to revisit the paperwork, correct inaccuracies, and prepare a strong appeal. This guide sets out the practical steps you should take.
Disciplinary - What to Do When Trivial Allegations Lead to Dismissal or Serious Sanction
Many people think a small or trivial allegation could never lead to dismissal. Only when dismissal actually happens do they look back, analyse the process, and try to defend themselves. By then, the line of defence has already been weakened — during the investigation, suspension, hearing, and outcome. This is too common to ignore.
Don’t worry if you find yourself in this situation. There is still time to revisit the paperwork, correct inaccuracies, and prepare a strong appeal. This guide sets out the practical steps you should take.
Step by Step Guide
🔹 Step 1: Gather and Review the Paperwork
Your first priority is to pull together all relevant documents:
Investigation report
Suspension letter
Disciplinary hearing invite
Minutes of hearings (investigation and disciplinary)
Outcome letter
Check what exactly was alleged at the investigation stage. Does the suspension letter say the same thing as the disciplinary invite? Did the minutes capture the same incident(s)?
📌 Practical Lesson: If the allegation keeps shifting between documents, that inconsistency is one of your first grounds of appeal.
🔹 Step 2: Check the Policies
You also need the disciplinary procedure and any other policies relevant to your case (e.g. health and safety).
If the allegation is that you breached a policy, you must have been given access to it. If you weren’t — especially if the employer quoted it in paperwork or at the hearing — that is a serious flaw.
📌 Practical Lesson: Request copies of any policies that were mentioned but not provided. In your appeal, point out you were denied a fair opportunity to prepare.
🔹 Step 3: Analyse Consistency of Allegations
Go through every document carefully and ask:
Was the nature of the allegation consistent throughout?
Or did it change as the process went along?
If it shifted, highlight this in your appeal as evidence of unfairness.
📌 Practical Lesson: Build a simple timeline/table listing the allegation wording in each document (investigation note → suspension letter → invite → minutes → outcome). Quote the exact phrases and underline any changes. If a new or expanded allegation appeared late, request disclosure and note that you were not given fair notice to prepare—ask for an adjournment (or, at appeal, for the decision to be set aside).
🔹 Step 4: Identify Conflicts of Interest
Look closely at who was involved in the investigation, suspension, and hearing. An employer should not appoint people who have a history with you — for example:
Someone you previously complained about
An ex-colleague you fell out with
A person who raised a grievance against you
📌 Practical Lesson: Conflict of interest undermines fairness. Raise it in your appeal if you spot it.
🔹 Step 5: Check Timing and Depth of Investigation
When were you suspended? When was your investigatory interview? How long after that were you invited to a disciplinary hearing?
If the allegation was serious but the “investigation” lasted only a few days, this could be evidence of a superficial or inadequate process.
📌 Practical Lesson: A rushed investigation is a common sign of an employer wanting a quick outcome rather than a fair one.
🔹 Step 6: Witnesses
If you named witnesses, they should have been interviewed properly. A vague note in the outcome letter saying “witnesses were spoken to but did not support your case” is not enough.
Request copies of the witness statements. If the employer refuses, or says no minutes were taken, this can be strong evidence of lack of transparency and inadequate investigation.
📌 Practical Lesson: If the outcome was based on witness evidence the employer cannot produce, you may have a strong appeal.
🔹 Step 7: Minutes and Records
Review the minutes from investigation and disciplinary hearings. Do they reflect what you actually said? If not, correct them in writing and send your version to the employer.
Even if the employer ignores your corrections, tribunals later compare both sets. Judges can draw adverse inferences if the employer’s version looks one-sided.
📌 Practical Lesson: Always submit your corrected minutes in writing. Even if the employer refuses to accept them, you’ve created evidence for appeal or tribunal.
🔹 Step 8: Disciplinary Invite and Outcome Letters
Look closely at the disciplinary invite. Were you warned in advance that dismissal was a possible outcome? If not, this can be strong evidence of inadequate preparation and unfairness. The question becomes: when was dismissal first considered, and was it properly reasoned? Check the outcome letter too. Did it clearly set out why dismissal was chosen instead of alternatives? If it relied partly or wholly on witness accounts but no records exist, that’s another strong ground for appeal.
📌 Practical Lesson: If dismissal was never mentioned in the invite letter, highlight this in your appeal — it shows lack of transparency and unfair preparation.
🔹 Step 9: The Hearing Process
Look at how the hearing itself was run:
Were you given a final opportunity to add anything?
Or was it just a list of structured questions with no room to explain?
If you weren’t given a chance to put your case fully, that is evidence of a flawed process.
📌 Practical Lesson: If you weren’t asked for closing comments, make sure your appeal points out you were denied a fair chance to defend yourself.
🔹 Step 10: Timeframes and Welfare
Check if you were given adequate notice of the hearing, in line with the policy. If you were suspended, most policies require regular welfare checks. If none were carried out, you can argue the process ignored your wellbeing. Also consider how suspension was handled: was it dignified, or a knee-jerk reaction? A heavy-handed suspension can itself be unfair.
📌 Practical Lesson: Lack of welfare checks or a rushed, heavy-handed suspension can be strong supporting evidence that the employer failed to act fairly.
🔹 Step 11: Contractual Rights
Finally, review your contract of employment and the disciplinary policy itself. If neither clearly says the procedure is non-contractual, argue that it forms part of your contract. That means failure to follow it is not just unfair — it could be a breach of contract.
📌 Practical Lesson: If the procedure isn’t labelled as non-contractual, you can frame your appeal not just as unfair dismissal, but also breach of contract.
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