{"id":3308,"date":"2018-01-31T09:25:31","date_gmt":"2018-01-30T23:25:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wiseworkplacetraining.com.au\/2021\/09\/11\/conducting-workplace-investigations-what-you-need-to-know\/"},"modified":"2018-01-31T09:25:31","modified_gmt":"2018-01-30T23:25:31","slug":"conducting-workplace-investigations-what-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wiseworkplace.com.au\/2018\/01\/conducting-workplace-investigations-what-you-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Conducting Workplace Investigations: What You Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
Part of running an effective organisation is ensuring that all staff are held accountable for their actions in the workplace, and are able to air grievances and raise complaints in a safe forum. This means that employers may need to undertake investigations into staff misconduct from time to time.<\/p>\n
Managing an unbiased and thorough workplace investigation can be a challenging and complicated process, particularly given the need to deal with sensitive topics and personal feelings.<\/p>\n
So, what are the most important things you need to be aware of when conducting a workplace investigation?<\/p>\n
All employers have a duty to provide a healthy and safe place of work. This includes obligations around workplace bullying, which can be enforced by the Fair Work Commission.<\/p>\n
Workers Compensation claims can arise from employees experiencing stress or other physical or mental harm because of issues with co-workers. If the alleged behaviour is serious enough (such as sexual harassment or assault for example) the employer could become civilly or even criminally liable.<\/p>\n
Employers must conduct fair investigations into all types of allegations made by complainants. Similarly, the accused worker has the right to have the complaint against them determined objectively and the sanction decided on by an unbiased decision-maker.<\/p>\n
If your organisation is large enough to have a dedicated Human Resources officer or even an HR team, it can be extremely helpful to have them involved in an investigation.<\/p>\n
Your HR team can facilitate a successful investigation by:<\/p>\n
Any workplace complaint requires a process of fact-finding or initial enquiry, whereby a third party interviews both the complainant and the accused party for information about what happened. The objective of this process is to determine whether the matter is serious enough to warrant a formal investigation or whether the conduct complained of can for instance be deemed trivial or minor in nature and can be dealt with on that basis.<\/p>\n
A formal investigation process goes much further. It requires the collection of information and evidence, interviewing of witnesses and the drafting of formal statements, the preparation of a detailed investigation report, analysis of the evidence and subsequent detailed consideration by key decision-makers as to the appropriate consequences.<\/p>\n
A key element of any workplace investigation is to ensure that all parties are afforded procedural fairness – a failure to do this could result in criticism of any decision taken by the employer after the investigation and could expose the organisation to legal liability.<\/p>\n
The key elements of procedural fairness include:<\/p>\n
The key elements of an effective investigation include:<\/p>\n
1. Planning the Investigation<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n 2. Interviewing<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n 3. Analysing and Weighing the Evidence<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n 4. Facilitating a Resolution<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n The consequences of a flawed investigation can be serious: decisions can be challenged in the courts, reputations can suffer and employee morale can take a nose-dive.<\/p>\n In some situations, it may not be appropriate to conduct an investigation internally, and an external investigator is required to help ensure a fair and unbiased process.<\/p>\n This could include situations where:<\/p>\n If you require assistance with investigating allegations of misconduct, contact WISE Workplace. We offer full investigation services, supported investigations and staff training on how to conduct workplace investigations.<\/p>\n\n
\n
\n
\n
When to ask for help<\/h3>\n
\n