Final written warnings

[Wilko65]

Do final warnings actually expire?

My partner works in a prison and was given a final warning for 12 months for an alleged breach of H&S
6 months after this they were assaulted at work by a prisoner. The prisoner alleged racism and partner was suspended from work pending an investigation.
This investigation has lasted 10 months ,not because of any complexities but purely because of incompetence by the employer.
Anyway the outcome was that the allegations wete downgraded from gross to just misconduct and that they will be downgraded to a lower (9k less) position for a year and given a further 12 month final because the previous one was still live at the time of this further incident.
Can this be right???
Any help,opinions welcomed.
Thanks .W

[Wilko65]

Nobody ???

[james_law]

I'm not wholly familiar with employment law but here ia some things to think about.

From my maths 6 months in then plus another 10 months = 16 months this is the time lapsed from issuing one final written warning to the next. This problem is by the sounds of it they have issued it retrospectively from the time of offence so there should only be 2 months left on it now. If they have issued it from the end of the investigation the previous one would not be live as it ruins out in 12 months.

If they claim it was live why did they not sack your partner?

Regarding your partners demotion. In a nutshell , the company can demote your husband for misconduct, however you would need to seek independent legal advice for the finer details. I.e is the decrease in salary above board etc.

[Peridot]

Hi Wilko65,

It would be sensible for your partner to look at the Prison policy for disciplinary matters which will set out how issues are dealt with. Employers are encouraged to follow the ACAS code of practice which provides guidance on how to deal with employment issues.

Their code of practice doesn't give specific information about the length of time a disciplinary penalty should remain valid but suggests

that a period of

12 months for a final written warning is appropriate.

However the

appropriate length of a warning's

validity may, in individual cases, depend on the nature of the offence/poor performance, and the employee's previous disciplinary/performance history. Once aa warning has expired, it should not normally be taken into account in any later disciplinary/poor performance proceedings against the employee, although there are limited circumstances where it can be. This link may help explain what is usual recommended practice:-

http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1774

As far as setting a further 12 month period for the warning to last it may be that as only 6mths of the initial 12 mth final warning was completed while your partner was in work before he was suspended pending investigation of the alleged racism they are continuing with the 6mths left on the first warning? There are considerations the employer makes when deciding on 6mths or 12 month warnings depending on the type of disciplinary matter it is. You have mentioned H&S as the initial reason for the 12mth period. This further incident would appear to be unrelated to the H&S issue and is of course up to the employer how they deal with it depending on the circumstances of the misconduct.

ACAS are a good source of information for both employers and employees where you may find some explanations for why the employer has dealt with things in the way they have. In addition your partner's disciplinary procedure will be a good place to start as this will set out the employer's procedures they follow and what the employee can/can't do.