Don’t Wait, Investigate!
As California continues on its path to reopening under the state’s four-stage plan, the workplace faces change and opportunity. Should employers permit employees to return to the workplace and, if so, under what guidelines? When is the appropriate time to ask employees to return to the workplace? Will your workplace allow some employees to continue teleworking, if these measures were implemented during the shelter-in-place? How do you decide which employees can continue teleworking and which employees should return to the office? With these questions come a host of challenges and uncertainty. As the workplace shifts into unfamiliar territory, how should employers handle new complaints and allegations of misconduct?
Addressing employee complaints takes time, energy, and resources, which may be strained under our current circumstances. A negative environment can make employees feel undervalued, unimportant, or excluded during a time when we are already experiencing physical and emotional isolation. As an employer, it is important to address employee complaints head-on, in a prompt, thorough, and impartial fashion. Let’s talk about why.
The Law Requires It. Under California and federal law, when an employer knows or should have known of a complaint of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation, it is required to conduct a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation. It is important employers meet this moment with thoughtful consideration. An appropriate response can have significant benefits, including increased trust and productivity. A delay may leave an employer open to liability and negatively impact employee satisfaction.
Loss Of Crucial Evidence. If you wait on an investigation, you can potentially lose access to critical witnesses or pieces of evidence. Over time, documentary evidence can get lost or forgotten. Electronic data may be deleted or inaccessible. People routinely acquire new phones or laptops and do not necessarily save everything to their new one. Additionally, the memories of witnesses and parties fade over time. Witness accounts may have less details as time passes. Further, you may lose access to personnel who have crucial information regarding the investigation because they leave their employment or are laid off. It can become difficult to track down people who have left the workplace, and perhaps even more difficult to get them to participate in an investigation.
It Shows You Take Misconduct Seriously. Part of maintaining a safe work environment is ensuring misconduct does not go unaddressed. If complaints are put to the wayside, even during tough times, employees may feel addressing misconduct is not important to the employer. Ultimately, the failure to undertake an appropriate and timely investigation can have significant consequences, including frustration, decreased morale, lack of trust, and litigation. Accordingly, employers should aim to consistently demonstrate that they will not allow misconduct to be excused under any circumstance. Doing so will increase effective and positive business management during this critical time.
As businesses begin to reopen and employees work in both remote and in-office environments, employers must remember to take all complaints seriously. In doing so, employers uphold the law and create a positive working environment for their employees.
Lezi Zuidema is an Associate Attorney with Van Dermyden Maddux Law Corporation. Her practice focuses on discrimination-based complaints in both private and public-sector employment contexts and Title IX campus investigations and hearings.
The foregoing is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice, nor should be construed as such.
