What is included in a Disciplinary Letter?

This Disciplinary Letter template covers: the employer’s and employee’s details details of the behaviour resulting in the disciplinary hearing details of the disciplinary hearing details of potential outcomes (ie disciplinary sanctions) the right to appeal against any disciplinary action taken

Why do I need a Disciplinary Letter?

It is crucial that employers follow a clear and fair disciplinary process when investigating and addressing disciplinary issues at work. Failure to do so can result in the employer being taken to an Employment Tribunal . Employers should make sure to adopt a Disciplinary procedure and to follow it when dealing with disciplinary matters in the workplace. Following your disciplinary procedure will involve sending the right Disciplinary Letter to inform employees about the disciplinary process. For more information, read Disciplinary process and How to run a disciplinary hearing . If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to Ask a lawyer .

How should I start a disciplinary action?

You should start by checking any disciplinary processes set out in your HR policies (eg in your Disciplinary procedure ) and by determining whether the matter relates to gross misconduct , misconduct or poor performance . Employers should invite an employee to a meeting to consider and discuss any allegations made against them. If it is not possible to solve the issue via an informal talk, a formal disciplinary process should then take place, with sanctions potentially being applied. For more information, read Disciplinary process .

What is the process for disciplining employees?

Disciplining employees for gross misconduct, misconduct, or poor performance can be a complex process. Employers should be careful to follow a proper procedure to avoid accusations of unfair dismissal . It's important that all of the relevant steps are communicated to the employee and that they are provided with a chance to present their case and defence and are given a right of appeal. Use these Disciplinary Letters to help achieve this.

Which Disciplinary Letter template should I choose?

Which template is most appropriate will depend on the specifics of your situation. First, employers should send an Invitation letter to a disciplinary hearing for misconduct or an Invitation letter to a poor performance hearing , to ask an employee to attend a meeting to consider and discuss any allegations made against them. The employer should then use either a Misconduct disciplinary outcome letter or a Poor performance disciplinary outcome letter to set out what the outcome of the hearing is (eg no further action being taken or the employee receiving a written warning ). If the hearing determined that the employee committed an act of gross misconduct , employers should use a Gross misconduct dismissal letter to dismiss the employee. If the employee receives a formal warning (or if the employee is dismissed for gross misconduct), they are entitled to appeal this decision. The employer should arrange and invite the employee to attend an appeal hearing to re-hear or review the decision. The employer should use either an Invitation letter to a poor performance appeal hearing or an Invitation letter to a disciplinary appeal hearing for misconduct . For more information, read Discipline employees and Disciplinary process .

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Other Names: Warning Letter Employee Warning Letter Written Warning Notice of Disciplinary Action Employee Letter Formal Reprimand

What is a Disciplinary Letter?

A Disciplinary Letter is a formal letter to an employee informing them about the relevant steps of a formal disciplinary process. Disciplinary Letters should be used by employers to help ensure that they follow fair and clear disciplinary processes.

This document is GDPR compliant.

When should I use a Disciplinary Letter?

Use this Disciplinary Letter:

if you engage staff members in England, Wales or Scotland
to invite a staff member to a disciplinary hearing for gross misconduct, misconduct or poor performance
to inform a staff member about the outcome of a disciplinary hearing for gross misconduct, misconduct or poor performance
to invite a staff member to a disciplinary appeal hearing
to inform a staff member about the outcome of a disciplinary appeal hearing for gross misconduct, misconduct, or poor performance

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Dear ,

Re: Disciplinary hearing

I am writing to inform you that you must attend a disciplinary hearing at on at . The hearing is to consider and discuss disciplinary allegations of misconduct, namely that of .

You are entitled to bring a fellow worker or a trade union representative to the meeting in accordance with our Disciplinary Procedure (enclosed with this letter). You and your companion will be able to comment on the witness statements and raise any questions, for further investigation or consideration, as appropriate.

If you are found guilty of the allegation then we may impose a disciplinary sanction up to and including .

If there are witnesses that you consider have relevant information concerning the allegations against you then please provide their names to me as soon as possible, so that they may be interviewed before the disciplinary hearing. Similarly, if there are any relevant documents you wish to be considered at the hearing, please provide copies as soon as possible. If you do not have those documents, please provide details so that they can be obtained.

The hearing will be conducted in accordance with the Disciplinary Procedure. The hearing will be chaired by and will also be present.

Please acknowledge receipt of this letter and confirm that you will attend the hearing as scheduled. If, for any unavoidable reason, you or your companion cannot attend at that time please contact me as soon as possible. You are reminded that failure to cooperate in a disciplinary process including failure to attend a hearing without good reason may itself be a disciplinary offence resulting in further disciplinary action.

We treat personal data collected during the disciplinary procedure in accordance with our data protection policy. Information about how your data is used and the basis for processing your data is provided in our employee privacy notice and other policies.

If you have any specific needs at the hearing as a result of a disability, or if you have any other questions, please also contact me as soon as possible.

Yours sincerely,

About Disciplinary Letters

Learn more about making your Disciplinary Letter

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How to make a Disciplinary Letter
Making a Disciplinary Letter online is simple. Just answer a few questions and Rocket Lawyer will build your document for you. When you have all of the details prepared in advance, making your document is a quick and easy process.

Which information you need to make your Disciplinary Letter will depend on the document in question. However, the types of questions you may be asked include:

Employer and employee details
- What are the employer’s details (eg the employer’s legal structure and name)?
  - If the employer is a company, LLP or partnership, who will sign the Disciplinary Letter on its behalf?
- What are the employee’s name and address?
Hearing details
- What is the nature of the allegation against the employee?
- What are the details of the disciplinary or appeal hearing?
Letter details
- On what date will the Disciplinary Letter be sent to the employee?
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Common terms in a Disciplinary Letter

Disciplinary Letters are used by employers as part of their workplace disciplinary process. While the terms of Disciplinary Letters vary, depending on the document in question, examples of common provisions include:

Sender and recipient details

The Disciplinary Letter starts by setting out the details of the employer and the employee.

The body of the Letter

The body of the Disciplinary Letter provides details relating to the disciplinary process. This includes information about the employee’s alleged conduct, the disciplinary hearing, (potential) outcomes of the disciplinary hearing and details relating to disciplinary appeals.

If you want your Disciplinary Letter to include further or more detailed provisions, you can edit your document. However, if you do this, you may want a lawyer to review or change the Disciplinary Letter for you to ensure it complies with all relevant laws and meets your specific needs. Ask a lawyer for assistance.

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Legal tips for making a Disciplinary Letter
Adopt the relevant workplace policies and procedures

As an employer, it is fundamental that you treat your staff members fairly, transparently and equally. To facilitate this, you should adopt certain employment policies to ensure you have the relevant written processes in place. With regard to disciplinary matters, the most important policies to make are a Disciplinary procedure, setting out how you handle all disciplinary issues and a Grievance procedure, setting out how employees can raise workplace grievances and appeals.

For more information on the different types of workplace policies you should consider implementing, read HR policies and procedures.

Remember to always follow a fair, clear and transparent disciplinary process

You must follow a fair, clear and transparent disciplinary process when addressing disciplinary matters. Make sure to follow all existing and relevant documentation (eg workplace policies and employment contracts). While the details of a disciplinary process differ depending on the specifics of a given situation, your disciplinary process should typically include:
- carefully and thoroughly investigating the facts of the situation
- speaking to all relevant parties (eg the employee in question and any witnesses)
- holding disciplinary hearings to discuss the details of the situation
- informing the employee of the hearing’s outcome in a timely and clear manner
- allowing disciplinary appeals
For more information, read Disciplinary process and How to run a disciplinary hearing.

Understand when to seek advice from a lawyer

Ask a lawyer if:
- you have employees based outside England, Wales and Scotland
- you’re unsure which Disciplinary Letter to use
- you have questions about the disciplinary process
- these Disciplinary Letters don’t meet your needs
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Disciplinary Letter FAQs

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What is included in a Disciplinary Letter?
This Disciplinary Letter template covers:
- the employer’s and employee’s details
- details of the behaviour resulting in the disciplinary hearing
- details of the disciplinary hearing
- details of potential outcomes (ie disciplinary sanctions)
- the right to appeal against any disciplinary action taken
Why do I need a Disciplinary Letter?

It is crucial that employers follow a clear and fair disciplinary process when investigating and addressing disciplinary issues at work. Failure to do so can result in the employer being taken to an Employment Tribunal.

Employers should make sure to adopt a Disciplinary procedure and to follow it when dealing with disciplinary matters in the workplace. Following your disciplinary procedure will involve sending the right Disciplinary Letter to inform employees about the disciplinary process.

For more information, read Disciplinary process and How to run a disciplinary hearing. If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to Ask a lawyer.
How should I start a disciplinary action?

You should start by checking any disciplinary processes set out in your HR policies (eg in your Disciplinary procedure) and by determining whether the matter relates to gross misconduct, misconduct or poor performance. Employers should invite an employee to a meeting to consider and discuss any allegations made against them. If it is not possible to solve the issue via an informal talk, a formal disciplinary process should then take place, with sanctions potentially being applied.

For more information, read Disciplinary process.
What is the process for disciplining employees?

Disciplining employees for gross misconduct, misconduct, or poor performance can be a complex process. Employers should be careful to follow a proper procedure to avoid accusations of unfair dismissal.

It's important that all of the relevant steps are communicated to the employee and that they are provided with a chance to present their case and defence and are given a right of appeal. Use these Disciplinary Letters to help achieve this.
Which Disciplinary Letter template should I choose?

Which template is most appropriate will depend on the specifics of your situation.

First, employers should send an Invitation letter to a disciplinary hearing for misconduct or an Invitation letter to a poor performance hearing, to ask an employee to attend a meeting to consider and discuss any allegations made against them.

The employer should then use either a Misconduct disciplinary outcome letter or a Poor performance disciplinary outcome letter to set out what the outcome of the hearing is (eg no further action being taken or the employee receiving a written warning). If the hearing determined that the employee committed an act of gross misconduct, employers should use a Gross misconduct dismissal letter to dismiss the employee.

If the employee receives a formal warning (or if the employee is dismissed for gross misconduct), they are entitled to appeal this decision. The employer should arrange and invite the employee to attend an appeal hearing to re-hear or review the decision. The employer should use either an Invitation letter to a poor performance appeal hearing or an Invitation letter to a disciplinary appeal hearing for misconduct.

For more information, read Discipline employees and Disciplinary process.

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Check and agree

Read your Disciplinary Letter to make sure it meets your needs. Make sure that everyone involved in the disciplinary process (eg the employee’s line manager) agrees. Remember that if you have any questions you can easily Ask a lawyer.
Sign to make it legal

The employer (or someone acting on behalf of the employer) must sign the Disciplinary Letter. You can sign the Letter online using RocketSign or in print.
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Send the document

Send the signed Disciplinary Letter to the employee in question. As the Disciplinary Letter is a formal notice, it must be served (ie delivered) correctly. Check all relevant documents (eg your Disciplinary procedure and the employee’s Employment contract) for any specific service rules and make sure to follow them.
Store your document

Keep a copy of the signed Disciplinary Letter for your records. A copy of the Disciplinary Letter will also automatically be stored in your Rocket Lawyer account ‘Dashboard’.
Important details
- Where possible, speak to the employee before serving the Disciplinary Letter so that they know what to expect. If this isn’t practical, make sure that the employee actually receives and reads the Disciplinary Letter.
- When sending your Disciplinary Letter it is a good idea to attach your Disciplinary procedure and Grievance procedure so that employees know what to expect from the disciplinary process and how to appeal any disciplinary decisions.
- If you deliver the Disciplinary Letter in person, make sure to give the Letter to the employee personally. Keep a copy of the signed Disciplinary Letter, together with anything else delivered with it (eg supporting documentation), for your records.
- If you post the Disciplinary Letter, check that you have the employee’s correct and up-to-date address and consider using recorded delivery. Keep any proof of delivery together with a copy of the signed Letter and anything else delivered with it (eg supporting documentation).
- If you want to send the Disciplinary Letter by email, check all relevant documents to see whether this is allowed. If so, make sure to request ‘read receipts’ and keep them as proof of service along with a copy of the email and any attachments.

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