Whatever company you are in, there will always be employees who break the rules. But how do you deal with these rule breakers?

Despite what most employers believe, disobedient employees can’t be fired simply because they did not follow company rules.

Small companies

Small companies usually do not have an HR department which understands employment laws. Small companies who fire an employee because he/she broke the rules can get entangled in wrongful termination lawsuits.

Big companies

Big companies naturally have an HR department to handle such matters. They have HR personnel who have the labor code memorized, including changes in the law and the case law that changes constantly.

Unions

Unions are put up to protect employees. When a company can rightfully terminate a disobedient employee, what the union does is to stall the termination by holding hearings.

The employee

In the first place, the moment a person is hired, he is (or should be) briefed about and given printed materials stipulating office rules, regulations and polices. Thus, the new employee has no reason to say that he did not know such rules existed and should not be surprised that he is getting terminated.

Warnings and termination

Rules vary in degree of gravity. In general the more grave the offense, the heavier the punishment. If an employee breaks a minor rule, he/she should be served an initial written warning. If an employee creates a major offense, he/she may be suspended or fired, depending on your company policy.

The offending employee maybe called for an interview where he/she will promise not to repeat the offense. An HR personnel will document what happened, the "punishment" the offender will be receiving, and perhaps also give a review of the office rules and regulations.

Documentation and proper action usually saves a company from wrongful termination lawsuits.