Disciplinary Action for Unacceptable Personal Conduct

Unacceptable Personal Conduct involves serious behaviors for which no reasonable person would expect to be forewarned that the behavior is wrong and could result in severe discipline. Unacceptable personal conduct includes, but is not limited to:

• insubordination
• stealing or misuse of University property
• involvement with illegal drugs
• failure to maintain, or falsification of, credentials

If an employee violates civil or criminal laws of the State, the violation(s) may or may not have an effect on his/her employment with the University. The violation(s) affect the employee's University employment if the nature of the violation is such that the employee's ability to perform his/her duties according to the standards expected is compromised.

Disciplinary action for unacceptable personal conduct need not be successive. Depending on the severity of the conduct, employees may receive a written warning or be suspended without pay, demoted, or dismissed on the basis of unacceptable personal conduct without prior disciplinary action to the employee.

The University's Board of Trustees has adopted a "Policy on Illegal Drugs" that requires all employees to comply with North Carolina law that makes it a crime to possess, sell, deliver, or manufacture illegal substances. Any employee who violates the law may be subject to both prosecution and punishment by the civil authorities, and to disciplinary action under this policy. Depending on the violation, employees who violate the Board of Trustees' Policy on Illegal Drugs will receive disciplinary action for unacceptable personal conduct up to and including dismissal.

Because the minimum penalty set in the Policy by the Board of Trustees for certain violations exceeds the maximum period of suspension without pay permitted by State Personnel Commission policy, the required penalty for a first offense for those violations by SPA employees is dismissal.

Failure to maintain credentials (licenses or certifications) as required by statute, and/or falsification of credentials or other employment documents are considered special instances of Unacceptable Personal Conduct and shall be disciplined accordingly. By statute, certain duties assigned to positions may be performed only by persons who are duly licensed, registered, or certified. All such requirements are specified in the statement of qualifications or in the recruitment standards.

If an employee has falsified qualifications (either on the original employment application or any subsequent application or application update) to obtain a position, he/she must be dismissed.

When an employee is working in a position without the required qualifications (registration, license, certification, or educational credential) he/she must be advised of the problem, and if appropriate, given time to acquire the necessary credential. The employee must be assigned to other duties until the necessary credential is obtained. If the employee fails to obtain the credential, he/she must be dismissed. This dismissal does not require prior written warnings, but does require a pre-disciplinary conference and a written notification of dismissal, with applicable appeal rights.

When credentials have been falsified, but are not required for the position held or sought, management must investigate and determine what disciplinary action is appropriate under the circumstances. When credential falsification is discovered prior to employment with the University, the application shall be disqualified from consideration for employment with the University for no less than 12 months.

Written warnings are not recommended for instances of unacceptable personal conduct. However, if management decides to issue a written warning, the written warning must contain the following:

• a statement that this is a written warning, and not some other non-disciplinary process such as counseling;
• a statement of the unacceptable personal conduct;
• what specific corrections must be made to address the specific issues;
• the time frame for making the required corrections ;
• the consequences of failing to make the required corrections (further disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal); and
• the employee's appeal rights.

Because no prior disciplinary action is required before dismissal for unacceptable personal conduct, it is required that the supervisor inform the employee in the written warning that any further unacceptable personal conduct may result in dismissal.

An employee may be suspended without pay for disciplinary purposes for causes relating to unacceptable personal conduct without any active disciplinary actions. Before a disciplinary suspension without pay can be implemented:

• The supervisor must receive higher level management approval for the action;
• Management must consider any disciplinary actions taken (or not taken) in similar situations affecting other employees;
• The supervisor must consult with a Employee & Management Relations Specialist in the Office of Human Resources to review the procedural and substantive basis for a recommendation for disciplinary suspension without pay, and request approval to proceed to a pre-disciplinary conference; and
• After receiving approval, management must conduct a pre-disciplinary conference (see "Pre-Disciplinary Conference") with the employee and a representative of the Office of Human Resources before implementing a disciplinary suspension without pay.

An employee who has been suspended without pay must be furnished a statement in writing setting forth the specific acts or omissions that are the reasons for the disciplinary suspension without pay and the employee's appeal rights. (For a sample letter, see "Related Subjects" below.)

To comply with provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, a disciplinary suspension without pay must be for one full work week. The work week begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, unless other schedules have been approved and communicated to all employees in the department. Earned leave may not be used to offset any disciplinary suspension without pay.

An employee may be demoted for disciplinary purposes for causes relating to unacceptable personal conduct without any active disciplinary actions. Disciplinary demotions may be to either:

• a lower classification with or without a loss of pay (the employee's pay must not exceed the maximum rate of the range and must not be reduced below the minimum rate of the range for the position to which s/he is assigned), or
• the same classification with a loss of pay (the employee's pay must not be reduced to less than the minimum rate of the range for the position).

Before a disciplinary demotion can be implemented:

• The supervisor must receive upper-level management approval for the demotion.
• The supervisor also must consult with a Employee & Management Relations Specialist in the Office of Human Resources to review the procedural and substantive basis for a recommendation for demotion and must request approval from the Employee & Management Relations Specialist to proceed to the pre-disciplinary conference.
• After receiving approval, management must conduct a pre-disciplinary conference (see "Pre-Disciplinary Conference") with the employee and a representative of the Office of Human Resources before implementing a demotion.

After the conference, management must furnish the employee a written statement setting forth the specific reason(s) for the demotion and the employee's appeal rights. (For a sample letter, see "Related Subjects" below.)

An employee may be dismissed for disciplinary purposes for causes relating to unacceptable personal conduct without any active disciplinary actions.

Before a disciplinary dismissal can be implemented:

• The supervisor must receive upper-level management approval for the dismissal.
• The supervisor also must consult with a Employee & Management Relations Specialist in the Office of Human Resources to review the procedural and substantive basis for a recommendation for the dismissal and must request approval from the Employee & Management Relations Specialist to proceed to the pre-disciplinary conference.
• After receiving approval, management must conduct a pre-disciplinary conference (see "Pre-Disciplinary Conference") with the employee and a representative of the Office of Human Resources before implementing a dismissal.

If, following the pre-disciplinary conference, management determines that dismissal is appropriate, the employee must be given a letter of dismissal. The earliest a decision may be communicated is the next work day. The latest a decision may be communicated is the end of the second work day following the date of the pre-disciplinary conference. The dismissal letter must specify the reason(s) for the dismissal, listed in numbered paragraphs, and the employee's right of appeal (For a sample letter, see "Related Subjects" below.)

Failure to give the required specific written notice will result in the employee receiving back pay until it has been deemed that proper notice has been received. Time limits for filing a grievance do not start until the employee receives written notice of any applicable appeal rights. When an employee cannot be given the letter of dismissal in person, it must be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the employee's last known residence address.

Note: An employee dismissed on the basis of unacceptable personal conduct is not eligible for a working notice and cannot be given pay in lieu of notice.

If you have questions about this policy, contact the Employee & Management Relations Specialist in the Office of Human Resources assigned to work with your department.