Question:
If an employee does not want to sign the documentation for a written warning, how can we respond?
Answer:
When an employee refuses to sign the warning, we recommended that you write down “refused to sign” at the bottom of the notice. It is recommended that you have more than one person there to witness and attest to this refusal. In the best situation, you and another manager will sign under this notation.
The employee’s refusal to sign does not negate what was written in the warning. The employee still has to comply with the requirements set out in the document.
The decision about whether to take any extra action for the refusal to sign depends on the case itself. In many instances, you can just stick with the disciplinary procedure on the warning and take no other disciplinary action because of the employee not wanting to sign. This is even more true if the refusal is based on a grievance of the employee regarding the issue.
However, in some instances, the employee’s refusal and actions may constitute insubordination, hence additional discipline would be appropriate. In any case, upper management should review the write-up and the circumstances in order to make the call on any further disciplinary actions.
Source: HR Support Center | Copyright © 2017 AdvaPay Systems, LLC
