At the hearing 


The meeting usually opens with the decision-maker identifying all those present, explaining their roles and outlining how the meeting is to be run.


The disciplinary procedure sometimes contains detailed rules on the conduct of meetings. These must meet the minimum requirements of the Acas Code. 


The Acas Code says that: 


• at the meeting, the employer should explain the complaint against the employee and go through the evidence that has been gathered; 


• the employee should be allowed to set out their case and to answer the allegations; 


• the employee should be given a reasonable opportunity to ask questions, present evidence and call relevant witnesses; 


• the employee should also be given an opportunity to raise points about any information provided by witnesses; and 


• where an employer or employee intends to call relevant witnesses, they should give advance notice of this.


The TUC suggests that at this stage, a rep’s role is to:


• be familiar with the procedure to be followed;


• be familiar with the member’s case;


• speak clearly and politely, setting out the member’s case concisely;


• be assertive and confident, not aggressive or over-bearing;


• treat managers with respect but also insist on respect for yourself and the member;


• listen to what management says;


• try to resolve the issue in the initial stages — it is not wise to rely on issues being resolved at a later stage;


• stick to the issue and try to prevent management straying onto unrelated issues;


• discuss the issues related to the case but do not discuss personalities;


• decide whether to use open or closed questions to put to the member or witnesses. Open questions, such as “tell us what happened” can enable the member to give a convincing, unprompted response, whereas closed questions (typically questions with a “yes/no” answer) can help make sure central issues are confirmed;


• remain calm throughout. Losing your temper will not assist the member. Likewise, if the member becomes upset or angry, this is unlikely to impress an employment tribunal at a later date; and


• summarise the main issues at the end of the meeting.