Who should carry out the investigation?
[ch 4: page 19]The Acas Code says that in misconduct cases, different people should carry out the investigation and the disciplinary hearing wherever practical. The investigation should be conducted by a management representative. If the disciplinary procedure calls for a particular grade of management, this must be complied with. The investigator should have no pre-existing bias against the worker.
The person hearing the dismissal should not get involved inappropriately in the investigation. Here is an example:
A disciplinary panel was set up by a small charity to consider allegations that a part-time employee fraudulently claimed sick pay while doing a second job at an NHS Trust. The dismissal was ruled unfair, in part because the panel’s chair, a well-known local businessman, inappropriately interfered with the investigation by using his connections and influence to try to pressure the Trust’s HR manager to reveal information about the claimant’s working hours.
Ethnic Minorities Law Centre v Deol [2015] UKEATS/0022/14/SM