• Never engage in a disciplinary action in a public setting. Disciplinary actions should include a private, face-to-face meeting with the employee.

When discussing disciplinary actions with employees, keep the following tips in mind:

• Never lose your temper in the course of a disciplinary meeting. When you lose control of your temper, you may say things that damage your relationship with the employee and that you may later regret.
• Tackle disciplinary action directly. Do not avoid it. Avoiding disciplinary action may actually harm an employee who is deprived of the chance to learn how to correct their behavior.
• Never play therapist. The employee may misinterpret the supervisor’s personal questions as being nosy, overly analytical or an invasion of privacy, none of which is likely to achieve the desired change in behavior.
• Make sure that the employee assumes responsibility for change. By accepting excuses, supervisors deprive employees of the chance to accept responsibility for their mistakes and instead allow them to continue rationalizing their performance deficiencies.
• Get the employee’s signature. Ask an employee to sign any written warning or disciplinary action agreement that is placed in their personnel record. Because most employees do not like being reprimanded, you may want to emphasize that a signature is not an admission of wrongdoing, but instead an acknowledgment that the employee received a warning.

If an employee refuses to sign a written warning or disciplinary action agreement, note the refusal on the warning or agreement. If possible, ask a supervisor to witness the employee’s refusal to sign. Then, ask the supervisor to sign a document stating that the employee refused to sign. You cannot force an employee to sign a written warning or disciplinary action agreement.