Progressive Discipline

Leaders in your organization must be aware of their responsibilities pertaining to disciplining employees/members.  Inappropriately handling of matters and wrongfully discharging members is a leading cause of employee/member practice claims.  Progressive discipline is a method of imposing discipline in steps, where a first offense results in a lesser punishment and subsequent offenses receive progressively harsher penalties.  This policy should be in writing to avoid misinterpretation and inconsistency which potentially leads to claims.

A written policy outlining your organization’s expectations relative to the handling of discipline should be developed.  Four basic progressive discipline steps that should be included are:

• Verbal Warning
• Written Warning
• Suspension
• Discharge/Termination

A sample personnel manual is available by clicking the login button on the top right corner of this page and registering as a user.

Available Resources

• Progressive Discipline in Fire & EMS Agencies
• Progressive Discipline & Termination - Management Liability Exposures