We appreciate that being invited to a formal disciplinary hearing can be daunting, and we frequently receive enquiries about an employee’s rights when attending a hearing, in particular surrounding the right to be accompanied.
Many employees assume that this right enables them to be accompanied by whoever they choose; however, this is not usually the case.
Under UK law if an employee is invited to attend a disciplinary hearing, they have the right to be accompanied at that hearing by a colleague or trade union representative, if you have one.
Other than these two, unless there is a provision in your Contract of Employment or Staff Handbook that says otherwise, you are not entitled to be accompanied by anyone else at the hearing.
You may be surprised to know that you do not have the right to be accompanied by a legal representative, such as a Solicitor.
There are however a couple of important exceptions to the legal position which are:
If you find yourself in the unfortunate position of being involved in a disciplinary process, it is advisable to obtain a copy of your contract and any of the employer’s procedures, handbooks or policies at the earliest possible stage. This will enable you to check how the process should be handled and who you are allowed to bring as a companion to any formal disciplinary hearing.
Where an employee has a disability, in accordance with the Equality Act 2010, an Employer has a duty to make reasonable adjustments to any arrangements that they make which place the employee at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with a person who is not disabled.
For example, this could include allowing the employee to be accompanied by a relative or friend.
Please note, depending on the specific circumstances, refusing a request for a reasonable adjustment could give rise to a claim for failure to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010.
The provision in question is Article 6 which is the right to a fair trial.
This will only apply however where the outcome of the disciplinary procedure would have a substantial influence on a regulatory body for a profession. For example, a doctor who may find that they are struck off as a result of the disciplinary procedure would have the right to be legally represented at the meeting(s).
It is important to note that this is the legal position, and the Employer has the discretion to allow you to be accompanied by someone other than a work colleague or trade union representative.
Therefore, there is no harm in asking the employer and perhaps giving them the name of your preferred companion, their relationship to you and details of why you want them to go with you. The worst that can happen is that your Employer refuses the request.
If you are invited to a disciplinary hearing and not informed of your right to be accompanied, you should contact the individual appointed to conduct the disciplinary and/or HR to ensure they are aware of your right to be accompanied and notify them of who will be attending with you.
If you discover that your chosen companion is unable to attend the disciplinary hearing, because they are unavailable or have another meeting etc, then you should contact the individual conducting the hearing and/or HR to notify them of the position and request that the hearing is re-scheduled to enable your companion to attend.
Provided any delay would not be significant, your Employer should grant this request to avoid you being prejudiced.
If you require any advice or assistance regarding a disciplinary process, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01983 897003.
Appointments are available by telephone or via video call, so no matter where you are in England or Wales we can assist you.
The information contained in this blog post is provided for guidance and is a snapshot of the law at the time it is written. It is provided for your information only and should not be used as a substitute for obtaining legal advice that it specific to your particular circumstances.
The guidance should not be relied upon in any decision making process. It is strongly recommended that you seek advice before taking action.
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