11 Events That Might Happen After a Workplace Investigation
When accusations of an unsafe or abusive work environment are abound, a workplace investigation is a natural next step. Why a workplace investigation is necessary is because it questions and tests the accusation, gathers more information from other stakeholders, and analyzes the infrastructure in place to determine the validity of one’s hypothesis.
What you get from a workplace investigation is actionable data. What happens next can go in several directions. Here the eleven things to know about what happens after a workplace investigation:
1. You Receive A Workplace Investigation Report
After a workplace investigation, a detailed investigation report will be provided by the private investigator Toronto. Contained in that report are the details of the investigation, any evidence or lack thereof as it pertains to the validity of claims.
Finally, recommendations or a conclusion statement summarizing what’s been uncovered throughout the course of the investigation.
2. Balancing Advice And Recommendations
Concluding a workplace investigation, the decision-maker has to balance the information indicated in the report alongside the advice of co-leaders, legal counsel, and any compliance representatives.
For argument’s sake, each of these perspectives may be different. One must process each’s recommendations and reasonings, and ultimately choose what is best for an organization.
3. Share the Results With Other Stakeholders
A workplace investigation may be shared with employees, supervisors, or members of multi-tier management. Alternatively, the summary statement or similar summary can be provided to outline the results of what’s been discovered.
This sort of statement is made to clarify the investigation results, typically followed up with what’s to be done next.
4. Consequences From the Investigation Report
Chances are whatever triggered a workplace investigation will be in need of address. If a submitted claim is proven true or if there has been illegal activity uncovered, there’s a clear necessity for consequences.
After a workplace investigation, it is up to the actors in management as to what a consequence should be. The important thing is, for the sake of others in the company, to handle the issue effectively and line things up to move forward.
5. How to Uphold Confidentiality With A Workplace Investigation
The workplace investigator you hire matters. They may be able to advise on how to uphold confidentiality when it’s required. Following the investigation, one has to be careful with the information they give out.
Defamation lawsuits and retaliation lawsuits can be expensive for companies but are unfortunately common. This requires a conversation with those directly involved with the investigation, separately and one-on-one, to advise them of the results.
6. Determining If A Termination is Required
Terminating an accused or offending employee isn’t always necessary following a workplace investigation. That said, if it’s agreed that continuing to have a healthy career at a given corporation is going to be near impossible, it is advisable to consider the possibility.
On the other hand, if an accusation hasn’t been proven, you may want to assure the employee they can continue their career at the company while also stating plainly that any retaliation is unacceptable. What the investigation says should guide this decision of what’s required.
7. What to Do When Evidence is Inconclusive
Not every investigation will lead to a definite ‘true’ or ‘false’. There may not be the evidence to suggest either. Furthermore, it’s possible to discover evidence of inappropriateness without it being an official violation of any policy. E
ven so, action has to be taken. You have some issues that have to be addressed in the workplace, including potential policy changes.
8. Ensure It Doesn’t Happen Again
A part of the response with workplace investigations is to identify any impropriety and minimize the risk that it happens again. Most employees are hesitant to come forward with complaints, often only doing so when it really begins to impact their quality of life personally or professionally.
One change may be to instill a system where there’s more openness, transparency, and encouragement to come forward with any complaints.
9. Re-Training Programs
One might find the need to register employees for a program on subjects like harassment, fraudulent behaviour, or inappropriateness in the workplace. There’s a deep list of education options at one’s fingertips in the corporate world. Especially in a group setting, this might be exactly what’s needed to get everything out in the open and to restore morale.
10. Re-Build Morale
The results of a workplace investigation may surprise some, might shock others, and might contribute to negative feelings about coming to work. After a workplace investigation, a company’s got to dedicate themselves to rebuilding their team. This would be the time for a leader to lead.
11. Your Biggest Challenge
Some underestimate the difficulty and importance of overcoming a workplace investigation. Following an investigation, the aftermath is sometimes a leader or entire organization that’s essentially lost the trust of its workforce, regardless of whether an allegation or claim is proven correct or incorrect.
There’s a lot of follow-through that must happen in the days and weeks ahead after an investigation is done. It isn’t just a single set of meetings that has to happen. The disruption takes time to put in the past and a ‘back to business as usual’ approach won’t work.
