Employers must often launch investigations in response to complaints by employees alleging misconduct, unethical behavior or illegal activity occurring in the workplace. Such investigations can disrupt the culture of an organization and unnerve employees who may be the subject of the investigation, subordinate to the subject or who may otherwise be called upon to disclose information about a colleague that they would not have disclosed in the absence of the investigation. The investigatory process may cause employees to be reticent or unwilling to participate in the process. These reactions present not only employee relations issues, but also impact the employer’s ability to gather the facts to address the triggering conduct.

In this article, we outline a general framework for approaching investigations into employee complaints. As we discuss below, we recommend that employers approach investigations with an organized and thoughtful plan which, we believe, allows the investigator and the employer both to assuage understandable concerns of employees and to create an environment where a focused fact-finding investigation can occur.

The Planning Stage