Failure to Investigate Employee Claims Can Be Costly

In case after case the courts have determined that employers must investigate a claim made by an employee, even if the employer believes the claim is without merit. Failure to investigate an employee claim, even if it turns out to be baseless, can result in a finding of retaliation. A recent example is the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upholding a jury’s award of $390,000 in damages against GoDaddy, a popular internet service provider.

An employee at GoDaddy had reported to management that he was the victim of discrimination and had been passed over for promotion. When the company took no action the employee tfiled a complaint with the EEOC and then was subsequently fired by the company.

The case was investigated, no settlement was reached, and the EEOC decided to sue GoDaddy alleging both discrimination and retaliation for having lawfully filed a complaint of discrimination. The jury concluded that while there was no evidence of employment discrimination, there was evidence of retaliation on the basis of the company’s refusal to investigate the employee’s complaints. The jury connected the employer’s failure to investigate with an underlying motive of discrimination as evidenced by failing to promote an otherwise qualified employee. The jury award was $390,000 in damages plus the employer was required to pay its own legal fees for defense.

So what could have the company have done differently? There is a right way and a wrong way to go about dealing with employee complaints. Ignoring complaints is clearly the wrong way to handle an employee complaint. The correct way to handle any compliant or claim is to promptly investigate. Follow this simple six step process when an employee compliant arises.

1. When an employee has a complaint or issue with harassment, discrimination, retaliation, safety, workplace violence, illegal activity or workplace rule violation don’t just discuss, investigate.
2. Conduct an investigation that provides a sound, factual basis for decisions by management. Gather as much evidence as possible including documents, witness statements or any other tangible things. Whatever the situation, an employer should treat all complaints seriously. Ignoring them may expose employers to liability through an unemployment claim, a discrimination charge or lawsuit.
3. Have a compliance procedure in place, also known as an incident reporting system. Complaint procedures should be simple and, at the very least, provide a person or place that will accept employee complaints. HotlinkHR™ provides a complete incident reporting system for your employees.
4. Have a written policy that explains company's complaint procedure and how investigations will be conducted. Select an appropriate investigator. The investigator could be an employee, but consider using an external source because this will add to the employer's credibility if the issues reach a jury
5. Document all findings. The documentation and evidence gathered during an investigation will be invaluable for proving work-related misconduct or defending the legality of the employer's actions. A written record of the investigation and report to the complainant must be kept. This documentation is the best evidence (often the only good evidence) that subsequent disciplinary or other actions were unrelated to the complaint. HotlinkHR™ incident reporting system can be the first step in collecting the appropriate documents.
6. Communicate with the employee. During the investigation, the employer should periodically communicate with the employee who filed the complaint, letting him or her know it is still being investigated and a decision will be forthcoming. After a decision has been made about the legitimacy of the complaint, communicate the results to the person who filed it. If disciplinary action is needed against another employee, the person who filed the complaint should be notified that corrective action has been taken.

KPA’s HotlinkHR™, total HR management system, provides the necessary tools to manage your complaint process, ensure compliance and reduce the risk of litigation.

• Online incident reporting system for your employees so that employees are easily able to report complaints and for the employer to establish that complaints and issues are being tracked and resolved
• Tools to easily develop the necessary written policies, electronically distribute to all employees and track that all employees have read and acknowledged the policy
• Training on anti- harassment, workplace safety and employment policies
• Expert advice on how to investigate complaints and communicate with employees through the HR advice service
• Access to national labor and employment attorneys in the event further action is required to resolve compliant or defend litigation

Request a free demo of HotlinkHR™