Human Resource Blog

North Dakota Written Warning

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If an employee is written up in North Dakota, do they have to receive a copy of the disciplinary warning?

Being “written up” usually means that a worker broke the rules, the supervisor discussed the problem with the worker and gave the worker written notice of the discussion. Usually, the worker is required to sign the notice as verification of receipt.

There is no federal or state law that requires an employer to provide written warnings to employees. Most of the country employs the doctrine of “employment at will”, which means workers and companies can terminate a job at any time for any reason. North Dakota is one of these states, (California is not), but only when a written contract doesn’t exist.

Providing written warnings, however, has become the industry standard. Human Resources classifies written warnings as a “best practice”, and it has proved so effective that most companies have adopted it.

Written warnings provide an advantage for employer and employee. The employee understands the expectations of the job, the consequences of continued unacceptable behavior, has a plan and a chance to correct the behavior. Employers, by documenting incorrect behavior may save on unemployment benefits.

Consider Robert, an employee who gets to work 30 minutes late. His supervisor discusses the problem with Robert, informing him of how to correct the behavior and the consequences (including losing his job) of continuing to be tardy. Robert receives written notice of the discussion and signs it. Robert continues to be late, receives and signs a written notice each time. After the fifth incident, he’s fired.

When Robert files for unemployment compensation, the company has documentation of his termination. Since Robert has received at least 3 written warnings, he may not be eligible for unemployment and the company will not face increased premiums.

Now consider that Robert is late and the supervisor discusses the problem, but doesn’t provide anything in writing. Robert may misinterpret this reaction to mean tardiness isn’t a problem. Suddenly, after the fifth time he’s late, he gets fired.

Now when Robert files for unemployment, the company may have to pay. Without written documentation of Robert’s continued infractions, the company has no evidence of the reason for termination. JH