Understanding Variation in the Practice of Employee Discipline: The Perspective of the First-Line Supervisor

First-line supervisors' responses to employee-related problems can vary widely from one supervisor to another. Assuming fair and consistent disciplinary activity is valued by organizations, then discovery of the factors causing supervisors to respond differently to similar situations is a valuable activity. Using a case study approach for four organizations in Puerto Rico, this article explores how factors such as sector, union presence, and managerial and human resource department support influence the choice of a discipline strategy. When present, some of these factors were found to encourage supervisors to comply with formal disciplinary policy. Organizations can use these findings to assess the degree to which there is consistency in these factors and take strategic action to assure that first-line supervisors receive clear and consistent signals regarding appropriate disciplinary strategies.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

Organization Culture as an Explanation for Employee Discipline Practices

Most supervisors dread employee discipline and often employ strategies not officially sanctioned by the organization. Poorly designed discipline systems cause this variation in discipline practices. Inconsistent discipline can cause losses in productivity and reduce employee morale. Extant literature offers little in the form of guidance for improving this important human resource activity. This article explore where normative literature on organizational culture may have explanatory value for understanding variation in discipline practices. The article suggests two groups of factors that have causal effects on discipline practices. The tangible factors are those describing the formal practices the organization wishes its employees to follow. The intangible factors provide cues for explaining why informal strategies emerge as successful practices for getting things done. Using this conception of organization culture, the article proposes hypotheses for future testing to validate the suspected influence of culture on decisions regarding employee discipline.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline