Employers have an obligation to investigate allegations of
employee misconduct. While employers are often aware of their
obligations to take allegations of employee misconduct seriously,
it is equally important that workplace investigations are fair to
the employee whose conduct is being investigated.
Consequences of an Unfair Investigation
If the employee whose conduct is being investigated is not
treated fairly throughout the investigative process, the
investigation's findings, regardless of whether or not they are
correct, may be deemed inadequate by a court or administrative
tribunal later tasked with reviewing what has taken place. If this
occurs, the court or administrative tribunal may set aside the
sanctions imposed by the employer, order the investigation to be
re-done, or partially re-done, at significant cost to the employer,
and/or order damages be paid by the employer to compensate the
investigated employee for lost wages, stress, loss of reputation
