6. The Appeal Process

Introduction   An appeal is an opportunity for an employee to ask the employer to reconsider any decision made (e.g. an appeal may be against a warning, dismissal or a grievance). The appeal is an essential part of any fair procedure.   Appeals should be handled speedily within the time frame set out within the procedure (and if this is not possible this should be clearly communicated to the employee).   An appeal should ideally be heard by someone who was not involved in the original decision and where possible by someone senior in authority to the person who took the disciplinary decision.   Generally, the employee will have set out their grounds for wishing to appeal prior to the meeting.  If they have not done so, the individual should be asked to confirm this…