INDEX	PARAGRAPH
PURPOSE	1
POLICY	2
EXPLANATION	3
TYPE OF CORRECTIVE ACTIONS	4
RESPONSIBILITIES	5
PROCEDURES	6

1. PURPOSE: This regulation is intended to provide the uniform guidance and procedures for effective discipline in the government service.

2. POLICY: Sound principles of positive and constructive discipline will be followed, to encourage a productive and harmonious work environment. Positive and constructive discipline administered in a fair and uniform manner will be aimed at prevention, and correction, of poor conduct or work attitudes and performance and at developing a more productive work force. Penalizing an employee by reprimand, suspension or termination normally should be accomplished only after efforts at correction have been made through counseling and admonishing. As a minimum, the following consideration will be given to all disciplinary actions:
   1. Like penalties for like offences.
   2. Before proposing suspension front work and pay, or final termination of employment, it is essential to give consideration to corrective measures to give the employee opportunity to improve, as well as save the cost of work disruption or employee replacement which attend suspensions and separations.
   3. Repeat of the same offence will be considered in taking progressively more drastic penalty action especially if there is a deliberate disrespect for authority.

3. EXPLANATION: Constructive discipline is the process of instruction or training that corrects, molds, or perfects the mental faculties or moral character. It is the orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behavior. When positive efforts fail, discipline is gained by enforcing obedience or order. As a last resort, it involves punishment in the form of penalties. Therefore, effective discipline involves a series of steps.
   1. Set standards of expected performance or conduct.

   2. Inform employees of the expected requirements.

   3. Discuss areas needing improvement.

   4. Warn employee verbally on first infractions,

   5. Give written reprimand if employee fails to respond to counseling.

   6. For repeated or serious offences it may be necessary to take action to administer a penalty of temporary suspension from duty and pay for a day or more.

   7. For very serious offences and as a last resort, the supervisor initiates proposed action to separate the employee From government service.
   It should be noted that because of the need to improve efficiency and economy in government, special emphasis is placed on first line supervisors carrying out their personnel management responsibilities in the day-to-day utilization of their employees and improving substandard employee performance.

   Supervisors will insure that all employees have a personal copy of the standards of conduct.

4. TYPES OF CORRECTIVE ACTION::
   1. Counseling: The purpose of counseling is to promote more effective performance. “Counseling as used in this regulation includes any discussion a supervisor has with an employee explaining what is expected regarding work performance, usually in an effort to improve the employee’s performance, morale and efficiency.” Counseling as constructive discipline should have the objective of prevention, correction, development and rehabilitation in an effort to stimulate an employee to work more carefully.

   2. Admonishment: This is either a verbal or written warning notice to the employee who fails to respond to counseling, to inform that more serious action will be taken unless performance or conduct, of the employee is improved.

   3. Written Reprimand: This action is taken when it becomes necessary to make an official record for repeated minor offences or significant offences which if repeated, will lead to temporary suspension of work and pay.

   4. Suspension: This is a temporary non—pay status and directed absence from duty for a specified continuous period of time to penalize the employee for his infraction. Suspensions result in a loss of productive time and a financial loss to the employee and should be used sparingly only after official written reprimands have been utilized without success or unless the offence is so serious as to indicate that a more drastic corrective measure is necessary.

   5. Termination: This is the permanent, separation of the employee from his position and chances of being denied further employment

   6. Termination during probation: This action must be completed prior to a new employee’s completion of six months service, It is not considered an adverse action if it is used to terminate an incorrect selection and does not preclude opportunity for other jobs, unless the employee demonstrates undesirable characteristic. This is covered in a separate regulation.

5. RESPONSIBLITIES:
   1. Civil Service Bureau:
      1. The Head of Civil Service: The Head of Civil Service oversees the disciplinary program to assure that it is effectively administered in a consistent and uniform manner for the Civil Service workforce. He will review unusual cases and those involving high level individuals. As the need arises he will issue circulars and other central guidelines to Ministries as program guidance.

      2. The Executive Director Provides advice, guidance and direction in the general administration of the program and reviews and/or approves individual case action,. Unusual or sensitive cases are in turn elevated to, or discussed with Head of Civil Service for final determination.

      3. The Chief of Employee Management Relations reviews actions for technical adequacy and as appropriate assigns an Employee Management Relations Staff Specialist to contact the Ministry and to review all the facts in the proposed suspension actions of more than three days and proposed removal actions forwarded to CSB for approval. After obtaining all the facts including those favorable and unfavorable to the employee, the EMR specialist forwards the action with recommendations to the Chief Employee Management Relations, for final action as designated by the Head of Civil Service. Also, along with staff specialist, provides technical advice and guidance to employees and supervisors, and maintains statistics and other management information on the program. Insures that penalties are being applied equitably and consistently throughout the Government and after reviewing and investigating case actions makes recommendations to the Head of Civil Service on sensitive or high level actions, and takes final action as appropriate.

   2. Ministries:

      1. Establish internal programs and procedures to supplement this regulation at needed for the effective administration of discipline within their Ministries.

      2. Employees must discharge their assigned duties conscientiously; respect the administrative authority of those directing their work; and, observe the spirit and intent of policy and regulation governing their conduct. Employees are required to be honest, reliable, trustworthy, and of good character, reputation and unquestioned loyalty to the government.

      3. First Level Supervisors, as a minimum are responsible to determine the adequacy and effectiveness of their employees performance and initiate disciplinary action when necessary beginning with counseling arid applying penalties as a last resort. The supervisor will keep adequate records . In applying penalties, the supervisor will refer to the uniform guide attached, and complete all documentation required in this regulation. Prior to proceeding with final steps he will discuss his proposal with the second level supervisor for coordination and concurrence.

      4. Second Level Supervisions insure that corrective action is initialed in accordance with the principles of constructive discipline arid provide written concurrence.

      5. Higher level managers provide support necessary to improve efficiency and productivity in the ministry.

      6. The Ministry Directors of Administration and Finance or Director of Finance and/or Personnel Affairs (Director In charge of Personnel Affairs) The Director in—charge of Personnel. Affairs on his designee as a minimum must review proposed actions for regulatory compliance and decide on the merits of the case after investigation of the facts and affirm or modify the action in case of reprimand or suspensions of 1 to 3 days. Consulting service as well as training is available from CSB Employer Management Relations. (For suspension over 3 days and removal actions the Civil Service Bureau reviews proposed actions for requiratory compliance and makes the decision on the merits.

      7. Suspension of 1 to 3 days: The ministries are delegated responsibility and authority to approve suspensions from duty and pay for- periods of three days or less without CSB prior- approval - The CSB Form 14 is completed and approved in the ministry according to ministry rules providing as a minimum that the approval signature (in level of CSB) for grades G-8 and below, P—5 and below, A-6 and below be the Director of Personnel or higher level or higher grade positions the approval signature mist be at. Assistant Undersecretary or higher level in the ministry . A copy of the completed CSB Form 14 will he provided to the Civil Service Bureau in all cases.

6. PROCEDURES:
   1. Counseling this informal action between the supervisor and employer should serve as the means to explain policy and standards of conduct and performance to an employee whose efficiency and conduct is below acceptable standards and to point out clearly where and how the employee needs to improve. It includes regular and annual discuss on of performance. The supervisor will keep a record of all counseling sessions. Each recording should be dated arid signed by the supervisor.

   2. Admonishment: This action is still informal but should serve as a warning to the employee, that more drastic action will follow unless improvement it made. Again, the supervisor needs to street the seriousness of the mailer and document it for the record. It may include a warning letter stating how employee it not meeting standards of performance.

   3. Written Reprimand: This action requires a formal letter E is placed in I-he record for one year. It does not require prior approval of the Civil Service Bureau but a copy is forwarded to the Civil Service Bureau for inclusion in the official personnel folder after the ministry approval and issuance of the letter. The copy of the letter is removed from the official personnel file after one year has elapsed, provided employee has not repeated the offense.

      As a minimum the letter to the employee must include:

      1. The offence committed.
      2. Corrective action or improvement required.
      3. Penalty if offense is repeated.
      4. Signature of director and supervisor.

      The original letter, prepared on ministry letterhead, is signed by the supervisor. It may be in Arabic or English depending on the fluency of the employee in either or both languages. The copies must contain a space for:

      1. The employee to sign acknowledging reception, and
      2. The Ministry Director of Personnel Affairs, or his designee to sign indicating the action complies with regulations.

      The letter should be prepared confidentially in the office of the supervisor who also must obtain concurrence of the second or higher level supervisor and the approval of the office of the Director in charge of Personnel Affairs prior to delivering the letter to the employee. When the supervisor presents the letter to the employee, he should request the employee to sign to acknowledge receipt only, Failure to sign should be noted on all copies and the supervisor retains one copy and tends two copies to Director in charge of Personnel Affairs who forward one copy to CSB Employee Management Relations Office for post review and entry into the official personnel folder for one year.

      The employee has the right to file a written response to the supervisor who signed the letter. Letters of response from the employee to higher level will be referred to the immediate supervisor for reply in an appropriate manner. An employee will not be issued a written reprimand for an offence committed and observed by his supervisor more than 30 days in the past.

   4. Suspension and Termination Process
      The specific processing procedures to suspend or terminate an employee are similar. The supervisor must initiate the action promptly on CSB Form (14) Disciplinary Action. (A copy is attached to this regulation). These actions are made a latter of permanent record in the Official Personnel Folder. When an employee is terminated under provisions of this regulation he cannot be reemployed without prior approval of CSB. Before initiating action to suspend or terminate, the supervisor must consider the following:
      1. previous management action taken to resolve the problem.
      2. nature and consequence of the offence,
      3. whether prior breaches of conduct have cut-red and if so, the frequency and severity of these of fences,
      4. whether the possibility of misunderstanding, misinterpretation, or provocation exists in connection with the offence,
      5. the extent to which others may have contributed to or participated in the misconduct,
      6. the degree to which the offender could control circumstance leading to the violation. example: timing, location, or sequence of events,

   5. Selecting the penalty:
      1. The Table of Offences and Penalties contained as an attachment to this regulation is provided as a guide to assist management personnel in selecting an appropriate and equitable penalty after an offence has been evaluated. It is not intended to be, nor should it be used as a substitute for sound, mature judgment when dealing with disciplinary matters. The range of penalties is listed in the order of severity to enable supervisor’s to relief the appropriate penalty after considering the employees explanation and the evaluation factors contained in paragraph 6 (d) of this regulation.

         The Civil Service Bureau, after discussion with the concerned Ministry is invested with authority to amend and/or alter the suggested penalty of more than three days suspension or proposed termination following investigation and review of the case in order to ensure that penalties are applied equitably and consistently throughout the government service.

      2. No more than one penalty may be taken for a single offence.

      3. No employee shall he charged with an offence. if no action has been initiated after the elapse of 30 days from the note, the offence becomes known exception to this requirement will be permitted when circumstances and conditions beyond the control of management result in a delay of more than 30 days.

   6. Advance Notice to Employee of proposed Suspension or Termination:
      The purpose for the written notice by supervisor in advance of the action is to afford the employee fair opportunity to defend himself against that action after informing him of all of the reasons, specifically and in detail, that are being relied upon to support the action and by providing him with access to background information that will enable him to understand these reason:
      This information will include a statement of witnesses documents, investigative reports and material that is relevant to any previous record or action relied upon as part of the basis for the current action. The employee will be notified that he may submit; his written explanation of the facts and circumstances or views within 5 working days of receipt of the notice of proposed action.

   7. Employees Reply
      An employee who receives a notice of intent by the supervisor to take adverse action is entitled to reply to that notice. The employee is entitled to a reasonable response period during which he may obtain advice arid assistance, review the material relied upon to support the reason cited in the notice of proposed action, and prepare and submit his response. Usually this period is 5 working days. The employee’s reply may be oral in writing or both. When an oral reply is made, the principal points of the interview are recorded. If possible the signature of the employee is obtained to indicate that he agrees with the accuracy of the record. An oral reply does not effect the employee; additional right to reply in writing. The Ministry’s Director in charge of personnel or his designee must review thy supervisor’s proposed action for regulatory compliance and either investigate the circumstances as will as hear the employee’s side before approving the action, or provide opportunity for the employee to appeal after taking the action.

   8. Emergency Suspension:
      As art exception when immediate suspension duty is considered necessary as a means of providing time to investigate and for protecting employees and property such as the case of theft, drunkness , fighting, etc. , an employee may be suspended immediately from work and pay while the facts of the case are being determined. In such cases prior coordination will be made with the Ministry Director in charge of Personnel Affairs, and If it appears the suspension will exceed 3 days with CSB.

   9. Civil Service Bureau’s Technical review of Suspension for more than 3 days and Termination:
      Upon completion of the Disciplinary Action Form (14) and following endorsement and signature by the required authority in the Ministry concerned, the form in 3 copies together with the other attachments pertaining to the case including a copy of the employee’s reply if any, must be forwarded to the Employee—Management Relations Section in the Civil Service Bureau for review and further investigation into the proposed action of either suspension more than three days or termination. The Civil Service Bureau after investigation and review of the case will provide technical advice to ensure that penalties are applied equitably and consistently through the Government Service. In case of disagreement between the Ministry’s proposed action and the Civil Service Bureau’s technical recommendations, the case will be referred up to the concerned Minister For final consideration . Following approval and determination of the effective date by the Civil Service Bureau, the original copy of the form will be returned to the Ministry for delivery to the employee. When the offence results in suspension the first copy is retained by the Civil Service Bureau for statistical purposes, and later placed for a period of 2 years in the employee’s official personnel file maintained in the Bureau. The second copy is referred to the Ministry payroll activity to effect deduction from salary as specified in the disciplinary action form. The reappointment is subject to CSB approval provided that 3 years have elapsed since the date the decision of removal was issued. However such period does not apply in case of crimes which violate ethics and honesty unless the employee’s status has been restored.

   10. Notice of Final Decision: A notice of Final Decision of the Disciplinary Action Form (14) will be delivered to the employee immediately from the date the penalty becomes effective. Management must explain and support if requested any adverse or disciplinary action it has taken.

   11. Completing CSB Form 14: When the supervisor determines that suspension or termination is appropriate the next step is to complete CSB Form 14 in an original and three copies. The detailed description of the offence on the CSB Form 14 as a minimum must include:
       1. the exact nature of the unacceptable conduct, attitude, work habit, work performance, or other condition having a relationship to the employment of this individual;

       2. the specific times that this action occurred; note patterns of unacceptable work behavior;

       3. a record of the counseling that the employee received;

       4. the consequences if this behavior persists.

       5. Request for personnel Action CSB Form 52 will be forwarded to CSB on all suspension and Termination actions. For suspensions of one to three days, a copy of the Form 14 approved in the ministry must accompany the Form 52. For proposed suspensions of more than three days and proposed termination actions, the Form 52 will accompany the CSB Form 14 . Should the proposed action be approved, the CSB Form 14 will be returned through channels to the ministry for delivery of a copy by the supervisor to the employee. The personnel action Form 52 will be processed automatically by CSB and the employee has no appeal rights once CSB has finalized the action.

   Attachment :

   1. CSB Form 14 DISCIPLINARY ACTION
   2. Sample LETTER OF REPRIMAND
   3. TABLE OF OFFENCES AND PENALTIES provided as a guide to assist supervisors in selecting an appropriate and equitable penalty after the offence has been evaluated. It is not, intended to be, nor should it be used as a substitute for sound, mature judgment when dealing with disciplinary matters. No more than one penalty may be taken for a single offence.