Concept of Employee Discipline
Discipline means behaving in a right and desired manner. It means regulations or conditions imposed on employees by management in order to correct or prevent behaviors which are counterproductive to the organization.
It connotes orderly and acceptable behavior by the members of the organization. That means systematically conducting the business by the organizational members who strictly adhere to the essential rules and regulations. The employees are of different kinds and they come from different background, cultures, and experiences with different norms, values, and cultures. Hence, if they behave differently, the organizational objectives will be far beyond from target of achievement.
- According to Richard D. Calhoon’, “Discipline may be considered as a force that prompts individuals or groups to observe the rules, regulations, and procedures which are deemed to be necessary for the effective functioning of an organization”.
- In the opinion of Ordway Tead, “Discipline is the order, members of an organization who adhere to its necessary regulations because they desire to cooperate harmoniously in forwarding the end which the group has in view”.
A disciplined employee will be organized and an organized employee will be disciplined always. Employee discipline can be referred to a force that promotes individuals. groups to observe the rules, regulations, and procedures of the organization which is necessary to achieve organizational goals. It is a condition in which employees perform organizational activities with a consistent behavior. In other words, it is said that discipline avoids disorder, irregularity, and confusion. It is a condition in an organization when employees perform their activities in accordance with organizational rules and regulations. Through such disciplinary actions, employees confirm with what is considered proper behavior. It means the employees conform to organizational rules and regulations framed by the organization as acceptable behavior.
Therefore, employee discipline is a procedure that helps correct or punish a subordinate so that he/she conducts activities to within an acceptable manner. In short, discipline implies obedience, orderliness, and maintenance of proper subordination among employees. It is a tool that managers can rely on to communicates organizational behaviors to the employees. Usually, disciplinary actions are framed by supervisors, however, in self-managed work teams; it is a team’s responsibility to maintain discipline at work.
Thus, discipline can now be defined as a condition in the organization when employees conduct themselves in accordance with the organization’s rules and standards of acceptable behavior.
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