Personnel and Civil Service polices as well as labor agreements often refer to "just cause," "reasonable cause," or "good cause" as the basis for suspension or termination of employees. Although used frequent, the term "just cause" raises many questions. What is it? How is it established?

"Just cause" is a judgment made after considering a number of related factors. There is no hard and fast rule that certain behavior warrants a specific level of discipline in each and every case. However, asking yourself the following questions should help in determining whether you have just cause for discipline. A "no" answer to one of the following questions may indicate that just cause does not exist. Please remember these are guidelines.

If you can answer "yes" to all of these questions, your action will likely be upheld throughout an appeal process should the employee appeal the action. Remember that discipline should be a progressive, constructive attempt to correct behavior. Termination of an employee should occur when progressive discipline has failed. Only in extreme cases of poor performance or behavior, or where the policies, practices, and standards of the City demand it for certain infractions, will a termination be upheld in the absence of a progressive disciplinary approach.