Beware! A warning notice in the resume is not legally valid for public employees

What is a warning notice in the resume?

The employer, in exercise of its authority within the employment relationship, may apply disciplinary sanctions to employees whose behavior violates the provisions of the employment contract.

A warning is a notice or alert issued by the employer for improper behavior by the employee. This may be given verbally or in writing, depending on the circumstances.

In the case of a warning notice in the resume, the employer will leave a record of the failure attached to the employee’s resume.

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Such a notation remains adjacent to the employee’s records so that, in the event of a recall for references, the employer can share the details of the failure that caused the warning notice in the resume.

This is often referred to as the last resort used by employers, as recalls are usually initially presented verbally, highlighting the behavior that needs to be altered.

In these cases, both the employee’s fault and the guidelines established within the organization must be taken into account, since companies are free to define the guidelines for disciplinary sanctions and the criteria used in the evaluation of employee performance.

Warning notice in the resume: What does Colombian law say?

The Ministry of Labor and the Congress of the Republic do not issue official guidelines for the formal application of a warning notice in the resume.

However, such entities establish parameters to be taken into account particularly in the case of public employees.

Although the State has the power and the duty to carry out the pertinent investigations to take measures when the public employee presents faults in his behavior, in the case of a warning notice in the resume, sentence C-1076 of 2002 declared the exercise of such warning notices invalid:

“According to the high court, when dealing with behaviors that alter the internal order of the institutions, but without substantially compromising the functional duties of the disciplinable subject, it is understandable that the call for attention is not surrounded by the procedural connotations and formalisms inherent to actions of that nature”.

Thus, in the event of behavior contrary to the disciplinary regime of the corresponding entity, public employers will not be able to process a reprimand on a resume.

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Protocol for reprimands

Although the guidelines shared by the Administrative Department of the Civil Service clarify the invalidity of the warning notice in the resume, no clear guidelines are established for the correct process of reprimand.

Thus, employers must define, according to what is most convenient and in accordance with their work and culture, the rules regarding disciplinary sanctions for their employees.

Of course, in cases where the employer deems it necessary to issue a formal notice, the employer may decide the structure of the document and the implications that such recall has for the employee.

In general, in cases of misconduct, it is the responsibility of the line manager to approach the employee concerned, initially verbally, with a warning as appropriate.

Any additional procedures that respond to the performance evaluation criteria must be made known to the employee as part of the responsibilities of the employing entity.

It is worth mentioning that although the Administrative Department of the Civil Service does not dictate any formal procedures, employers may find additional information regarding what constitutes a call for attention in the section Concept 112681 of 2022 of the Administrative Department of the Civil Service.

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