The call always comes unexpectedly.
You’re midway through your morning briefing, skimming reports, when your mobile rings. An employee’s been arrested. Just like that, your day pivots.
It’s a scenario few leaders are truly prepared for yet in today’s ever-evolving landscape, it’s no longer unthinkable. For modern employers, the real question isn’t if you’ll face such a moment, but how you’ll respond when you do. The traditional instinct may urge swift action damage control, a disciplinary letter, perhaps even dismissal. But those well-worn scripts don’t always serve you or your people in the long term.
This is where leadership calls for more than compliance. It calls for clarity, composure, and above all, humanity.
🔹 1. Composure First: An Arrest Isn’t a Verdict
In hospitality, we learn quickly that calm heads steady the room. The same principle holds true here. An arrest doesn’t equal guilt it’s merely the start of a legal process. Your role, initially, is not to judge but to lead.
Here’s what that looks like:
- Listen Before You Leap: Make every effort to gather context. If the employee is in custody, you may need to wait patience is part of the process.
- Neutrality Is Strength: Suspend judgement, not humanity. Reacting too quickly can risk your integrity as much as theirs.
Snap decisions may feel decisive but they often unravel under scrutiny. A steady, measured response reflects operational maturity and builds internal trust.
🔹 2. Conducting a Fair Internal Review
While the legal system does its part, your duty as an employer is to assess how the situation intersects with your workplace. This isn’t about guilt or innocence. It’s about relevance and responsibility.
Approach it like this:
- Consider Suspension as a Protective Measure
If the offence is serious, a neutral suspension may be necessary to preserve trust and workplace integrity not to punish, but to safeguard - Evaluate Role Impact
Ask yourself: does the alleged offence compromise their role or jeopardise customer safety, brand image, or legal compliance? - Stay in Scope
You’re not a court. Your remit is organisational risk, operational continuity, and staff welfare.
Think of this as a moment to reinforce internal transparency and to show that fairness is more than policy, it’s practice.
🔹 3. Is Dismissal on the Table? Proceed Thoughtfully
Dismissal is a weighty decision. In my automotive days, managing large operational teams, we learned never to rush towards termination not just for legal prudence, but because every exit carries cultural consequences.
Here’s what matters:
- Relevance to Role: A delivery driver arrested for drink-driving? That’s directly incompatible. But someone in a non-customer-facing role? The context differs.
- Reputational Risk: If the arrest threatens your company’s standing particularly in regulated or public-facing industries that impact must be measured and demonstrable.
- Due Process: Even if dismissal is deemed appropriate, it must follow fair, structured procedure: documented findings, formal hearing, right to response.
Dismissal, if done reactively, can damage more than it protects. But when carried out thoughtfully, it affirms your commitment to accountability and care.
🔹 4. What About Pay? Custody and Employment Rights
This is often where the operational meets the ethical. If an employee is in custody and cannot attend work, you are typically not obliged to pay them. But how you handle it speaks volumes.
Best practice:
- Communicate Transparently: Put all pay-related decisions in writing. Avoid ambiguity clarity maintains professional trust.
- Document Your Steps: If conviction occurs and return to work is no longer viable, follow formal dismissal channels. Don’t presume employment ends automatically.
Navigating this carefully reduces friction, protects your business legally, and upholds your employer brand in difficult moments.
🔹 A Moment of Crisis or a Catalyst for Culture?
When a team member is arrested, it tests more than your policies it tests your culture. Will you default to fear, or will you lead with foresight?
Let’s summarise the modern approach:
- Lead with Calm: Avoid reactive decisions. Assess facts methodically.
- Investigate Fairly: Focus on operational impact, not moral judgement.
- Dismiss with Integrity: Only when relevant, and always via due process.
- Communicate Everything: Clearly, kindly, and with documentation.
Old-school HR may have prized swift exits. But forward-thinking leaders see these moments differently. They see them as chances to reinforce values, show fairness under pressure, and future-proof their teams for complexity.
Whether you operate in a hotel, a manufacturing plant, or a tech startup, the principle holds: your response in a moment of uncertainty defines the trust your people place in you.
And that trust earned in difficult times becomes the cornerstone of a culture where excellence can truly thrive
