Progressive Discipline Framework

Matches standard SHRM/AIHR progressive-discipline structure. Serious misconduct — theft, violence, harassment, or a safety violation — may lawfully skip directly to a later step, including immediate termination; that discretion is stated here explicitly so the policy itself never implies steps are mandatory in every case.

• Date, time, and place of the incident and of the conversation about it.
• A specific, factual description — e.g. "arrived 22 minutes late," never a vague label like "attendance issues."
• The specific policy violated.
• The required improvement and a timeframe for it.
• The stated consequence of a further occurrence.
• The employee's response.
• Signature, or a documented refusal to sign.

Write-ups are completed the day of the incident — never batch-assembled just before a termination. A pattern of write-ups all dated and written within the same short window right before separation "looks exactly like what it is" and undermines the whole record.

Sits between Step 2 (Written Warning) and Step 3 (Final Warning). Length depends on what's being fixed:

Every PIP uses SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) and includes weekly check-ins with the employee, each one documented per the record requirements above.

• Texas is an at-will employment state: documentation is recommended, not legally required, to terminate.
• An unemployment-benefits notice is required at separation.
• Final pay must follow Texas payday law timing.
• Handbook and policy language must not accidentally create an implied "just cause" procedure by promising these steps will always be followed in every case — this is a specific item for attorney review.