Our mobile phones are never far away from us these days and this powerful technology is at our fingertips just waiting to be used.

There are times during our working careers that occasionally we might need to have an awkward conversation with an employee and discuss their performance. These meetings can be very unnerving for the employee and sometimes you may find that they wish to record the meeting for legal evidence or simply for a memory aid.

Recording a conversation for personal use is not technically against the law and the expectation is that the employee should disclose their intentions to do so to you beforehand. However, there has been a case where a recording did become admissible where the employee was present.

As an employer to protect yourself when having difficult conversation it is advisable to take the following precautions: –

• Have an independent witness with you
• Take notes following the meeting and get these signed off by all parties
• Follow up on progress

More importantly though if you do not want to be put in this position ensure your policies in place reflect your wishes clearly.

For further help and advice on this topic please do not hesitate to contact me