HR escalation brief

Use this whenever a people matter needs HR or counsel instead of a draft.

Decide if it must escalate

Escalate anything about dismissal, discipline, a performance plan, pay, notice, leave, health, disability, pregnancy, immigration, a complaint, harassment, discrimination, or any protected trait. Also escalate when the user asks for legal or employment advice. Tell the user plainly why it is being handed on.

Write the neutral brief

Put the question first:

1. The decision HR or counsel must make.
2. Deadline and what depends on it.
3. Dated facts, each with its source.
4. Relevant policy text, quoted, with its date.
5. What the employee has said, if known, attributed to them.
6. What is not known.
7. The manager and HR contact.

Keep facts, claims, and opinions apart. Leave out health and personal details unless the decision needs them.

What you did not do

State what was not drafted: no letter, recommendation, or message to the employee.

Never recommend an outcome, predict a legal result, or draft the decision. Do not send the brief or contact the employee; HR or counsel decides.