Internal Investigation: The Legal Frame
An internal investigation — into a disciplinary matter, harassment or another workplace incident — is in Georgia not a matter of corporate discretion but of a chain of three norms: the internal rules of labour set the standards, the norm on grounds of termination decides when a breach is serious enough, and the dispute-settlement procedure determines what happens after the findings. Foreign doctrinal constructions do not apply directly here — the Georgian investigation is built on internal rules and disciplinary grounds.
Three points decide the lawfulness of an investigation: the existence of the rule, the rule's linkage to the employment contract, and observance of the review procedure.
The Rule Base: What the Investigation Enforces
Under article 23 the employer has the right to adopt internal rules of labour and is obliged to acquaint the employees with them. The internal rules may define the working week and day, the length of a shift and of rest, the time, place and procedure of remuneration, paid and unpaid leave, the protection of labour conditions, the forms of incentive and liability, and — the decisive item — the procedure for considering applications/complaints. That last item is the procedural home of the internal investigation. A provision of the internal rules that contradicts the law, the individual employment contract or the collective agreement is void — an investigation cannot rest on a rule that is itself unlawful.
Article 23 also imposes two further duties that bear on the lawfulness of an investigation: the employer must take measures to secure the principle of equal treatment of employees, including reflecting anti-discrimination provisions in the internal rules and other documents and ensuring their performance; and it must facilitate the realization of the rights of persons with disabilities at the workplace, within reasonable accommodation. An investigation that ignores these duties leaves protected groups in an incorrect position.