Singapore Polytechnic (Staff Discipline) Regulations 2026

For the purposes of these Regulations, the Board must appoint a Staff Disciplinary Committee consisting of 3 members of the Board, which must not include the Chairperson or the Principal.

At any meeting or proceedings of the Staff Disciplinary Committee, 2 members form a quorum.

Any complaint against an employee alleging the commission by the employee of a disciplinary offence must —

Where a complaint is made under paragraph (1), the Principal must review the complaint and ascertain if the complaint warrants a preliminary investigation into whether a disciplinary offence has been committed.

In the course of reviewing the complaint, the Principal may require the complainant to answer any query or provide any document or record that the Principal considers relevant for the purposes of the review.

After reviewing the complaint, the Principal must —

Subject to regulation 20(1), if, instead of a complaint, credible information comes to the Principal’s knowledge that an employee has or may have committed a disciplinary offence, the Principal must appoint an investigating officer to conduct a preliminary investigation into the information.

The investigating officer appointed in paragraph (4)(b) or (5) may be assisted by one or more other persons appointed by the Principal.

Before conducting a preliminary investigation, the investigating officer must notify the employee concerned about the complaint mentioned in regulation 4(1) or the information mentioned in regulation 4(5), as the case may be.

The employee must submit a written explanation to the investigating officer within 7 working days after receiving the notification or any further period that the Principal may allow.

Despite the failure of the employee to submit a written explanation under paragraph (2), the investigating officer may proceed to conduct a preliminary investigation into the complaint or information.

After —

The investigating officer must include in the report of the preliminary investigation a summary of the facts of the case.

An employee who is dissatisfied with the decision of the Principal under regulation 6(b) may, within 14 days after receipt of the decision, lodge with the Staff Disciplinary Committee an appeal —

After consideration of an appeal lodged under paragraph (1), the Staff Disciplinary Committee may determine the matter in any manner that it thinks fit and may —

The decision of the Staff Disciplinary Committee under paragraph (2) is final.

The Staff Disciplinary Committee may, after considering the report of the preliminary investigation referred to it under regulation 6(c), commence disciplinary proceedings under this regulation and cause proceedings to be taken in accordance with regulation 9 or regulations 10 to 17.

The Staff Disciplinary Committee must notify the employee in writing —

If the employee submits an exculpatory statement which, in the opinion of the Staff Disciplinary Committee, is satisfactory, the Staff Disciplinary Committee must dismiss the complaint or information.

If the employee submits an exculpatory statement which, in the opinion of the Staff Disciplinary Committee, is not satisfactory, the Staff Disciplinary Committee must appoint a committee of inquiry to inquire into the matter and to submit a report to the Staff Disciplinary Committee.

The committee of inquiry consists of —

At any meeting or proceedings of the committee of inquiry, 2 members form a quorum.

A person who is appointed as an investigating officer for the investigation of any complaint or information against an employee is disqualified from acting as a member of the committee of inquiry in any subsequent proceedings in respect of that complaint or information.

The Principal must notify every member of the committee of inquiry of his or her appointment.

The committee of inquiry may cause the complaint or information to be further investigated in any manner.

Where the employee fails to submit an exculpatory statement within the time specified in regulation 8(2)(b), the Staff Disciplinary Committee may proceed to decide the matter in accordance with this regulation.

The Staff Disciplinary Committee may dispense with the appointment of a committee of inquiry to inquire into the matter where the employee —

The Staff Disciplinary Committee may proceed to decide the matter in accordance with paragraph (4) after giving the employee an opportunity of being heard in person.

Upon considering the facts of the case, the Staff Disciplinary Committee may, if it is of the opinion that —

Before requiring an employee to retire in the public interest, the Staff Disciplinary Committee must give the employee a reasonable opportunity to submit to the Staff Disciplinary Committee a written reply to the grounds upon which his or her retirement is contemplated.

Where a committee of inquiry is appointed under regulation 8(4), the committee of inquiry must give the employee at least 7 working days’ notice in writing of the date on which the committee of inquiry will commence its inquiry.

The employee must attend the inquiry and must be permitted to —

At the inquiry, the evidence on behalf of the Staff Disciplinary Committee must be presented by a member of the staff of the Polytechnic or by any public officer or an advocate and solicitor appointed by the Principal.

The employee under inquiry may be represented by an advocate and solicitor, a member of the staff of the Polytechnic other than the member mentioned in paragraph (3) or by any other person that the Staff Disciplinary Committee may allow.

The committee of inquiry is not bound to act in a formal manner and is not bound by the provisions of the Evidence Act 1893 or by any other law relating to evidence, but may inform itself on any matter in any manner that it thinks fit.

The committee of inquiry must proceed with its inquiry from day to day and no adjournment is to be given except for reasons to be recorded in writing.

The committee of inquiry must, as soon as practicable, report to the Principal and the Staff Disciplinary Committee every adjournment of 14 days or less, together with the reasons for the adjournment.

Any adjournment of more than 14 days requires the permission of the Staff Disciplinary Committee on a written application by the committee of inquiry or the employee under inquiry.

If the committee of inquiry is of the opinion that the employee under inquiry is hampering or attempting to hamper the progress of the inquiry, the committee may administer a warning to the employee.

If, after the warning, the committee of inquiry is of the opinion that the employee is acting in disregard of the warning, the committee must make an entry in the record to that effect and may proceed to complete the inquiry in any manner that it thinks fit.

Upon considering the report of the committee of inquiry, the Staff Disciplinary Committee may, if it is of the opinion that —

Before requiring an employee to retire in the public interest, the Staff Disciplinary Committee must give the employee a reasonable opportunity to submit to the Staff Disciplinary Committee a written reply to the grounds upon which his or her retirement is contemplated.

Before the Staff Disciplinary Committee makes a decision under regulation 16, the Staff Disciplinary Committee may require the committee of inquiry to reconvene to consider any further evidence and to meet for that purpose.

The Staff Disciplinary Committee must give the employee at least 14 days’ notice of the reconvening of the committee of inquiry.

If criminal proceedings have commenced against an employee, any disciplinary action by the Principal or any disciplinary proceedings under these Regulations on any ground relating to the criminal offence that the employee is charged with must not be taken or if commenced, must not continue, until —

For the purposes of paragraph (1) and regulation 23(1)(a), criminal proceedings are taken to have commenced against an employee when the employee is charged with a criminal offence.

Upon receiving information that an employee has been convicted of a criminal offence, the Principal may refer the matter to the Staff Disciplinary Committee for disciplinary proceedings without having to appoint an investigating officer under regulation 4(5).

Where an employee has been convicted of a criminal offence, the Staff Disciplinary Committee is not required to appoint a committee of inquiry to inquire into the matter but may consider the record of the proceedings of the court.

If the Staff Disciplinary Committee is of the opinion, after considering the record of the proceedings of the court, that the employee should be dismissed or reduced in grade or otherwise be penalised with one or more penalties mentioned in regulation 16(1)(c), the Staff Disciplinary Committee must give the employee a reasonable opportunity of being heard before penalising the employee accordingly.

Where an employee is acquitted of a criminal charge, the Staff Disciplinary Committee may consider the record of the proceedings of the court.

If the record discloses conduct on the part of the employee which warrants the dismissal or reduction in grade of, or the imposition of any other penalty on, the employee, the Staff Disciplinary Committee may commence disciplinary proceedings under regulation 8.

An employee who is dissatisfied with the decision of the Staff Disciplinary Committee under regulation 9(4)(b) or (c), 16(1)(b) or (c) or 20(3) may, within 30 days after receipt of the decision of the Staff Disciplinary Committee, lodge with the Chairperson a notice of appeal against the decision.

The Chairperson must appoint an Appeal Committee consisting of 3 members of the Board, which must not include the Chairperson or the Principal, to hear and determine the appeal.

The Appeal Committee may determine the case in any manner that it thinks fit and may —

A member of the Board who sits as a member of the Staff Disciplinary Committee to decide a case is disqualified from sitting as a member of the Appeal Committee on any subsequent appeal from that case.

The decision of the Appeal Committee under paragraph (3) is final.

Where —

The Principal must not interdict an employee under paragraph (1) unless the Principal considers that in the interests of the Polytechnic or its students, the employee must cease to perform his or her duties immediately.

Where an employee has been interdicted, the Principal may —

If the disciplinary proceedings against an employee do not result in the dismissal of the employee or any other penalty, the employee is entitled to the full amount of the emoluments which he or she would have received had he or she not been interdicted, and any emoluments of an employee withheld under paragraph (3) must be paid to the employee.

If the disciplinary proceedings against an employee result in a penalty other than dismissal, the employee may be refunded any portion of the emoluments withheld under paragraph (3) that the Principal thinks fit.

Where disciplinary proceedings have commenced against an employee who has not been interdicted, the Staff Disciplinary Committee may withhold any increment due to the employee during the period before the disciplinary proceedings are completed.

Any increment of an employee which is withheld under paragraph (1) may, if the Staff Disciplinary Committee thinks fit, be forfeited if the disciplinary proceedings result in the dismissal or reduction in grade of the employee or the imposition of any other penalty.