Nintendo have announced that they won’t fire the head of its Russian arm following a thorough investigation into his workplace conduct – eurogamer.net reports.
Last November, the consumer electronics company launched an investigation into Yasha Haddaji after footage was publicly released of him verbally abusing hosts of a Mario Kart stream. He has recently been let off with a formal warning and has issued an apology letter to all Nintendo Russia employees.
The company issued a statement yesterday on the back of the investigation. It read:
“Nintendo initiated a thorough investigation into each of the allegations made against the General Manager of Nintendo Russia, Mr Yasha Haddaji, in November.”
“While the results of the investigation acknowledge that Mr Haddaji’s loss of temper on display in the video has at times also been observed in the office, none of the allegations of harassment brought forth in the wake of the video were substantiated by the investigation.”
The statement also explained that Haddaji “fully acknowledged” that losing his temper is “a breach of our Code of Conduct”. “[He] expresses his remorse to all those affected by it.” And this scenario stresses the importance of a company Code of Conduct.
What is a Code of Conduct?
A code of conduct is company document which sets out an array of principles that both the employer and employees commit to follow.
According to ethic.org, a well-written Code of Conduct should clarify the organisations missions, values and principles while aligning them with the standards of professional conduct. This document should also include a penalty component to let employees know in advance what they can expect for breaching the code.
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Work.chron.com advises HR to clearly lay out disciplinary procedures and policies in the document so that there are no ‘grey areas’.
Minor code breaches such as misuse or abuse of office equipment and incomplete work could result in written warnings or reduced job privileges. And in Nintendo’s case, Haddaji’s actions were considered as a minor breach because he got off with a formal warning.
However, the penalties for more serious breaches which include theft, acts of violence and carrying weapons in the workplace can be settled with legal action.
So, the key takeaway for HR is to ensure that their Code of Conduct is clear and leaves no ‘grey areas’ for employees to misinterpret. A clear understanding of what is considered as wrong at work, as well as the repercussions of these actions, is likely to prevent frequent Code of Conduct breaches.
