A demotion is a compulsory reduction in an
employee
Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any o ...
's
rank or
job title within the organizational hierarchy of a company, public service department, or other body.
A demotion may also lead to the loss of other privileges associated with a more senior rank and/or a reduction in salary or benefits. An employee may be demoted for violating the rules of the organization by a behavior such as excessive
lateness,
misconduct
Misconduct is wrongful, improper, or unlawful conduct motivated by premeditated or intentional purpose or by obstinate indifference to the consequences of one's acts. It is an act which is forbidden or a failure to do that which is required. Misc ...
, or
negligence
Negligence (Lat. ''negligentia'') is a failure to exercise appropriate and/or ethical ruled care expected to be exercised amongst specified circumstances. The area of tort law known as ''negligence'' involves harm caused by failing to act as ...
. In some cases, an employee may be demoted as an alternative to being
laid off, if the employee has poor
job performance or if the company is facing a
financial crisis
A financial crisis is any of a broad variety of situations in which some financial assets suddenly lose a large part of their nominal value. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many financial crises were associated with banking panics, and man ...
. A move to a position at the same rank or level elsewhere in the organization is called a lateral move or
deployment
Deployment may refer to:
Engineering and software Concepts
* Blue-green deployment, a method of installing changes to a web, app, or database server by swapping alternating production and staging servers
* Continuous deployment, a software e ...
. A voluntary move to a lower level is also a deployment as it is not a compulsory reduction in level. Demotion is often misinterpreted simply as the opposite of a
promotion. However, it is only one means of undergoing a reduction in work level.
Types
Within the continuum of disciplinary options available within most organizations, a demotion falls in the middle range of severity. Minor violations of rules, or the first violation of a rule will typically result in a verbal or written warning or a suspension without pay. At the other extreme, for severe violations of the rules, such as
embezzlement or sabotage, an employee will typically be fired and/or the company will file criminal or civil charges. In
sport
Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...
s
leagues, when teams are transferred between divisions, the worst-ranked teams in the higher division are
relegated (or demoted) to the lower division.
Other uses
The word ''demotion'' is not restricted to the world of employment; it can be used in a number of areas.
See also
*
Downshifting (lifestyle)
References
Industrial and organizational psychology
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