Suspension on Full Pay
sho_me_da_money
Posts: 1,673 Forumite
Hi Guys,
Not been on here for a while. I hope the regulars are doing well and good.
I will try and keep the post to a minimum but I was wondering if you can help regarding an issue a family member who was recently suspended on full pay pending an investigation.
She attended work as normal on Monday. On Tuesday around Mid-Day, she was called into a room and was asked if she knew what this was about. She genuinely expressed her confusion and said she had no idea. Her boss at the time suggested comments like "did you say anything to anyone or someone etc" to which she replied, no. The boss decided a suspension on full pay was necessary.
By the way she is a Customer Service Advisor.
A letter arrives today explaining the following allegations are being investigated:
1. Failure to deal efficiently with Customer Calls
2. Inappropriate language within the workplace
3. Rude behavior towards colleagues
4. Deliberate misuse of telephone system
Having read the Disciplinary Procedure, items 1, 2 and 3 fall under 'Misconduct'. Item 4 falls under Gross Misconduct.
The letter further states that elements of the above are regarded as Gross Misconduct therefore a suspension was necessary.
My cousin thinks that the first allegation could be a possibility - it may have occurred on the Monday but she believes the rest of the allegations have been added-on to support their stance. She cannot imagine all these allegations were made at the same time and believes that some may have been discovered during their investigation and were simply added on in the letter. Unfortunately this is a guess because no reason was provided on the day she was suspended.
Are they allowed to allege, discover and add more allegations to the list?
The sad part is that she has only been there for a year. I would be grateful for any advice.
Thank you
Not been on here for a while. I hope the regulars are doing well and good.
I will try and keep the post to a minimum but I was wondering if you can help regarding an issue a family member who was recently suspended on full pay pending an investigation.
She attended work as normal on Monday. On Tuesday around Mid-Day, she was called into a room and was asked if she knew what this was about. She genuinely expressed her confusion and said she had no idea. Her boss at the time suggested comments like "did you say anything to anyone or someone etc" to which she replied, no. The boss decided a suspension on full pay was necessary.
By the way she is a Customer Service Advisor.
A letter arrives today explaining the following allegations are being investigated:
1. Failure to deal efficiently with Customer Calls
2. Inappropriate language within the workplace
3. Rude behavior towards colleagues
4. Deliberate misuse of telephone system
Having read the Disciplinary Procedure, items 1, 2 and 3 fall under 'Misconduct'. Item 4 falls under Gross Misconduct.
The letter further states that elements of the above are regarded as Gross Misconduct therefore a suspension was necessary.
My cousin thinks that the first allegation could be a possibility - it may have occurred on the Monday but she believes the rest of the allegations have been added-on to support their stance. She cannot imagine all these allegations were made at the same time and believes that some may have been discovered during their investigation and were simply added on in the letter. Unfortunately this is a guess because no reason was provided on the day she was suspended.
Are they allowed to allege, discover and add more allegations to the list?
The sad part is that she has only been there for a year. I would be grateful for any advice.
Thank you
0
Comments
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Yes ofcourse they are.
And they can sack her for any reason.
Basically she should make the most of this full pay suspension and look for another job. - try to negotiate a good reference for going quietly (and hope they agree)0 -
sho_me_da_money wrote: »r.
A letter arrives today explaining the following allegations are being investigated:
1. Failure to deal efficiently with Customer Calls
2. Inappropriate language within the workplace
3. Rude behavior towards colleagues
4. Deliberate misuse of telephone system
Having read the Disciplinary Procedure, items 1, 2 and 3 fall under 'Misconduct'. Item 4 falls under Gross Misconduct.
The letter further states that elements of the above are regarded as Gross Misconduct therefore a suspension was necessary.
My cousin thinks that the first allegation could be a possibility - it may have occurred on the Monday but she believes the rest of the allegations have been added-on to support their stance. She cannot imagine all these allegations were made at the same time and believes that some may have been discovered during their investigation and were simply added on in the letter. Unfortunately this is a guess because no reason was provided on the day she was suspended.
Are they allowed to allege, discover and add more allegations to the list?
The sad part is that she has only been there for a year. I would be grateful for any advice.
Thank you
It doesn't matter in the slightest when these allegations were made. Either they are true or they are false but either way she needs to answer them if she has any hope of keeping her job.
As indicated above with less than two years service she can be dismissed for any non-discriminatory reason (or no reason at all).
If she has a contractual entitlement to a full laid down disciplinary process then they need to follow it or she could (in theory) bring a wrongful dismissal claim for which there is no minimum period of employment. In practice all that would get her is a few days pay for however long it would have taken to do the job properly. It would of course totally kill any chance of a reference.0 -
Thank you for the advice friends.
One question, and this is for my own personal knowledge. Can a person be fired for several acts of Misconduct (informed at the same time) OR must there be an act of Gross Misconduct to warrant a dismissal.0 -
Totally agree with everyone else. The point of an investigation is to investigate, and it is far from unusual for one to turn up other issues which people have been concerned about raising, especially when those concerns arise out of conduct. People are often worried about making themselves a target by complaining, but as soon as they are asked, the information just keeps coming.0
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Yes they can. Given the allegations you list, if evidenced, I would expect dismissal even if none of them was gross misconduct in itself.sho_me_da_money wrote: »Thank you for the advice friends.
One question, and this is for my own personal knowledge. Can a person be fired for several acts of Misconduct (informed at the same time) OR must there be an act of Gross Misconduct to warrant a dismissal.0 -
Ok well it seems like she is getting the boot for an underlying reason but as you say if the allegations are evidenced, be that from yesterday or from several weeks or months ago, it doesn't matter.0
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sho_me_da_money wrote: »Are they allowed to allege, discover and add more allegations to the list?
Yes, they're on a fishing trip by this point and will take what they can to build their case for a disciplinary hearing.Don’t be a can’t, be a can.0
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