Suspended from work

Conzy6666

Hi all, I have a bit of a sticky situation I am freaking out about so ill start from the beginning.

On 19/05 I was at work with a colleague of mine, long story short we had a heated argument and she threw a book in my face.
I immediately got angry shouting at her etc, I then proceeded downstairs to speak to my boss and to make a formal complaint, however he had already spoken to my colleague and basically said because I had apparently verbally assaulted her it gave her the right to physically assault me (I kid you not, he said this).

Anyway an hour later a manager came to speak to me and basically said if I take this complaint any further i would regret it. I then proceeded shouting and swearing (not at him) about the situation as I was upset and didn't feel management was taking me seriously.
I got to the point I was so upset, I said I need to go home and the manager who came to speak to me said "let him go" to the other manager in charge of me at the time.

I get a phone call on Monday asking me to attend a meeting on Wednesday but they did not explain what it was about, I just assumed it was to do with my complaint.

I am greeted by my acting line manager and a member of HR and they explain the meeting was an investigation into my conduct regarding the incident on 19/05 as a manager had lied in a statement claiming I was swearing in front of passengers which is completely untrue. I explained my side of the story and apologized to the manager conducting the interview (He was the same manager who spoke to me on the day) for my reaction, The manager in charge at the time physically grabbed my jacket then let go as we were in passenger accommodation however I did not mention this as I thought they would try to sack me instead of a manager who has been with the company in question for over a decade.

He basically twisted everything that had happened that day, saying to me when I left work he apparently told me on the day "it would be unauthorized". Only when I pulled out my phone to find the recorded conversation from that day did he admit it. I gave my version of events and they left the room to come to a decision on what steps to take next. They came back around 20 minutes later and said I was being suspended on full pay to allow them to conduct an investigation. However, when I asked if this would go to a disciplinary he could not tell me and he could not tell me what action I was faced with.

I have been searching online and have found the following.

Suspension as part of a disciplinary procedure (investigation)
Your employer can only suspend you for gross misconduct.
The reason for your suspension must fall in one of the 4 potentially fair reasons in Section 98 Employment Rights Act (1996).

They could not tell me if I was even going to be disciplined however I am suspended? I would just like to know if its worth resigning (although I am innocent, a manager has lied in a statement claiming I was threatening towards him and passengers) I feel like I have no other alternative.

Can they take action against me if I am off sick? I have felt very depressed with suicidal thoughts (other issues going on), I do not want to run away from this however I feel like I am fighting a losing battle.

Thanks for reading and hoping someone can help.

p.s, I will be contacting ACAS at the earliest opportunity.

marliepanda

Few questions. You had an argument which cumulated in a book to the face (are we talking a leather bound bible or s small notebook. IMO it makes a difference) and you shouting and storming off to the manager, but somehow the colleague you argued with it got to the manager first and had already spoken to them? How does that timeline work?

Saying 'let her go' does not mean the leave was authorised. It just means that he didn't feel it productive to try and stop you. He didn't say 'let her go I am authorising this as paid/unpaid leave'

You clearly acted inappropriately, as did your colleague. However, it's not up to you how your management pursues this. Maybe they feel that the colleague who threw the 'book' was driven to t by your actions/language and they feel that actually they were pushed to it (you could make an assault claim with the police if you chose to)

Yes they can take action whilst your off sick. Sickness can't be used to stall it

sangie595

Conzy6666 wrote: »

Hi all, I have a bit of a sticky situation I am freaking out about so ill start from the beginning.

On 19/05 I was at work with a colleague of mine, long story short we had a heated argument and she threw a book in my face.
I immediately got angry shouting at her etc, I then proceeded downstairs to speak to my boss and to make a formal complaint, however he had already spoken to my colleague and basically said because I had apparently verbally assaulted her it gave her the right to physically assault me (I kid you not, he said this).

Anyway an hour later a manager came to speak to me and basically said if I take this complaint any further i would regret it. I then proceeded shouting and swearing (not at him) about the situation as I was upset and didn't feel management was taking me seriously.
I got to the point I was so upset, I said I need to go home and the manager who came to speak to me said "let him go" to the other manager in charge of me at the time.

I get a phone call on Monday asking me to attend a meeting on Wednesday but they did not explain what it was about, I just assumed it was to do with my complaint.

I am greeted by my acting line manager and a member of HR and they explain the meeting was an investigation into my conduct regarding the incident on 19/05 as a manager had lied in a statement claiming I was swearing in front of passengers which is completely untrue. I explained my side of the story and apologized to the manager conducting the interview (He was the same manager who spoke to me on the day) for my reaction, The manager in charge at the time physically grabbed my jacket then let go as we were in passenger accommodation however I did not mention this as I thought they would try to sack me instead of a manager who has been with the company in question for over a decade.

He basically twisted everything that had happened that day, saying to me when I left work he apparently told me on the day "it would be unauthorized". Only when I pulled out my phone to find the recorded conversation from that day did he admit it. I gave my version of events and they left the room to come to a decision on what steps to take next. They came back around 20 minutes later and said I was being suspended on full pay to allow them to conduct an investigation. However, when I asked if this would go to a disciplinary he could not tell me and he could not tell me what action I was faced with.

I have been searching online and have found the following.

Suspension as part of a disciplinary procedure (investigation)
Your employer can only suspend you for gross misconduct.
The reason for your suspension must fall in one of the 4 potentially fair reasons in Section 98 Employment Rights Act (1996).

They could not tell me if I was even going to be disciplined however I am suspended? I would just like to know if its worth resigning (although I am innocent, a manager has lied in a statement claiming I was threatening towards him and passengers) I feel like I have no other alternative.

Can they take action against me if I am off sick? I have felt very depressed with suicidal thoughts (other issues going on), I do not want to run away from this however I feel like I am fighting a losing battle.

Thanks for reading and hoping someone can help.

p.s, I will be contacting ACAS at the earliest opportunity.

There does seem to be an awful lot of this sort of thing going on at the moment around here.

I'm not clear why you think that you are an innocent party and that because other people allegedly do something to you, that justifies whatever you do. No, your colleague should not t have thrown a book at you. You should not have provoked her with a verbal assault. You should not have been shouting and swearing at work, whether passengers were present or not.

And you shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet. Your employer can suspend you for any reason they wish, misconduct or not, provided they pay you for that suspension or have a contractual clause that enables unpaid suspension (which is very rare because it's hard to find a way of making that lawful). Your employer does not have to only do so if the allegation is gross misconduct - to hold a fair investigation that can hardly decide that in advance! And they cannot tell you whether it will go to a disciplinary because that would, again, be making a judgement in advance of the investigation.

That said, expect the allegation to be gross misconduct. Anything less than that and you are going to be very lucky. Regardless Of whatever someone else may or may not have done, nobody has an excuse to verbally assault a colleague, and nobody had a right to shout and swear in the workplace. All those things are potentially gross misconduct. And that's based on your side of the story. By the time the employer heard the other side(s), I expect your future to be very precarious.

Your only real chance of surviving now is to wind your neck in, become very contrite, and plead for your job. Make sure that you acknowledge that your behaviour fell short of what it should have been. Offer to personally apologise to everyone involved. You have everything to lose here, so don't make it easy by adding any further fuel to the fire.

TBagpuss

What Sangie said.
Also, it's not clear to me whether they are also investigating your complaint against your colleague, or whether your colleague is actually the manager.

Either way, shouting or swearing at or about a colleague is very unprofessional and likely to be considered to be misconduct, regardless of whether you feel that you were provoked and regardless of whether there were any passengers or members of the public around.

I think that pursuing a grievance about your colleague's assault on you would be a separate process from the disciplinary process against you

Guest101

Conzy6666 wrote: »

Hi all, I have a bit of a sticky situation I am freaking out about so ill start from the beginning.

On 19/05 I was at work with a colleague of mine, long story short we had a heated argument and she threw a book in my face.
I immediately got angry shouting at her etc, I then proceeded downstairs to speak to my boss and to make a formal complaint, however he had already spoken to my colleague - how? if you proceeded downstairs after shouting at her? and basically said because I had apparently verbally assaulted her it gave her the right to physically assault me (I kid you not, he said this). - Are you sure? Or was it a more - she has the right to defend herself, sort of thing? Anyway you've obviously reported this to the police

Anyway an hour later a manager came to speak to me and basically said if I take this complaint any further i would regret it. - Ok. I then proceeded shouting and swearing (not at him) about the situation as I was upset and didn't feel management was taking me seriously. - That was silly
I got to the point I was so upset, I said I need to go home and the manager who came to speak to me said "let him go" to the other manager in charge of me at the time. - and then you reported it to the police?

I get a phone call on Monday asking me to attend a meeting on Wednesday but they did not explain what it was about, I just assumed it was to do with my complaint. - do you not normally work Monday, tues, or wed?

I am greeted by my acting line manager and a member of HR and they explain the meeting was an investigation into my conduct regarding the incident on 19/05 as a manager had lied in a statement claiming I was swearing in front of passengers which is completely untrue. I explained my side of the story and apologized to the manager conducting the interview (He was the same manager who spoke to me on the day) for my reaction, The manager in charge at the time physically grabbed my jacket then let go as we were in passenger accommodation however I did not mention this as I thought they would try to sack me instead of a manager who has been with the company in question for over a decade. - so you reported this to the police?

He basically twisted everything that had happened that day, saying to me when I left work he apparently told me on the day "it would be unauthorized". Only when I pulled out my phone to find the recorded conversation from that day did he admit it. - oh, that's silly. Why did you tell them you'd recorded it? I gave my version of events and they left the room to come to a decision on what steps to take next. They came back around 20 minutes later and said I was being suspended on full pay to allow them to conduct an investigation. However, when I asked if this would go to a disciplinary he could not tell me and he could not tell me what action I was faced with. - Well yes, that's why it's an investigation

I have been searching online and have found the following.

Suspension as part of a disciplinary procedure (investigation)
Your employer can only suspend you for gross misconduct. - your actions would amount to GM
The reason for your suspension must fall in one of the 4 potentially fair reasons in Section 98 Employment Rights Act (1996).

They could not tell me if I was even going to be disciplined however I am suspended? I would just like to know if its worth resigning (although I am innocent, a manager has lied in a statement claiming I was threatening towards him and passengers) I feel like I have no other alternative. - Up to you.

Can they take action against me if I am off sick? I have felt very depressed with suicidal thoughts (other issues going on), I do not want to run away from this however I feel like I am fighting a losing battle. - yes

Thanks for reading and hoping someone can help.

p.s, I will be contacting ACAS at the earliest opportunity.

To be honest your case doesn't look good, you weren't professional on a number of occasions

Undervalued

Conzy6666 wrote: »

They came back around 20 minutes later and said I was being suspended on full pay to allow them to conduct an investigation. However, when I asked if this would go to a disciplinary he could not tell me and he could not tell me what action I was faced with.

Of course he couldn't! The whole point of conducting an investigation is to see if there is a case to answer.

Suspension as part of a disciplinary procedure (investigation)
Your employer can only suspend you for gross misconduct.
The reason for your suspension must fall in one of the 4 potentially fair reasons in Section 98 Employment Rights Act (1996).

I don't know where you got that from but it is utter nonsense. If they want to keep suspended on full pay that is entirely up to them. Suspension is a neutral act to allow an investigation. You are not being financially disadvantaged.

Frankly, based on what you have posted here, I will be amazed if you are not dismissed for gross misconduct. So, unless you have another job to go to you may as well string the suspension out for as long as possible.

Conzy6666

Guest101 wrote: »

To be honest your case doesn't look good, you weren't professional on a number of occasions

I am sorry but I fail to see how I have been unprofessional on numerous occasions, I have already apologized to the manager in question for my behavior and how I reacted , I did not verbally assault my college, she instigated the argument and I stuck up for myself and when she didn't like my responses, she threw a medium sized reading book at me.

This is what my company classes as gross misconduct.

Willful damage, theft or dishonesty in handling or using property belonging to the
Company, our employees or customers, or property in our custody.
• Physical assault on a customer or another member of staff whilst on duty or
when arriving/leaving employment or at an event which is considered an
extension of the workplace.
• Conduct, resulting from the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol, which is likely to
endanger other personnel or cause damage to equipment.
• Being found to be under the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol whilst at work in
contravention of the Company’s Substance Misuse Policy.
• Refusal or failure to follow safety rules.
• Altering, defacing, endorsing or authorizing false entries on a clock card or
time sheet or other document(s), with intent to defraud.
• Persistent disobedience of reasonable instructions.
• Knowingly making false statements during investigations of breaches of
discipline or accidents.
• Willful disclosure of information detrimental to the Company’s commercial
interests, subject to the Public Interest (Disclosure) Act 1998.
• Serious bullying or harassment.
• Bringing the Company into serious disrepute.
• Continued unauthorized absence.
• Serious infringement in the use of Company computer systems e.g.: internet,
and e-mail
None of which happened on the days in question.

I have not reported the assault to the police as I think the police have bigger fish to fry.

marliepanda

Conzy6666 wrote: »

I am sorry but I fail to see how I have been unprofessional on numerous occasions, I have already apologized to the manager in question for my behavior and how I reacted , I did not verbally assault my college, she instigated the argument and I stuck up for myself and when she didn't like my responses, she threw a medium sized reading book at me.

This is what my company classes as gross misconduct.

Willful damage, theft or dishonesty in handling or using property belonging to the
Company, our employees or customers, or property in our custody.
• Physical assault on a customer or another member of staff whilst on duty or
when arriving/leaving employment or at an event which is considered an
extension of the workplace.
• Conduct, resulting from the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol, which is likely to
endanger other personnel or cause damage to equipment.
• Being found to be under the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol whilst at work in
contravention of the Company’s Substance Misuse Policy.
• Refusal or failure to follow safety rules.
• Altering, defacing, endorsing or authorizing false entries on a clock card or
time sheet or other document(s), with intent to defraud.
• Persistent disobedience of reasonable instructions.
• Knowingly making false statements during investigations of breaches of
discipline or accidents.
• Willful disclosure of information detrimental to the Company’s commercial
interests, subject to the Public Interest (Disclosure) Act 1998.
• Serious bullying or harassment.
• Bringing the Company into serious disrepute.
• Continued unauthorized absence.
• Serious infringement in the use of Company computer systems e.g.: internet,
and e-mail
None of which happened on the days in question.

I have not reported the assault to the police as I think the police have bigger fish to fry.

Those lists are not supposed to be exhaustive.

Trying urinating in the bosses office and arguing your case.

You have acted inappropriately. Apologising doesn't mean it becomes ok.

[Deleted User]

At least you have experience of people throwing the book at you.

It'll come in useful.

jobbingmusician

Conzy6666 wrote: »

This is what my company classes as gross misconduct.......

None of which happened on the days in question......

Does this mean that one or some of these things happened on a different day?

Conzy6666

jobbingmusician wrote: »

Does this mean that one or some of these things happened on a different day?

It was a typo