Resign whilst suspended.

AdamMorgan

I’ve just found myself in a situation where I’ve been suspended pending a disciplinary hearing next week.

I’m 100% certain I will be getting dismissed for Gross Misconduct.

Can I resign before I am dismissed? Will this affect any references in the future if I wanted to get another job in the same sector.

Also I have a company car, when would this need to be given back? I’ve been with the company nearly five years.

If I resign will I need to hand the car straight back or can I have it until the end of my notice.

Any help would be much appreciated

BorisThomson

You can resign whilst suspended. Any reference may state you were dismissed pending disciplinary action.

Return of the company car will be according to your contractual terms.

They may continue with the investigation during any notice period, or even after you have left.

TELLIT01

Resigning would not prevent your current employer stating in reference that you resigned whilst under investigation for gross misconduct. The time you have been with the company has no bearing on when you would have to give the car back. Only the company can answer that one.
If you hand in your resignation it's entirely possible that the employer will terminate employment immediately with PILON and therefore take the car back immediately. If you were no longer an employee it's likely that their insurance wouldn't cover you using the car.

discat11

Most companies will simply carry on with the investigation to 'close it off' this may well end up in a judgement of gross misconduct anyway since as long as they've had the necessary hearings with you anything else can be done in your absence.

As for retaining the company vehicle I agree with tellit01 above.
They'll terminate immediately and retain the car at that point.

The point about resigning whilst under threat of instant dismissal might seem like a good way out, if you hope to have a settlement of PILON and instant resignation.
If the employer has a very strong case against you however you need to be careful -they could require you to 'work' your notice and simply carry on with the GM and potentially sack you on the spot -this would supersede the resignation final date and therefore no PILON would be paid.

pmduk

BorisThomson wrote: »

You can resign whilst suspended. Any reference may state you resigned pending disciplinary action.

I suspect my correction is what you intended to say!

jobbingmusician

If your car is 5 years old, you could offer to buy it from them. If you are about to be dismissed for GM, however, it is unlikely that they will do you a special deal (while possible that there may be a deal which is beneficial to both of you).

jonnygee2

Depending on who is bringing the case against you, you might be able to negotiate with them. If it's you vs the company, you might be able to offer to resign, get your notice, reference etc and forgo the hearing / investigation, which might be a good outcome for everyone.

If it's about another employee, though, the third party might not be willing to drop the case and the company might be obliged to investigate.