Suspended for gross misconduct

lovehackney

Hi,

Asking for a friend.

In a nutshell, they have been suspended for gross misconduct that they believe to be baseless. I will try to stick to the facts, but would appreciate any guidance on how to proceed.

For reference, friend has worked there for four years; boss is new and has been there three months.

~2 weeks ago
Boss tells friend that they are not happy with communication, that they are not being kept in the loop about ongoing projects. Friend says ok, I will ensure you are kept up to date, and copies boss into all emails from now on. Note - this was not a verbal warning, nothing was subsequently put into writing, and no witnesses were present.

Yesterday
Friend asks boss in the AM if they want to discuss projects. Boss says not now, I'm busy, come back at 4pm. Friend goes back at 4pm, boss says that friend is suspended on full pay due to gross misconduct - not communicating appropriately, and apparently there are complaints from other project managers. These complaints have not been raised prior to this meeting. Friend has clean record at the company. Friend was told to hand in their phone and laptop, leave immediately, and not contact anybody. Again, nothing was put in writing and no witnesses were present.

Today
Boss rings friend and says they can either
a) Resign with immediate effect and still be paid their bonus (which is a retention bonus, and was due to be paid via PAYE tomorrow); or
b) they can go through disciplinary procedures leading to dismissal

Boss claims there are "dozens of complaints" about friend
Friend is not sure what to do; asked boss if payment would be redundancy (i.e. tax free, as of course friend no longer wants to work there); boss said he would check


What should my friend do in this situation?

They are worried about losing the retention bonus (it is a lot of money to them) and clearly they cannot work for the employer anymore, so even if they do not get dismissed, they will need to find a new job.

Friend is confident that there is nothing in the way they have sent their emails etc that is aggressive or threatening or serious enough for misconduct.

They are also very suspicious of the "dozens of complaints" and why this has not been raised already.

Surely the boss should have had HR present? Complaints should have been raised prior to it becoming gross misconduct?

It feels like the boss wants my friend to leave (and friend said as much several weeks ago), and is making life as uncomfortable as possible for friend so that they are forced to leave.

They are ringing HR this afternoon to clarify the process and explain that they are confused what has happened, what next steps are etc. Feels like boss is acting without HR.

Any help much appreciated.

sangie595

HR are advisors - there are there to advise the employer. They don't make decisions and they aren't for the benefit of employees.

Suspension is a neutral act - not a disciplinary measure. So there is no reason why complaints should have been raised before the suspension - the purpose of suspension is to allow them to be investigated.

Nobody could say whether there is or isn't misconduct here, purely because we don't know what has happened. We have a third party account without any real details. And in relation to the bonus, that is an issue of the conditions attached to the bonus. If it is discretionary then it can be not paid, but if it is contractual then it would be due provided the contractual terms were met.

On this information, whether or not there might be a case of unfair dismissal is not possible to determine; and an opinion is highly personal - if he can't envisage working there ever again then that's something he must decide. Be aware though that if he is to have any claim of unfair dismissal, he must not resign.

nicechap

lovehackney wrote: »

Hi,

Asking for a friend.

In a nutshell, they have been suspended for gross misconduct that they believe to be baseless. I will try to stick to the facts, but would appreciate any guidance on how to proceed.

For reference, friend has worked there for four years; boss is new and has been there three months.

~2 weeks ago
Boss tells friend that they are not happy with communication, that they are not being kept in the loop about ongoing projects. Friend says ok, I will ensure you are kept up to date, and copies boss into all emails from now on. Note - this was not a verbal warning, nothing was subsequently put into writing, and no witnesses were present.

Yesterday
Friend asks boss in the AM if they want to discuss projects. Boss says not now, I'm busy, come back at 4pm. Friend goes back at 4pm, boss says that friend is suspended on full pay due to gross misconduct - not communicating appropriately, and apparently there are complaints from other project managers. These complaints have not been raised prior to this meeting. Friend has clean record at the company. Friend was told to hand in their phone and laptop, leave immediately, and not contact anybody. Again, nothing was put in writing and no witnesses were present.

Today
Boss rings friend and says they can either
a) Resign with immediate effect and still be paid their bonus (which is a retention bonus, and was due to be paid via PAYE tomorrow); or
b) they can go through disciplinary procedures leading to dismissal

Boss claims there are "dozens of complaints" about friend
Friend is not sure what to do; asked boss if payment would be redundancy (i.e. tax free, as of course friend no longer wants to work there); boss said he would check


What should my friend do in this situation?

They are worried about losing the retention bonus (it is a lot of money to them) and clearly they cannot work for the employer anymore, so even if they do not get dismissed, they will need to find a new job.

Friend is confident that there is nothing in the way they have sent their emails etc that is aggressive or threatening or serious enough for misconduct.

They are also very suspicious of the "dozens of complaints" and why this has not been raised already.

Surely the boss should have had HR present? Complaints should have been raised prior to it becoming gross misconduct?

It feels like the boss wants my friend to leave (and friend said as much several weeks ago), and is making life as uncomfortable as possible for friend so that they are forced to leave.

They are ringing HR this afternoon to clarify the process and explain that they are confused what has happened, what next steps are etc. Feels like boss is acting without HR.

Any help much appreciated.

I would just add, if your friend believes they cannot work there anymore, I would suggest asking for an agreed reference as part of the leaving process - no use having the retention bonus in the bank if they cannot get a new job due to a bad reference (e.g. left whilst suspended for gross misconduct).

JReacher1

I don't think they can say the disciplinary process will lead to dismissal. The process has to be fair so the outcome being predetermined is obviously not fair!

sangie595

JReacher1 wrote: »

I don't think they can say the disciplinary process will lead to dismissal. The process has to be fair so the outcome being predetermined is obviously not fair!

(A) prove they said it, and
(B) if they did, it's a minor slip if they actually did "do it", and
(C) the wording is critical - going through the disciplinary procedures that can lead to dismissal, for example, is not saying that they will lead to dismissal.

Second hand information is not much help - even first hand information can be misleading, but at least it is what the person actually heard or thinks they heard!

TELLIT01

If there have been dozens of complaints his manager should have made him aware when they happened, not hung on to them until they believed they had enough ammunition to get the friend out of the door. Unfortunately I've worked with people like that before who have no idea how to handle staff and/or confrontation.

xapprenticex

Sounds like your friend isnt liked.

Les79

lovehackney wrote: »

~2 weeks ago
Boss tells friend that they are not happy with communication, that they are not being kept in the loop about ongoing projects. Friend says ok, I will ensure you are kept up to date, and copies boss into all emails from now on. Note - this was not a verbal warning, nothing was subsequently put into writing, and no witnesses were present.

This has set off a red flag for me....

Why wasn't your friend looping the boss into emails right off the bat? Why did they need to be asked before agreeing to do so?

The skeptic in me thinks that your friend may have been playing the silly !!!!!! with the new boss.

Additionally, CCing someone into an email chain is different to actually SPEAKING DIRECTLY to the person about updates. Maybe the boss should have taken the reins a bit more in that respect, but equally your friend probably should have been more engaging with the boss.

Friend is confident that there is nothing in the way they have sent their emails etc that is aggressive or threatening or serious enough for misconduct.

Well, respectfully but that would 99% be true if the main issue is the fact that communication was lacking!!!

The misconduct relates to LACK of sending emails/communication!


Tough one to judge as a third party (yourself included). Best waiting to see what they come up with and either come back here for specific advice and/or contact ACAS/CAB to see if they can advise further. Until you know what you are dealing with it is all a bit of a shot in the dark.

Mr.Generous

There is a big difference between misconduct and gross misconduct. I would check the policies, including the suspension policy. Witness, note taker etc are the norm.

lovehackney

Ok thanks all.

Re: why they weren't keeping the boss in the loop, they were - they were raising issues but not all the day to day details, which is how they worked with their previous boss.

Of course, the new boss may not like this, but raising in this manner doesn't seem appropriate.

Anyway thanks for the advice, doesn't sound very promising.

This thread can now be closed.

Comms69

I will say any manager that asked to be CC'd in all emails is looking for a reason to discipline.


No-one actually wants 60+ X number of staff emails in their inbox every day!