As per Labour Law Act, What is Suspension Inquiry??? How many days we can suspend any employee or worker without pay on basis of Doubt?
From India, Vadodara
4From India, Vadodara
Suspending the services of an employee/workman is a punishment imposed by management for
disciplinary ground; that is
1) If the concerned employee did any activity which is subversive of discipline and good behaviour
2) Did a major/severe misconduct
3) Damage to company property
4) Wilful insubordination
5) Shouting/manhandling superior officer/co-workmen/co-staff
6) loittering/go-slow in work
7) Intimidating others to go slow
8) Attending work, under the influence of alcohol
etc. etc
Depending upon the gravity of misconduct, decision of suspending his services shall be taken.
You can either issue advise memo, warning letter, SCN (Show cause notice), Charge sheet
or Charge sheet-cum-Suspension Order (depending upon the depth of misconduct) and hold
domestic enquiry; enquiring into the charges levelled against the delinquent employee and based on enquiry report, punishment may be awarded.
From India, Aizawl
disciplinary ground; that is
1) If the concerned employee did any activity which is subversive of discipline and good behaviour
2) Did a major/severe misconduct
3) Damage to company property
4) Wilful insubordination
5) Shouting/manhandling superior officer/co-workmen/co-staff
6) loittering/go-slow in work
7) Intimidating others to go slow
8) Attending work, under the influence of alcohol
etc. etc
Depending upon the gravity of misconduct, decision of suspending his services shall be taken.
You can either issue advise memo, warning letter, SCN (Show cause notice), Charge sheet
or Charge sheet-cum-Suspension Order (depending upon the depth of misconduct) and hold
domestic enquiry; enquiring into the charges levelled against the delinquent employee and based on enquiry report, punishment may be awarded.
From India, Aizawl
Dear 
,
Your question is not clear .But I presume you wanted to know as to how to suspend an employees immediately on the basis of report of some serious charges of misconduct alleged or reported against him and in which event how to proceed with and how long he can be placed under the suspension pending an enquiry .ON this premise I would like to answer your query as below:
---
Suspension pending enquiry could be resorted to , when an employee is reported to have committed a grave and serous misconduct like theft, assault of co employee , act of provocation and threshing etc and hence presence inside the premises would be detrimental to the safety of others and industrial peace and on resumption that the accused employee would tamper the witnesses .
Please note that Suspension pending enquiry is not punishment .
Immediately on suspension
or with in a day or two of his suspension , the suspended employee should be issues a detailed charge sheet cum show cause notice ,seeking his explanation within 24/48/72 hours as to why suitable disciplinary action should not be taken against him for the alleged misconduct. On receipt of enquiry or even in the employee's failure to submit an explanation in writing, an enquiry could be ordered to be conducted on a specified date, time and place and notified accommodatingly/ Preferably an outside enquiry officer be appointed and notified in the enquiry notice.
The enquiry ( suspension pending enquiry) should be conducted and concluded as far as possible within a reasonable time and if at all any guideline to be taken in this regard as to how long the enquiry would go on , the period of six months as observed by Supreme court is an answer .
During the period where an employee is placed under suspension pending enquiry, he should be paid subsistence allowance at specified percentage of basic salary as laid down in the certified standing ordered of the company and where certified standing orders are not there , in accordance with Model standing orders act in conjunction with payment of subsistence allowance act.
Once the charges of misconduct alleged against the employee is proved and if he were to to adjudged guilty by enquiry officer, you can award punishment in proportion to the act of misconduct proved and the kind of punishment should be well within the list of punishment as enumerated in the certified standing orders or model standing orders as the case may be, after taking due note of the past record of service . In the event of your deciding to award him punishment of summary dismissal .If dispute is pending before any conciliation officer/labor court /tribunal or any other legal forum , your should apply for post fact approval. If the employee happened to be a protected workman, you need permission from concerned austerities before dismissing him . For your query , this much is sufficient . Should you require any more technical clarifications , please do write in crystal clear and cogent manner as to what exactly you need .
All the best'
Panchsen
P.Senthilkumar
9884009193
From India, Chennai
Your question is not clear .But I presume you wanted to know as to how to suspend an employees immediately on the basis of report of some serious charges of misconduct alleged or reported against him and in which event how to proceed with and how long he can be placed under the suspension pending an enquiry .ON this premise I would like to answer your query as below:
---
Suspension pending enquiry could be resorted to , when an employee is reported to have committed a grave and serous misconduct like theft, assault of co employee , act of provocation and threshing etc and hence presence inside the premises would be detrimental to the safety of others and industrial peace and on resumption that the accused employee would tamper the witnesses .
Please note that Suspension pending enquiry is not punishment .
Immediately on suspension
or with in a day or two of his suspension , the suspended employee should be issues a detailed charge sheet cum show cause notice ,seeking his explanation within 24/48/72 hours as to why suitable disciplinary action should not be taken against him for the alleged misconduct. On receipt of enquiry or even in the employee's failure to submit an explanation in writing, an enquiry could be ordered to be conducted on a specified date, time and place and notified accommodatingly/ Preferably an outside enquiry officer be appointed and notified in the enquiry notice.
The enquiry ( suspension pending enquiry) should be conducted and concluded as far as possible within a reasonable time and if at all any guideline to be taken in this regard as to how long the enquiry would go on , the period of six months as observed by Supreme court is an answer .
During the period where an employee is placed under suspension pending enquiry, he should be paid subsistence allowance at specified percentage of basic salary as laid down in the certified standing ordered of the company and where certified standing orders are not there , in accordance with Model standing orders act in conjunction with payment of subsistence allowance act.
Once the charges of misconduct alleged against the employee is proved and if he were to to adjudged guilty by enquiry officer, you can award punishment in proportion to the act of misconduct proved and the kind of punishment should be well within the list of punishment as enumerated in the certified standing orders or model standing orders as the case may be, after taking due note of the past record of service . In the event of your deciding to award him punishment of summary dismissal .If dispute is pending before any conciliation officer/labor court /tribunal or any other legal forum , your should apply for post fact approval. If the employee happened to be a protected workman, you need permission from concerned austerities before dismissing him . For your query , this much is sufficient . Should you require any more technical clarifications , please do write in crystal clear and cogent manner as to what exactly you need .
All the best'
Panchsen
P.Senthilkumar
9884009193
From India, Chennai
An employer can suspend any employee pending enquiry, if his presence in the establishnent during enquiry is not desirable.
As per model standing orders or certified standing orders, the subsistence allowance to suspended employee may be 1/2 of his salary for first 90 days and 2/3 thereafter for upto 120 days and 100% salary if enquiry continues beyond that and the reasons gor delay are nit attributable to the employee.
From India, Faridabad
As per model standing orders or certified standing orders, the subsistence allowance to suspended employee may be 1/2 of his salary for first 90 days and 2/3 thereafter for upto 120 days and 100% salary if enquiry continues beyond that and the reasons gor delay are nit attributable to the employee.
From India, Faridabad
Thank you Mr Shobhit for Clarifying to Readers that Payment of Subsistence Allowance for the entire period of Suspension-Pending Inquiry is a Legal Liability of the Employer/ the Disciplining Authority as per Laws. The period for such Suspension-Pending Inquiry are as regulated in the Certified Standing Orders or the Codicifed Services Rules as may be applicable to the concerned Employee. Any Act contrary to the provisions are not only Unfair Practice on the part of the Employer but constitute Breach of Laws. It should never be misused as a "tool" to teach Employee a Lesson as it were or Drag the Discilinary / Inquiry Proceedings.
Kritarth Consulting Team, 29.7.2020
From India, Delhi
Kritarth Consulting Team, 29.7.2020
From India, Delhi
" Suspension ", in the realm of employment, means the debarment of an employee by the employer from attending to his work as usual. In other words, suspension is the state of the contract of employment being kept in suspended animation. It is of two types - one is punitive suspension and the other is interim suspension or suspension pending enquiry.
The power of an employer to suspend his employee is an inherent power with his power to employ and have disciplinary control over the acts of the employee within the zone of employment. Therefore, normally it cannot be questioned unless on the allegation of colorable exercise of power or as a measure of victimization.
Punitive suspension, as the very name indicates, is a punishment awarded consequent on a proven misconduct. The entire period of punitive suspension would be treated as " dies non " which means a day which cannot be treated as duty for any service purpose including service benefits. It would automatically imply, therefore, no wages shall be payable for the entire period of punitive suspension. Besides, the duration of punitive suspension should not exceed the no of days mentioned in the standing orders or service regulations concerned.
Interim Suspension OR Suspension Pending Enquiry is a procedural convenience adopted by the employer to keep off the delinquent employee from scuttling the disciplinary process possibly by tampering with the records or influencing the witnesses by his continued presence in the post. It can be ordered either on the contemplation of the charges or after framing charges depending on the gravity of the circumstances. Thus, suspension pending enquiry does not snap the tie of employer-employee relationship nor it is a punishment. Therefore, it is only an administrative order of the employer and as such no Court would normally interfere with the order of suspension unless it is passed mala fide and without even a prima facie evidence on record connecting the employee with the misconduct in question. In this connection, the observation of the Bombay High Court in Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay & Another Vs Laxman Saidoo Timmanapyati & Others [ 1991 (1) CLR 653 ] that suspension is not to be misunderstood as being a punitive measure and in order to avoid the obnoxious practice of unjustified suspension for indefinite periods, it would be a healthy practice to insist on the Suspending Authority passing a reasonable order in which the grounds of suspension are spelt out is worthy of consideration of every disciplinary authority. I think that the above proposition answers the second question of Vinitthakkar.
Again, another proposition of law is that though the employer can place his employee under suspension pending enquiry into his misconduct, such suspension has to be effected in accordance with the procedure, if any, laid by the rules governing the service conditions or in the standing orders applicable to the establishment. For instance, the ratio decidendi of Supreme Court in P.R.Naik Vs Union of India [ AIR 1972 SC 554 ] is that when an enquiry is contemplated, suspension cannot be ordered unless the Rules provide to that effect and if the Rules provide for suspension only after an enquiry is initiated, suspension cannot be ordered before the commencement of the enquiry.
Prompt and timely payment of subsistence allowance to the suspended employee at the rates specified in the standing orders/service regulations or any law in force is another important requirement during suspension. The failure to do so would normally vitiate the entire disciplinary proceedings in judicial review later.
When any punishment other than dismissal from service is awarded to the delinquent employee at the end of the disciplinary proceedings, the period of suspension should be regularized accordingly by paying actual wages minus the subsistence allowance already paid. Otherwise it would amount to double punishment for the same set of misconduct.
Some times, the circumstances may warrant revocation of interim suspension owing to its unnecessary prolongation or by an order of any court of law or by virtue of the employee's attaining the age of superannuation.
From India, Salem
The power of an employer to suspend his employee is an inherent power with his power to employ and have disciplinary control over the acts of the employee within the zone of employment. Therefore, normally it cannot be questioned unless on the allegation of colorable exercise of power or as a measure of victimization.
Punitive suspension, as the very name indicates, is a punishment awarded consequent on a proven misconduct. The entire period of punitive suspension would be treated as " dies non " which means a day which cannot be treated as duty for any service purpose including service benefits. It would automatically imply, therefore, no wages shall be payable for the entire period of punitive suspension. Besides, the duration of punitive suspension should not exceed the no of days mentioned in the standing orders or service regulations concerned.
Interim Suspension OR Suspension Pending Enquiry is a procedural convenience adopted by the employer to keep off the delinquent employee from scuttling the disciplinary process possibly by tampering with the records or influencing the witnesses by his continued presence in the post. It can be ordered either on the contemplation of the charges or after framing charges depending on the gravity of the circumstances. Thus, suspension pending enquiry does not snap the tie of employer-employee relationship nor it is a punishment. Therefore, it is only an administrative order of the employer and as such no Court would normally interfere with the order of suspension unless it is passed mala fide and without even a prima facie evidence on record connecting the employee with the misconduct in question. In this connection, the observation of the Bombay High Court in Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay & Another Vs Laxman Saidoo Timmanapyati & Others [ 1991 (1) CLR 653 ] that suspension is not to be misunderstood as being a punitive measure and in order to avoid the obnoxious practice of unjustified suspension for indefinite periods, it would be a healthy practice to insist on the Suspending Authority passing a reasonable order in which the grounds of suspension are spelt out is worthy of consideration of every disciplinary authority. I think that the above proposition answers the second question of Vinitthakkar.
Again, another proposition of law is that though the employer can place his employee under suspension pending enquiry into his misconduct, such suspension has to be effected in accordance with the procedure, if any, laid by the rules governing the service conditions or in the standing orders applicable to the establishment. For instance, the ratio decidendi of Supreme Court in P.R.Naik Vs Union of India [ AIR 1972 SC 554 ] is that when an enquiry is contemplated, suspension cannot be ordered unless the Rules provide to that effect and if the Rules provide for suspension only after an enquiry is initiated, suspension cannot be ordered before the commencement of the enquiry.
Prompt and timely payment of subsistence allowance to the suspended employee at the rates specified in the standing orders/service regulations or any law in force is another important requirement during suspension. The failure to do so would normally vitiate the entire disciplinary proceedings in judicial review later.
When any punishment other than dismissal from service is awarded to the delinquent employee at the end of the disciplinary proceedings, the period of suspension should be regularized accordingly by paying actual wages minus the subsistence allowance already paid. Otherwise it would amount to double punishment for the same set of misconduct.
Some times, the circumstances may warrant revocation of interim suspension owing to its unnecessary prolongation or by an order of any court of law or by virtue of the employee's attaining the age of superannuation.
From India, Salem
Good insights by Umakanthan Sir, as always.
Thank you Umakanthan Sir. I was not aware of up till now when any punishment other than dismissal from service is awarded to the delinquent employee at the end of the disciplinary proceedings, the period of suspension should be regularized accordingly by paying actual wages minus the subsistence allowance already paid. Otherwise it would amount to double punishment for the same set of misconduct.
Thank you once again.
From India, Mumbai
Thank you Umakanthan Sir. I was not aware of up till now when any punishment other than dismissal from service is awarded to the delinquent employee at the end of the disciplinary proceedings, the period of suspension should be regularized accordingly by paying actual wages minus the subsistence allowance already paid. Otherwise it would amount to double punishment for the same set of misconduct.
Thank you once again.
From India, Mumbai
I would like to add to what our Learned Umakanthan Sir has so painstakingly explained in detail, there is no outer limit for suspension pending inquiry. But the payment of subsistence allowance is necessary for the entire period as per the applicable Standing Orders or the Rules. Generally, for the period of first three months 50% of wages is to be paid as Subsistence allowance and beyond the period of three months it enhances to either 75% or reduces to 25% depending on whether the employee is responsible for delaying the inquiry. But you need to check the applicable provisions and act accordingly.
From India, Mumbai
From India, Mumbai
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