Human Resource Blog

Suspension of my job

	Compensation
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I was suspended from my job for an accusation not clearly specified nor witnessed, but only repeated. What are my rights as far as how long is a legitimate timeframe for suspension and being paid for the time off upon being proven not guilty?Also, what are my rights as far as resigning due to uncomfortable workplace and being paid for my vacation time? This accusation has turned my life upside down. I live in Virginia

Here’s how the disciplinary process for gross misconduct works at most companies: An employee is accused of a serious infraction, like theft, sexual harassment or assault. The company suspends the employee with pay while the incident is investigated. Once the investigation is complete, if the employee is found to have done nothing wrong, he or she is reinstated. If the employee is found to have committed an infraction of company policy (not necessarily law) the employee is disciplined. That discipline may be a verbal or written warning, suspension without pay or termination. This procedure is the “best practice” in the field of Human Resources.

In this case, it appears that the company skipped the investigation phase and went directly to the discipline phase. That indicates that either a) the company’s HR team is clueless or b) the infraction was so obvious that no investigation was necessary. It would be interesting to know more about the charges.

There is no legal limit on the length of an unpaid disciplinary suspension. Usually employees are suspended from 1 to 30 days without pay, but it could be much longer.

We note that you don’t say that this incident never occurred — only that there are no witnesses. Witnesses are not necessary. If Wanda says that Marcus assaulted her, a company may very well take her word for it – especially if she has bruises or other evidence of the assault.

Virginia law doesn’t require employers to pay earned vacation to workers upon termination. This will depend upon company policy. In many states, an employee who quit “with good cause” would be eligible for unemployment benefits. However, it’s not clear that “good cause” exists in this case. Normally, “good cause” would be a severe reduction in wages, moving the company to another state or a dramatic change in work hours.

Just to cite an example, suppose Brad left a noose in a black co-worker’s locker as a “joke”. Bob was disciplined for the action, and quit. That would not be considered quitting “for good cause” in most states.