How Should I Handle Suspending an Employee for Misbehavior in a Manufacturing Unit?

In my company (Manufacturing unit), management has decided to suspend one employee for 10 days due to misbehavior with his seniors. Please let me know the process to suspend him for the stipulated period. All replies will be highly appreciated. Please share your views.

First, you should issue him a Show Cause Notice mentioning the gravity of the incident and ask him to reply within 48 hours. Upon his reply, or if he fails to reply, you can issue him a suspension order for 10 days, mentioning that the reply given by him is not satisfactory. You can find a bundle of formats from the internet or from citehr too. All the best!

Assessing the Gravity of Misconduct

Please find out the gravity of the misconduct committed by the employee. Suspension may not be appropriate for routine misbehavior, such as an adamant reply to an inquiry made by a supervisor. The power to suspend should be exercised judiciously.

First, you need to ascertain whether you have standing orders, rules, or a clause in the contract of service that empowers the employer to suspend an employee. If so, and if the gravity of the misconduct is serious, you have two options as follows:

1. You can suspend an employee pending further action (if permitted by your rules) but thereafter issue a show cause notice containing details of the incident and calling for his explanation; or
2. You can issue a show cause notice asking him why the management should not suspend him.

Regards,
B. Saikumar

I truly agree with B Saikumar.

Types of Suspensions

Look Anuj, there are two types of suspensions:

1. Normal suspension where you can suspend an employee for a maximum of 4 days.

2. Suspension under pending enquiry - where you can suspend an employee until your enquiry is completed, but here you need to give him a subsistence allowance for those suspended periods. Are there rules on how to give subsistence allowance?

So, before choosing any one of the above suspensions, see the gravity of his misconduct, as there is a thumb rule that punishment should be proportionate to the gravity of misconduct.

This means you cannot hang anyone for just theft because hanging is a severe punishment compared to theft.

The rest is written by B Saikumar.

Arun J.

It seems to me that the queriest wants to suspend the employee for 10 days as punishment for misbehavior with a senior. The queriest needs to give the employee an opportunity to be heard by following the principle of natural justice. A domestic inquiry should be conducted by the queriest before taking any action to suspend the employee, as per the provisions of the applicable standing orders or service conditions.

In most states, the maximum allowable suspension period as a form of punishment is 4 days under the model standing orders. If certified standing orders are in place, a longer suspension period for punishment may be permissible. However, I agree with our esteemed member Sai Kumar that the decision to suspend should be made judiciously.

Thank you.