Need Help Drafting a Suspension Letter for Employee Fraud – Any Advice?

Dear All,

I am working in an IT firm as an HR and possess less experience in HRD. Here, I am supposed to release a suspension letter for the fraud that has taken place in my company involving expected employees. Actions are being taken towards them. Dear professionals, kindly help me to release the specific letter with the best quote and format.

While you have raised a query on the draft of the suspension letter, I have a different query. If the employees are found guilty of fraud, then why suspend them? Why not terminate them? Do you know the difference between suspension and termination? I ask because if the fraud is proven, then suspension for a few days is a minor punishment.

Have you ordered the domestic enquiry? Is it that you wanted to suspend the employees pending the enquiry? The correctness of the draft is important. Hence, the above queries.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

Suspension Letter Details

A letter of suspension from employment is a formal notice that an employee is not to attend work for the period specified in the letter.

Important Components of a Suspension Letter

- Specific reason for the suspension
- The duration of the suspension
- Whether the employee will still be paid their normal wage while on suspension or not

Example of a Suspension Letter

7th September 2016

Hello Srinivas,

RE: Suspension Information

This letter is to inform you that as a result of your actions on (date), you have been issued a suspension for (duration).

On (particular date), you violated the Employee Standards code that every employee is expected to follow.

During this suspension, you will not receive pay from the organization.

You are expected to return to work on July 21st, 2009.

Below are the terms of your suspension:

1) Unless contacted beforehand, you are not permitted to enter office premises until the suspension is over. In the meantime, any office property should remain in your possession.

2) You are not permitted to use the official email system to correspond with your fellow employees.

3) We advise you to refrain from making any public comments about the incident. Our lawyers have been instructed to defend our position to the media.

If you have any questions regarding this suspension or if you have any important information that could shed further light on these allegations, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Regards,

Human Resources

Dear Ram Kishore,

Letter of suspension is official communication. In official communication, there is no place for informal language. Unfortunately, you have mixed formal and informal language together. I recommend the following revisions in your draft:

Addressing the Employee
Official letters, especially those dealing with employee discipline, cannot be addressed as "Hello." We need to write the employee's complete name, Employee No, Department, etc.

Subject Heading
It is better to give the subject heading as "Letter of Suspension."

Suspension Details
Based on the employee's actions, the employee cannot be submitted. We need to write, "We had noticed misconduct on account of ______ on ____ (date). To investigate the misconduct, we conducted a domestic enquiry. The enquiry report establishes your culpability under the provisions of Standing Orders Paragraph No ____, Subparagraph No____, and clause No ____. Therefore, as a punitive measure, you are placed under suspension from ______ (date) to ______ (date)."

Pay During Suspension
Write "For the suspension period mentioned above, you will forfeit your wages." Please note that your language should have sufficient punch.

Return to Work
Rather write, "You will resume your duties on _____ (date) at _____ hours." This is not a routine wherein you convey your expectations. This is a letter issued for disciplinary purposes. You must use commanding language.

Office Premises Access
Rather than this statement, write "Unless authorized, you will not enter office premises during your suspension period. However, company property allotted to you will remain with you."

Public Comments
Rather than this, just write "Disclosure of information about your suspension is strictly prohibited. Unwanted disclosure of information of suspension will also be considered as misconduct." It is not advisable to reference the company's lawyers, media, etc.

Contact Information
"Do not hesitate to contact me" - this language is suitable while dealing with consultants, suppliers, etc. However, in the letter of suspension, just write "This letter of suspension is self-explanatory; however, for further queries, you may contact Ms/Mr ______ of the HR Department."

Sign-off
"Regards" is a phrase used for seniors or someone who has done a favor. We cannot use this phrase while issuing a letter of suspension to an employee who has committed misconduct. Secondly, we cannot just write "Human Resources." This is the name of the department. We need to write the name of the signatory, designation, etc.

Additional Comments
Occasionally, a few seniors may include 1-2 warning sentences in the letter of suspension. Therefore, we may write, "You are hereby advised to be careful of your conduct. Recurrence of the same misconduct or misconduct of a similar nature could lead to severe disciplinary action against you."

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

Dear Azra,

Could you please provide the details of the actions you have taken so far regarding the fraudulent activities of your suspected employee? For example, have you issued a charge sheet asking for a written explanation based on the initial report? This information will help the forum members guide you in the right direction.

Regards,