Acas has published new guidance on workplace suspensions. The guidance, which is focused on suspensions during investigations, covers the employer’s decision to suspend a worker, the process for suspending a worker, how to support the worker’s mental health during suspension, and covers issues around pay, sickness and holidays during the period of suspension. 

The guidance recommends that, because of the risk of breaching the employment contract and the stress that being suspended can cause to the worker, an employer should only use suspension when it is a reasonable way of dealing with the situation and there are no appropriate alternatives. For example, while an investigation is carried out if there is a need to protect evidence, witnesses, the business, other staff or the person being investigated. The guidance suggests that suspension may also be appropriate in order to protect an employee’s health and safety (eg in medical or pregnancy circumstances).

The guidance suggests that employers should carefully consider each situation before deciding whether to suspend a worker and makes a number of suggestions for alternatives to suspension which should be considered, including:

• Asking the worker to temporarily change shifts, department, site or to work from home
• Requiring the worker to work with different customers, or away from customers
• Preventing the worker from working with certain systems, tools or on specific tasks

The guidance recommends that the worker should be informed of their suspension in person and suggests that it is best practice to allow the worker to be accompanied at this meeting. The suspension, and any terms (eg not contacting colleagues) should then be confirmed in writing. 

The guidance goes on to suggest several ways that the employer can take steps to support a suspended worker, for example:

• Explaining the reason for the suspension
• Making it clear that suspension does not mean that it has been decided they have done anything wrong 
• Maintaining the suspended worker’s pay and benefits during the suspension
• Keeping the suspension as short as possible and confidential
• Staying in regular contact with the suspended worker throughout