Suspended from work next step?

[Bosslady57]

Following a two week holiday on returning to work I was told I was suspended on full pay following further investigations. I asked what I was accused of and was told issuing cheques without authorisation and debit card payments without authorisation. I hav been to CAB who have given me a solicitors name that deals with employment law. I have called her but she is not in the office until next week. Should I resign? Should I try and get another solicitor or should I wait for the company to contact me?

[elpulpo]

Are you guilty of what they've accused you of?

[Bosslady57]

Yes

[honeybee13]

Hello there. I don't have experience of this kind of problem, but generally keeping quiet isn't the best way to handle things. Do you have a copy of the firm's disciplinary procedures? If you do, that should tell you what they're doing.

 

Is there a lot of money involved, if you're willing to tell us please? And do you think they're likely to involve the police? I hope you don't mind my asking.

 

I'm sure others will be along to comment.

 

My best, HB

[totiesquoties]

Following a two week holiday on returning to work I was told I was suspended on full pay following further investigations. I asked what I was accused of and was told issuing cheques without authorisation and debit card payments without authorisation. I hav been to CAB who have given me a solicitors name that deals with employment law. I have called her but she is not in the office until next week. Should I resign? Should I try and get another solicitor or should I wait for the company to contact me?

 

employment law, you can either wait till the solicitor the cab recommended are back, and they must be good and specialize in this

area, so would be worth definitely seeing them, and in the meantime you could also speak to another solicitor too, that could give you free consultation, for first 15 minutes or half hour, as many do, i would not wait till the company contact you, as they say, fore armed is forewarned, you need to know your rights, and where you stand. good luck and post back here when you know.

[chesham]

Your issue here is that you have done what it is they have accused you of - but whilst you are suspended, then there is currently no need for you to panic or to rush out and find another solicitor - any hearing will bring some form of notice, and is normally a few days but can be the minimum of 24 hours. But the CAB normally provide you with the contact details of law firms who specialise in the local area, and who also work for a reduced fee or on a pro-bono basis, i.e. through Community Legal etc. But you do need to seek some advice as soon as you can, and as mentioned above, prepare yourself for any further action which may be taken. Your suspension will be to avoid any conflict or interference into the investigation and will consist of auditing and evidence gathering, which you must either be prepared to defend and deny (which it appears you may not be able to) or to explain (possibly your best option, considering that to defend and deny in the face of evidence would mean dishonesty).

 

You won't be judged here on the forums atall, but what you will find is that people will be honest with you.

 

If you have done wrong, then there must be a reason behind it - and that reason is the centre of what your "response" to your situation will be. Inevitably, there will be a discplinary hearing and I would image it would be for gross misconduct - especially as it involved what you mentioned in your original post. If the company has not "lost" money, and it's simply a case of transactions being processed as normal but not in line with procedures, then that is one thing but if the company has suffered a loss and these transactions and cheques were used in a fraudulant manner, than that is very different.

 

My personal advice would be to seek legal advice as soon as possible, and whoever it is that you choose to assist you, make sure you are honest with them - confidentiality is guaranteed - as this is the only way that they can help you.

 

Do you have home insurance? If so, you may be covered for legal expenses and it may be worth contacting them for advice, and they may be able to assist in providing representation for you.

 

Good luck, and ask if you need any more help.

[honeybee13]

Hello, Boss Lady. We haven't heard from you lately, how are you getting on please?

 

To add to what Chesham has said, if you have a local Law Centre, you could contact them for advice.

 

HB

[R&J]

If so, you may be covered for legal expenses and it may be worth contacting them for advice, and they may be able to assist in providing representation for you.

 

Good luck, and ask if you need any more help.

 

Legal Expenses Insurance is a good thing to have. There are however problems with it, and the model works as follows:

 

You ring insurance company and speak to a 'legal advice helpline'. You think you are still talking to the insurer, but actually you are speaking to a very junior person at a law firm, who is tasked with taking your details and providing some basic advice.

 

If your claim has merit you will be referred back to the insurance company, who will try and 'sell' it to the Solicitor, typically for around £800. The inusrer then underwrites your legal expenses, and also those of the other side should you lose, up to a certain value (typically £50,000).

 

The model relies on the insurer and their Solicitor only taking on 'good' cases in which costs can be recovered from the other side, in addition to the £800 they receive from the Solicitor. Typically the prospects of success have to be over 65% before the insurer will consider taking your claim.

 

You can appoint your own Solicitor, but insurers hate it when people do this since they don't get the £800 kickback, as a result the insurer is often very difficult to deal with, when trying to get them to back a claim where you have decided to appoint your own Solicitor. They will take every step to try and discourage you from doing this, including slagging off the Solicitor you have tried to appoint.

 

The problem with Employment Law is that costs are generally not awarded, and as a result the Insurer can't recover these, so ends up losing money on the claim. As a result they seem to do everything to try and squirm out of backing an Employment Law claim.

 

Oh, and I think the quality of the 'Solicitors' the insurers refer you too is often not great. Typically your case will be one of many being dealt with by a junior fee earner at a very big law firm. The fee earners are not Solicitors, but typically college or university leavers.

[chesham]

Legal expenses will vary depending on insurer, definitely! I had a policy with one company who had outsourced to a call centre, whereby the staff googled information and passed it on to you. They were not legally trained, and if they were, it was only for a day or so!

 

However, my current legal expenses insurance was specifically taken out because you speak directly to a qualified and trained solicitor, who has helped me no end with a situation which went beyond my current knowledge.

 

If your case is referred by your insurer, it will be dealt with by a qualified solicitor, albeit some juniors or trainee solicitors, but they will not be able to act accordingly if they have not passed the bar or are not supervised by a qualified solicitor. However, with all the transferring and paperwork, it can get confusing as to who is dealing with what.

 

On a side note, I knew a "legal advisor" who had three days training and then provided legal advice to members of the public - yet her knowledge was limited to that oin the database she searched. Whilst I am not saying that people who provide this advice are useless and are no help, they often lack what people require - proper, impartial legal advice by someone who has studied and is an "expert" in law and legal processes.

 

But it's worth having, whatever the representation.

[R&J]

 

If your case is referred by your insurer, it will be dealt with by a qualified solicitor, albeit some juniors or trainee solicitors,

.

 

Yes and no.

 

I know of many big firms where cases are dealt with by Legal Assistants / Paralegals, of varying levels of experience. Some of these are people who have done a law degree and the Legal Practice Course, and are hoping to eventually be taken on as a Trainee Solicitor; others have no formal legal qualifications whatsoever.

 

Obviously these people will have a Solicitor as a supervisor, but the level of 'supervision' given varies, and it is realistic to expect that the Solicitor may have very little to do with the day to day running of the case.

 

I was a trainee at a firm where everything was done by paralegals, and the Solicitor was there to provide help / assistance and would review a few files of each paralegal a week. The standard of some of these people was shocking, saw people missing Court deadlines and all sorts.

[chesham]

Just as anywhere, you get good ones and you get bad ones

[Bosslady57]

Ok sorry for the delay in coming back on the thread my health has not been very good in the last few days. I have had a letter calling me to a disciplinary meeting. They did not provide any copies of documents that they will produce. I have asked for an alternative time as they wanted me to attend at 7pm and that was not convenient. Following this they have have not paid me this moth. My question now is: as they haven't paid me can that be deemed as them breaking my contract? Could I state that as they have broken my contract I deem myself now to be not employed by them? I don't want to fight anything I just want to be able to leave. My marriage has broken down because of all this and I have to move out of the home which is being handed back to the lenders.

[chesham]

ACAS guidelines state you should be given copies of any evidence prior to a disciplinary hearing - however, they are not binding as such but are used as grounds to show "fair conduct" by employers and employees. I would ask for a copy of this evidence which to be presented to you prior to the meeting taken place (at least 24 hours) - with regards to getting paid, if you have been suspended on full pay, then this should remain - it is a breach of contract, but does not imply you are no longer employed with them - many people suffer from their employers making incorrect deductions etc, but in now way does it mean their responsibilities as an employee are relinquished by this. You will still be an employee until either you are dismissed, or you resign.

 

Unless the company notified you that your full pay was to be stopped, or any payments were to be stopped or deductions made, then they are in breach of contract, and regardless of the fact you are suspended, you should still be paid.

 

ACAS will be able to help you on how to approach them, as your situation sounds delicate enough at the moment.

[Bosslady57]

Acas say I should ask them why I haven't been paid. Acas are looking at this from trying to enable me to keep my job. I am not.

[Bosslady57]

Could I resign siting a repudiatory breachof contract