Suspended from work: your pay, how long it lasts, and your rights

Being suspended while your employer investigates is not a finding against you. It should be on full pay, it should be short, and it should be kept under review. Most of the rules come from the Acas Code of Practice and Acas guidance rather than from statute, which is why knowing exactly what they say gives you something specific to point to.

What suspension is, and what it is not

Suspension means being told to stay away from work while an allegation is looked into. The Acas statutory Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures sets the basic standard in one paragraph:

Three things in that paragraph matter. Suspension is with pay. It should be as brief as possible and kept under review. And it is not a disciplinary action — it is a pause while the facts are found, not a sanction. Acas’s guidance to employers adds a test for whether to suspend at all:

Acas lists what an employer should weigh before suspending: what it has found so far, your wellbeing, the risk of not suspending, how serious that risk is, and whether there is an alternative — such as a temporary change of duties or location.

Your pay while suspended

The last sentence is the important one. A clause allowing unpaid suspension does not settle the question, on Acas’s reading, and an employer that relies on one is taking a risk. If your pay has been cut or stopped, Acas suggests raising it with your employer informally first; put it in writing either way, with the dates and the amount, so there is a record if it becomes a claim. Unpaid wages and the time limit.

Holiday during suspension

Acas says you can take holiday during suspension if your employer agrees, and that your employer can refuse or cancel holiday while you are suspended — but it must give the correct notice to cancel it. The notice rules are the same ones that apply to garden leave. Holiday and notice under the Working Time Regulations.

If you are off sick during suspension

Acas says to check the contract. If it promises full pay during suspension, that may apply even while you are sick.

How long can you be suspended?

The Acas Code does not set a number of days or weeks. Its standard is the one quoted above: as brief as possible, and kept under review. Acas’s guidance to employers repeats the point — the suspension should only last as long as it needs to — and adds that the employer should keep in regular contact and update you on the investigation and when it is likely to end.

So the practical question is not “how long is allowed” but “is anyone reviewing it”. If weeks pass without contact, ask in writing when the suspension was last reviewed, what is still being investigated, and when the investigation is expected to end. Those are the questions the Code and the guidance say the employer should already be answering.

What you should be told

Acas says it is good practice for an employer suspending someone to:

• explain the reason for their suspension
• make clear it does not mean you have decided they’ve done something wrong
• make clear you will listen to their point of view and consider it before making any decisions
• set out what the next steps will be
• confirm they’ll continue to get their pay and benefits during suspension
• explain their responsibilities during suspension, for example what they can and cannot do
• give them a copy of the organisation’s suspension policy, if there is one
• name someone they can contact if they have any concerns

Acas adds that there is no legal requirement to give written notice of a suspension, but that it is best to put it in writing to avoid misunderstandings. If you were told only verbally, ask for the reason and the terms in an email — it costs nothing and fixes the start date. Acas also says employers have a duty of care for the wellbeing of a suspended employee, and should make sure you know what support is available.

When the investigation ends

Acas describes two outcomes. If no further action is needed, the suspension should end as soon as possible, and the employer should discuss your return — when you come back, what colleagues are told, and any concerns you have. Acas says it is good practice to confirm in writing that no further action will be taken.

If the investigation leads to a disciplinary procedure, the employer should decide whether to continue the suspension. From that point the disciplinary rules in the Acas Code apply in full, including your right to be accompanied at a hearing. What happens at a disciplinary hearing · Gross misconduct and the Acas Code · raising a grievance.

If you are offered a way out

Sometimes the next thing after a suspension is not a hearing but a conversation about leaving on agreed terms. If that happens, the conversation may be a protected one, and anything agreed is likely to be put in a settlement agreement, which only binds you once an independent adviser has advised you on it. Check the termination date in any agreement and that your pay continues until then. Protected conversations · how long you have to sign.

Medical suspension is a different thing

In everyday use, “medical suspension” can mean being sent home because of your health. The Employment Rights Act uses the phrase much more narrowly:

So the statutory right to up to 26 weeks’ pay applies only where the suspension is required under one of the listed health and safety rules. It also has exclusions:

If you are off work because of your own illness, the rules on sick pay apply instead. Off sick and offered a settlement.

Common questions