Suspension Pending Enquiry

What Happened?

• A worker distributed pamphlets outside the factory with harsh comments against management.
• The company sent him a show-cause notice, asking why disciplinary action shouldn’t be taken.
• The worker replied saying he distributed the pamphlets outside factory premises, and it wasn’t misconduct.
• Company. was not satisfied, so they issued a charge-sheet and suspended him pending a domestic enquiry (an internal investigation).
• During this suspension, the worker still received a subsistence allowance (a part of his salary).

What was the dispute?

• The worker complained to the Conciliation Officer.
• When conciliation failed, the State Government referred the issue to the Industrial Tribunal — specifically asking whether the suspension was justified.
• Company challenged this referral in the Karnataka High Court.

What did the Court say?

The Court analyzed two major points:

1. Is suspension pending enquiry an “industrial dispute”?
2. Can the government mechanically refer any issue just because conciliation failed?

The Court decided:

• Suspension pending an enquiry is not punishment.
  • It doesn’t end the worker’s job.
  • It’s temporary and follows rules where the worker keeps getting paid (subsistence allowance).
  • The enquiry had already been finished and a dismissal order had been issued (not just left hanging).
• The government must check if a real industrial dispute exists before referring a case.
  • It cannot blindly refer everything after a failure report.
  • There must be a real issue connected to employment, non-employment, or conditions of service.

Here, suspending someone during enquiry is normal practice and not itself a dispute under the Industrial Disputes Act.

Final Decision:

• The State’s referral order was quashed (cancelled).
• The Court said this was not a real industrial dispute and the Tribunal should not have been asked to look into it.

You Should also Read these Blogs: Appointment Order – The Deciding Factor,

Supreme Court On Contract Labour

In Simple Terms:

• Suspension during enquiry is allowed and is not a punishment.
• Only if a suspension is unfair (like dragging for years) might it become a problem.
• In this case, Company followed the correct process.
• The State Government wrongly referred the matter, and the Court corrected that.

#labourlaw #industrialdispute #suspension #domesticenquiry #enquiry #reference