My sister has just informed me that her partner was suspended from work on full pay pending an investigation on Monday morning. The background to it is this.
They have a 22 month old child who has been unwell with a "bug" for approximately 3 weeks. Back and forward to GP and A+E with no definitive diagnosis. "It's a childhood virus, don't worry" type of thing. Sister did all appointments, no time off for BIL at all. Sunday evening BIL looking after baby as Sister was returning from work. Baby starts to become floppy and listless. BIL takes him to A+E who again state he has a virus without even taking him out of his pushchair....(but that's another issue)
BIL takes him home, tells my Sister what happened and goes to work himself, telling my sister to call him if baby worsens.
At work, BIL tells foreman of situation and there was a possibility that he may have to go home if baby worsened. Foreman says no problem and even calls a member of staff from another team onto theirs in case BIL needed to go.
Sister phones BIL at 01.00. Baby temperature 39.9 and has rash all over belly and back. BIL decides to go home and get baby to hospital with Sister who is hysterical. Foreman is nowhere to be seen, replacement bod nowhere to be found. He tells another colleague who says he will tell foreman when he returns.
Monday morning BIL gets a phonecall from HR stating he has been suspended on full pay pending an investigation for "walking out on the job without telling anyone" The colleague that he told has been interviewed and he has confirmed that he passed the message onto the foreman but apparantely this wasn't good enough.
BIL now pooping himself that he might be sacked. He has worked their for 15 years without a blemish on his record. Any suggestions as to what he might have to do next? His union rep has said that they might try to stick gross misconduct on him which seems massively unfair.
