SOP 104.28: Suspension Without Pay

 I. POLICY:

    A full-time employee of the Georgia Department of Corrections
    (GDC), upon written notice, may be placed on suspension
    without pay.

 II. APPLICABILITY:

    All full-time employees of the Georgia Department of
    Corrections.

 III. RELATED DIRECTIVES:

    A. State Personnel Board Rules

       Rule 8, Political Activity

       Rule 15, Changes to Employment Status

       Rule 24, Rules for Classified Employees

    B. GDC Standard Operating Procedures

       IVO06-0008, Suspensions With Pay

       IVO15-0011, Random Drug Testing

       IVO15-0012, Reasonable Suspicion Drug Testing

       SOP IVO20-0001, Adverse Actions (Classified Employees)

       SOP IVO20-0002, Adverse Actions (Unclassified Employees)

 IV. DEFINITIONS:

    None

 V. ATTACHMENTS:

    None

VI. PROCEDURE:

A. A full-time employee of the Georgia Department of
   Corrections may be placed on suspension without pay for
   the reasons outlined below:

   1. A suspension without pay for disciplinary purposes
      should be proportional to the offense and shall not
      exceed 30 calendar days for any one offense, or for
      multiple offenses arising out of the same incident
      as provided for in Rule 15 of the Rules of the
      State Personnel Board. A full-time employee may be
      suspended for disciplinary purposes because of:

      a. negligence or inefficiency in performing
         assigned duties;

      b. inability or unfitness to perform assigned
         duties;

      c. insubordination, misconduct, and/or conduct
         reflecting discredit on the Department;

      d. commission of a felony or other crime
         involving moral turpitude;

      e. chronic tardiness or absenteeism;

      f. failure to report for or remain at work
         without justifiable cause;

      g. failure to process performance appraisals in a
         timely manner; or

      h. political activity in violation of State
         Personnel Board Rule 3.

   2. A full-time employee may be suspended without pay
      during a period of pending criminal court action .
      This suspension without pay should occur only when
      such pending criminal action may deter the
      employee's effectiveness in employment.

      a. A suspension without pay for pending criminal
         court action shall not exceed the period of
         time necessary for the disposition of the
         action.

      b. At the end of a period of suspension without
         pay for pending criminal action, the employee
         shall be returned to duty or terminated in
         accordance with State Personnel Board Rules
         and/or agency policies and procedures.

      c. If the disposition of the criminal action does
         not include any penalty to the employee, the
         suspended employee must be reinstated in
         accordance with State Personnel Board Rule 15
         and/or agency policies and procedures.

   3. Failure to secure or maintain a license,
      certificate, or permit required by any law, or
      applicable regulation, or rule, policy or
      requirement of the appointing authority.

   4. An unclassified employee who tests positive during a
     random drug test procedure for the presence of one
     or more illegal drugs shall immediately be placed on
     suspension without pay. If an unclassified employee
     is notified of positive drug test results by the
     Medical Review Officer, and self-reports the results
     (to the Appointing Authority) but does not submit a
     resignation, he/she shall also immediately be placed
     on suspension without pay. The suspension without
     pay shall end upon receipt of the official
     laboratory report and State Personnel Administration
     notice.

     Note: Exempt Employees : Suspension without pay of
     less than five work days (in a 7-day work week), of
     employees who are exempt from the Fair Labor
     Standards Act (FLSA) are not permissible. Suspension
     without pay for disciplinary reasons for exempt
     employees must be in increments of 7 days (7/14/21)
     depending on the severity of the offense.

B. Notification Process

   1. Classified Employees : The Appointing Authority must
      give a classified employee written notice of the
      proposed suspension without pay, at least 15
      calendar days prior to the effective date of the
      action, except in an emergency situation as set
      forth in State Personnel Board Rule 24. To invoke

   Rule 24, the Appointing Authority must consult with
   the Director, Human Resources.

   a. The notice of proposed suspension without pay
      must include the following:

      1) The effective date (and duration, if
         applicable) of the action. Also included
         is a statement of the notice period. This
         period must be at least 15 calendar days
         from the date of the proposed action. It
         must also be presented to, or received by
         the employee, or properly delivered to
         the employee's last known address;

      2) The specific charges or reasons for the
         suspension without pay;

      3) A statement advising that the employee
         has a right to respond to the
         Commissioner's Designee for Adverse
         Actions pertaining to the charges or
         reasons within 10 calendar days from the
         date the notice of proposed adverse
         action is received. The employee may
         respond in writing, appear before the
         Commissioner's Designee at an agreed upon
         time during regular business hours within
         the response period, or both.

      4) A statement advising the employee that a
         failure to respond to the charges during
         the response period will result in the
         action being effective on the date
         specified without further notice; and,

      5) A warning that failure to respond by the
         date set forth in the notice will result
         in a waiver of all further appeal rights,
         including any appeal to the State
         Personnel Board.

2. Unclassified Employees : For a suspension without
   pay, the Appointing Authority must give an
   unclassified employee written notice of the
   suspension without pay, at least 24 hours prior to
   the effective date of the action, except upon

   notification of positive drug test results or in an
   emergency situation. If an emergency situation
   occurs which does not allow for 24 hour notice, the
   Appointing Authority must consult with the
   Director, Human Resources.

   a. The notice of suspension without pay must
      include the following:

      1) The effective date of the suspension
         which must be at least 24 hours after the
         date that the notice of the action is
         presented to, or properly delivered to
         the employee's last known address unless
         due to positive drug test or emergency
         situation as stated above;

      2) The specific charges or reasons for the
         suspension without pay;

      3) If the suspension without pay is for
         pending criminal charges, the statement
         must advise the unclassified employee
         that they may be separated from
         employment after a 30-day period, if the
         charges for which the suspension are
         proposed are not resolved.

      4) A statement advising that the employee
         has a right to request a review to the
         Commissioner’s Designee for Adverse
         Action pertaining to the charges or
         reasons within five business days from
         the date that the notice of adverse
         action is received. The employee may
         respond in writing, appear before the
         Commissioner's Designee at an agreed time
         during regular business hours within the
         response period, or both. However,
         suspension without pay due to pending
         receipt of official notification of
         positive drug test results shall not
         include a review process until
         termination.

5. To place an employee on suspension without pay, the
  appropriate Personnel/Personnel Action Request (PAR)

     Form must be submitted to the Central Personnel
     Administration (CPA) Adverse Action Coordinator for
     processing:

      a. SUS/CCA - Pending Criminal Court Action

      b. SUS/DAC - Disciplinary Action

      c. SUS/DAC - Pending Receipt of Official
         Notification of Positive Drug Test Results

B. A copy of the written notice to the employee must be
   attached to the PAR Form submitted to CPA Adverse Action
   Coordinator for processing.

C. Return from Suspension Without Pay

   1. Classified employees who are suspended for criminal
      court action and are found not guilty of the
      charges shall immediately be returned to pay status
      in accordance with Rule 24 of the Rules of the
      State Personnel Board. Any wages due to the
      employee from this period of suspension without pay
      shall immediately be issued once the employee has
      provided proof of wages earned while on suspension
      without pay.

   2. Classified employees who are suspended without pay
      for disciplinary reasons as outlined in Rule 24 of
      the Rules of the State Personnel Board shall not be
      entitled to any compensation upon return to pay
      status.

   3. Unclassified employees who are suspended for
      criminal court action and are found not guilty of
      the charges shall immediately be returned to pay
      status in accordance with Rule 15 of the Rules of
      the State Personnel Board. Any wages that would
      have been earned during this maximum 30-day period
      of suspension without pay are awarded.

   4. To return an employee from suspension without pay,
      the appropriate Personnel/Personnel Action Request
      (PAR) Form must be submitted to the Central

Personnel Administration (CPA) Adverse Action
Coordinator for processing:

a. REC/SUS – Recall from Suspension