Can we suspend the employee during the investigation?

In most cases yes — but as a temporary measure protecting the integrity of the investigation, not as a punishment. The safest route in practice is paid administrative leave that removes the employee’s access to the evidence and to witnesses; because pay and benefits continue, there is no detriment for them to point to.

Form and communication are what decide it. The measure should be in writing, for a defined period, reasoned, and worded so that it does not damage the presumption of innocence — and there should be no accusatory announcement to the team. A suspension that is badly constructed, open-ended or humiliating lays the ground for allegations of mobbing, of wrongful dismissal, or of the employee terminating for just cause under the Labour Law (No. 4857). So we design and document the measure with the possible outcomes of the investigation already in view: valid or just cause, taking the employee’s written defence, and the time limits attaching to each.