Dear all,
Please suggest, can we terminate an employee (worker category) if he refuses to resign, who is not covered under ESI and has been working for the last 23 years in the organization? Currently, he has been on unpaid long medical leave (unauthorized absenteeism) for more than 1 year and 5 months approximately. His previous records also indicate a habitual pattern of frequently being long absent without obtaining prior sanction or intimation. Despite numerous absenteeism letters issued, each time in response to these letters, he submits medical certificates from MBBS doctors citing various reasons for illnesses such as fever, skin problems, stomach issues, etc.
Please assist me in determining the appropriate course of action.
Regards,
Anil Saini
From India, New Delhi
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Please suggest, can we terminate an employee (worker category) if he refuses to resign, who is not covered under ESI and has been working for the last 23 years in the organization? Currently, he has been on unpaid long medical leave (unauthorized absenteeism) for more than 1 year and 5 months approximately. His previous records also indicate a habitual pattern of frequently being long absent without obtaining prior sanction or intimation. Despite numerous absenteeism letters issued, each time in response to these letters, he submits medical certificates from MBBS doctors citing various reasons for illnesses such as fever, skin problems, stomach issues, etc.
Please assist me in determining the appropriate course of action.
Regards,
Anil Saini
From India, New Delhi
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Please check your policy or Standing Orders in this regard. You can refer the employee to produce a Medical Certificate from the CMO to substantiate his prolonged illness. If he fails to do so, you can initiate disciplinary action against him. However, please note that before dismissing an employee with such a long service record, a careful and foolproof process must be followed. The Domestic Enquiry should be fair, proper, and provide ample opportunity for the employee to defend themselves. It should be entrusted to an experienced lawyer to ensure it can withstand legal scrutiny.
Thanks,
V K Gupta
From India, Panipat
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148Thanks,
V K Gupta
From India, Panipat
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Dear Anil,
Please check your policy or Standing Orders in this regard. You can refer the employee to produce a Medical Certificate from the CMO to substantiate his prolonged illness. If he fails, you can initiate disciplinary action against him. However, please note that dismissing an employee after such long service requires a careful and foolproof process. The Domestic Enquiry should be fair, proper, and provide ample opportunity for the employees, and should be entrusted to an experienced lawyer to withstand legal scrutiny.
Thanks,
V K Gupta
Hi, you can constitute a medical board of two persons and ask the person to appear before it for evaluation and assessment of his ailment. He should be given a specific date and time to appear before the Board. (You can also insist on a certificate from a Civil Surgeon).
While communicating the charges leveled against him, you should also mention whether he has appeared before the medical board or not. Give him a specific date and time for the enquiry and ask him to be present along with his witnesses and any relevant documents.
If he fails to be present, you may give a short adjournment and schedule another date for the enquiry. If he still fails to be present, hold the enquiry ex-parte and issue an order of dismissal from service under the relevant provision of the standing orders. It is always advisable to conduct an enquiry before issuing an order of dismissal from service.
Cyril
From India, Nagpur
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Please check your policy or Standing Orders in this regard. You can refer the employee to produce a Medical Certificate from the CMO to substantiate his prolonged illness. If he fails, you can initiate disciplinary action against him. However, please note that dismissing an employee after such long service requires a careful and foolproof process. The Domestic Enquiry should be fair, proper, and provide ample opportunity for the employees, and should be entrusted to an experienced lawyer to withstand legal scrutiny.
Thanks,
V K Gupta
Hi, you can constitute a medical board of two persons and ask the person to appear before it for evaluation and assessment of his ailment. He should be given a specific date and time to appear before the Board. (You can also insist on a certificate from a Civil Surgeon).
While communicating the charges leveled against him, you should also mention whether he has appeared before the medical board or not. Give him a specific date and time for the enquiry and ask him to be present along with his witnesses and any relevant documents.
If he fails to be present, you may give a short adjournment and schedule another date for the enquiry. If he still fails to be present, hold the enquiry ex-parte and issue an order of dismissal from service under the relevant provision of the standing orders. It is always advisable to conduct an enquiry before issuing an order of dismissal from service.
Cyril
From India, Nagpur
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I would like to add clarifications to Mr. Cyril's statement that before proceeding ex parte due to his non-appearance without sufficient cause in the inquiry, public notification, i.e., in the local and national newspapers, should be provided.
From India, Panipat
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From India, Panipat
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Procedure for Handling Unauthorized Absenteeism
First, send the letter to the worker and ask him to appear before the company doctor. If he appears, then based on the doctor's advice, follow the procedure to grant leave. If the company doctor finds no problem with the worker, then conduct a domestic inquiry.
In the domestic inquiry findings, if unauthorized absenteeism is found, issue a warning letter or suspend him for one day. If the worker does not return even after the suspension period, conduct a second domestic inquiry. Suppose in that inquiry, the delinquent worker is found to have unauthorized absenteeism, then suspend him for up to 10 days.
After the suspension period ends, if the worker still does not return, conduct another domestic inquiry. If unauthorized absenteeism is found in that inquiry, dismiss the worker and make a 123 agreement before the DCL. It is safe.
Regards,
B. Suresh
Advocate
Chennai
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
From India, Madras
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First, send the letter to the worker and ask him to appear before the company doctor. If he appears, then based on the doctor's advice, follow the procedure to grant leave. If the company doctor finds no problem with the worker, then conduct a domestic inquiry.
In the domestic inquiry findings, if unauthorized absenteeism is found, issue a warning letter or suspend him for one day. If the worker does not return even after the suspension period, conduct a second domestic inquiry. Suppose in that inquiry, the delinquent worker is found to have unauthorized absenteeism, then suspend him for up to 10 days.
After the suspension period ends, if the worker still does not return, conduct another domestic inquiry. If unauthorized absenteeism is found in that inquiry, dismiss the worker and make a 123 agreement before the DCL. It is safe.
Regards,
B. Suresh
Advocate
Chennai
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
From India, Madras
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DISCIPLINARY ACTION.ppt
Record of disciplinary action.doc