How Should We Handle an Employee Threatening to Tarnish Our Reputation After Termination?

I'm an HR executive in a software company. One of my employees (under probation period) went on an uninformed leave for 5 days at a critical time of project completion. When we tried to call him on his mobile and residence number, he didn't pick up the call. We thought he had absconded. It was a challenging week as we lost $1000 and had a fallout with the client due to the project not being completed on time.

On the 6th day, the employee returned to work and explained that he had gone to his friend's outstation wedding without informing anyone, knowing that his team leader would not approve leave during that critical period. His irresponsible behavior upset everyone, leading us to decide to terminate his employment immediately. He reacted poorly and showed no remorse for his actions. Now, he is threatening to tarnish our company's reputation by posting negative reviews online.

Could someone suggest appropriate actions to take in this situation or advise on how to handle this issue?

Hello,

I guess it's a standard response from your ex-employee whenever anyone who doesn't feel any remorse for a wrong done—more to do with the mental outlook of the person. I am sure it won't take him very far in his career—but that's his problem. If you notice, it's a lot similar to what we see daily on TV in discussions between politicians—bouncing their faults onto others :-).

Coming to your query. Was anything taken in writing—either as a part of the Termination Letter or separately—about the actual reason for his termination? If you have your records straight, I think you have a good case to hit back. Just tell him [send a mail with screenshots of what you noticed over the Net] that this attitude will invite serious consequences from your company—including posting his termination letter all over the Net—including the Social Networking Sites, so that he wouldn't be able to get another job. But please note that I don't recommend this to be actually carried out—since your focus ought to be to safeguard your company interests—not ruin his career [also please note that like for every option, this too will have negative and positive consequences for the Company]. Suggest you draft this mail using the services of a lawyer—to be on the safe side, if he uses a legal response. But if he doesn't halt, you may need to implement it.

If you don't have anything in writing about his wrongdoing [not internal mails—it needs to be to him directly], then you can still adopt the same strategy but with some caution, since if he takes the legal route, you wouldn't have anything to defend your company—and in the process being the HR face of the company, you will get the brickbats.

Now for the lessons of this experience. Maybe you need to refine your selection process to include some psychological queries/scenarios and get the responses of the prospective employees. There should be many tests on the Net that cater to this need—evaluating indirectly the psychological traits [if you ask anyone directly if they will give preference to work or to a marriage, you know the obvious answer :-)].

Regards,

TS

Dear Friend,

Immediately issue an official show cause notice to him at his address. Seek an explanation in an official written note (not verbal) as a proof. Whether he responds to it is another issue, but an official record must be maintained. Secondly, issue an informational advertisement for public interest and start looking for a replacement.

Regarding the internet issue, if it was initiated by him, as an organization, you can counter with official records. Implement it as communicated by TS, but only when he initiates this disruptive behavior.

Regards,
JCB

Dear Pavi,

I have gone through your report. I hope you are in a critical situation, but please try to relax. I have also reviewed Tajsathees' suggestions, and he is correct. Stay calm and take action against him step by step on the safer side.

Regards,
A.R. Pasanth Lal
bansi_hr@yahoo.co.in

Dear Pavi, I agree with Sh. Prashanth Lal's suggestion. Please initiate action step by step in writing, as the above specimens definitely have to face a bad day within a short period.

rns

Dear Pavi,

I have seen the comments above. But before doing that, wait and think: if he had approached you for leave, would you have granted it, since he is eligible for two days' leave as per the Shop and Establishment Act? What is the process for obtaining leave approval?

Your project and other responsibilities are valid; I do not interfere in that. However, above all, there are human values. Why are leaves not being granted? The project will continue as long as the company exists, so no one should refrain from taking leave. Remember, the comments above regarding taking action, posting his termination letter online, and other actions would only lead to losses.

If that employee approaches the Labor Office, you will be in deep trouble. Your organization will also face issues. If he admits to working overtime without pay, working the whole week, etc., it will create significant problems. The best advice is to close this issue, ask him not to come to the office, settle his dues, and establish a fair leave policy. Human relations and emotions are more important than the project or money earned. If this attitude is corrected from your end, there will be no conflicts, and employees will work with proper satisfaction.

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your valuable replies. I will refine my recruitment process in accordance with tajsateesh's advice. I am looking forward to more suggestions and cautious ideas to prevent such situations in the future.

Regards,
Pavi_HR

Suggestion:
Have you specified him the reason of his termination in black and white, that as per the policy of the company you have taken that decision.If still he has some query, meet that person and make him realize that what he had done was unethical. Its very important for him to understand his mistake.
Regards
Anjana K

I think publishing ads in newspapers and all over the internet/social websites would be a better approach. In such a message, you may display something like, "Employee Name has been terminated from the employment of (Company Name) due to his fault (along with his termination letter). Hence, anybody who makes any type of communication/contract/information sharing is requested not to rely on his information."

Thank you.

Dear sidman05,

Thank you for your suggestion. In our company, we absolutely value people more than money. We grant casual leaves for employees under the probation period. Uninformed leaves are also accepted with genuine reasons. However, this guy gave us an irresponsible answer that really upset us. ATTITUDE is more important for a person (For Everyone). Every company expects a Responsible & Faithful employee (which determines attitude). If that fails, what can we do with that employee? This attitude may spoil the environment of the company. On our side, we are safe & clear; the pain will be for that guy because of his misconduct.

Thank you.

As a payback, I would not terminate him. I would opt for a salary cut to cover the company's loss and never promote him. It's more or less creating an environment for him to quit.