Employee Refuses to Sign Warning Letter: Is Emailing It Enough to Make It Valid?

If the employee refuses to sign the warning letter, does emailing it to the employee validate it? Or, even if he didn't sign it, is it still valid if kept on record?

If an employee refuses to sign a warning letter, you can always send it through the AD mail and keep a record of it, which will be useful in the future. It shows that your information has been sent from your end even if it returns unsigned.

Regards,
Mitali

In the majority of cases, the refusal to accept communication from management would be deemed as acceptance by the employee.

You can issue a show cause notice under Section 24(X) of the Industrial Employment Standing Order.

Regards,
Sacheein

Please send the warning letter to the accused employee at his residential/communication address. If the letter comes back with the remark "Refused to accept the letter," it will be deemed as acceptance.

Handling Employee Communication Issues

What if the employee is not at the residence to which the communication has been sent, and the question of refusal does not arise? Or what if the employee's address is not on your records or traceable, which happens many times.

Regards,
B. Saikumar

In my opinion, please write a comment on the original "Refused by Mr./Ms. ____________" and file it.

Regards,
Koraku

Simply in the warning letter, you can add this article: In case of no response to this letter within one or two working days, HRD will assume it is accepted by your side. One copy of the warning letter will be kept in your personal file; however, the copy will be removed from your personal file within 6 months from the current date if there is no repeat action in the working environment.

Validity of Warning Letters Without Employee Signature

Why do you want to go to the hassle of getting it signed? A warning letter or letter of termination without acceptance is just as good. The last known address of the employee is considered good enough, and a record showing him not working from the date the letter is issued will suffice for your side. To put it on record, it will be done by email or registered mail.

In such a case, a copy can be sent to his last known address (as per office records) by registered post acknowledgment due and a copy in an ordinary post as well. If the employee refuses to receive the registered letter also, you can have the letter returned with the mark of the postman as 'refused,' which will serve as good evidence for the management in case of any future dispute.

I suggest trying the following steps:

1. Call the employee and serve him the letter in the presence of two witnesses. In case he refuses to accept, record it and take the signature of the witnesses.
2. Mail a soft copy to him, both to his office and personal email address.
3. Send a copy by registered post to the permanent address as noted in the personal file.
4. Keep a record of all these actions in his personal file.

Regards,
Suresh Rathi

Mr. Sachin is right here. Accepting any communication from the employer is mandatory as per the standing order. If he refuses to accept it, this may lead to misconduct, and you can issue him a show-cause notice by Regd. A.D. This action is necessary only if you intend to penalize him.

Regards,
Mangesh Wakodkar
Aurangabad.

Dear Workout,

Mr. Rathi has suggested the right course of action with a few additional steps. It is advisable to mail the warning letter to both his present and permanent addresses. Please ensure you mention in the letter that it is being sent by mail as he refused to accept it in person at the office in the presence of specific witnesses.

Regards,
Suresh Rathi

When an employee refuses to take the warning letter and sign it, the best course open to you is to send it to his last known address under RPAD. If he acknowledges that letter, keep the acknowledgment as proof of having served the notice on him. Otherwise, the postal department will return the letter with specific reasons, such as, for example, "addressee refused," "addressee not found," "addressee left," etc. This letter can be preserved and can be produced in any court of law as proof of having served the notice to the employee, but he has not taken it for the reason mentioned in the letter by the postal authorities.

If the employee thinks that he is too smart, follow the above method and show to the court that you have done your part of the duty.

But before issuing this notice through post, it would be better to counsel the employee and try to cajole him to accept it. If this does not materialize, you can ask a friend of his, in whom he has a close relationship and in whom he believes, to advise him to take the notice. On refusal, the employee's friend's signature can be taken, and record the fact you have tried to bring him round through a friend and that effort also failed. Then arrange to send the notice through an RPAD.

Regards,
M.J. SUBRAMANYAM, BANGALORE

In case the employee refuses to sign the warning letter, you can send the warning letter to their current or permanent address via registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt (AD). Additionally, you can warn them through an official email and keep a printed copy in the employee's personal file.

If an employee doesn't accept the warning letter, just put remarks on the copy of the letter with your signature. This way, in the future, when you want to refer to it, you have the remarks written on it.

Regards,
Derek Gomes

Handling Employee Misconduct Under the Industrial Disputes Act

If an employee is a workman under the Industrial Disputes Act, it becomes misconduct as per the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act. You can record his refusal to accept the same with the signatures of other employees party to his refusal. This record will help you in initiating another disciplinary action and will also add gravity to his initial misconduct for which he is being warned. After recording, you can send it by registered AD and place its receipt on the record. Legally, it will be deemed to be issued to that person.

Even if the employee is not a workman, you can follow the same procedure and issue him another warning letter for his refusal to accept the previous warning letter. Sending an email could be legally controversial.

Regards,
Anand Gumaste

Handling Employee Refusal to Sign Warning Letters

If an employee is a workman under the Industrial Disputes Act, it becomes misconduct as per the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act. You can record his refusal to accept the same with the signatures of other employees party to his refusal. This record will help you in initiating another disciplinary action. It will also add gravity to his initial misconduct for which he is being warned. After recording, you can send it by registered AD and put its receipt on the record. On legal grounds, it will be deemed to be issued to that person.

Even if the employee is not a workman, you can follow the same procedure and issue him another warning letter for his refusal to accept the previous warning letter. Sending an email could be legally controversial.

Regards,
Anand Gumaste

You can issue the employee a show-cause notice stating the refusal of acceptance of the warning letter. You can also send the letter via registered post and keep a record of it. Additionally, you can post the warning letter on the notice board along with a copy of the show-cause notice, or you can publish the warning letter in the local newspaper to maintain a record.

Moreover, I am not familiar with the local laws of your country. You can seek advice from your local seniors in your field.

With Regards,
Sachin Gupta

There are some options to bring to his knowledge:

1. Put it on the Notice Board.
2. Post via RPAD.
3. Publish the notice in the dailies.

With regards,
V. Subbarao

As long as there is a record or evidence showing that you have done everything possible to inform him of his termination, you can also courier the letter, ensuring someone signs to receive it. I strongly suggest using email, registered post, or courier. This would be good enough. I guess even lawyers do the same. Do not complicate the situation.

I agree with Subarao. You can publish in the paper to inform that he is no longer working for the company and is not authorized to deal with anyone. However, by doing this, you should be aware that if his name appears in the paper, he might have a hard time getting a job. Therefore, it is advisable to reach a compromise and have him sign if that is truly necessary. This way, you save money in all aspects.

[QUOTE=workout;1861109]If the employee refuses to sign a warning letter, does emailing it to the employee validate it? Even if he didn't sign it, keeping it on record is still valid.

Please let me know if you are a worker from India or South Africa, so we can proceed accordingly.

Regards,
Sumit

I suggest the following:

Living in this world, which is full of stresses, one should first counsel the employee, who is an asset to the company, and try to persuade him to accept the mistake and file an apology in writing for it. An apology in writing can be filed in his personal file as a warning letter. He may be let off by issuing a verbal warning.

If this does not materialize, or considering the seriousness of the complaint, you can ask one of his colleagues, in whom he has faith, to advise him to take the notice and put up a reply. On refusal, his colleague's signature can be taken to record the fact that you have tried to bring him around through a colleague and that this effort also failed.

If the employee is coming on duty, call the employee and, in the presence of two witnesses, serve him the warning letter. In case he refuses to take the warning letter or refuses to sign the duplicate copy as receipt, record it and take the signatures of the witnesses.

If the employee is not coming on duty, send a copy by registered post to the permanent address as noted in the personal file.

Keep the Post-Office Acknowledgement Slip as proof of having served the notice on him.

Keep all records of these actions in his personal file and don't let the case be closed.

Regards,
Mathur AK

Mr. Mathur has given the correct approach. However, it is also important to keep in mind that HR professionals act as the representatives of employees on behalf of the organization. At the same time, when it comes to discipline, following an appropriate procedure as per the Standing Orders and company policies is mandatory. For this, gathering documentary proof and evidence is necessary. Hence, it has been suggested that mails, e-mails, registered posts, etc., be sent.

The question here, I presume, is not to harm any employee but to ensure we maintain proper documentation in the interest of the organization. I would always appreciate a process that I have suggested earlier with proper witnesses.

Thanks,
BIJAY

In addition, the refusal of letter acceptance can be countersigned by two seniors/colleagues as witnesses at the time of issuing.

Thank you,
Pawan

Yes, that is the only obvious solution if the employee refuses to accept the warning letter. However, please remember that initially, when the employee refuses to accept the warning letter, it must be endorsed by a couple of witnesses in the office as proof of his refusal.

Regards,
Maroof

Steps for Handling Unclaimed Warning Letters

In such cases, you can adopt the following steps:

- Send the warning letter by RPAD (Registered Post with Acknowledgment Due) and Certificate of Posting, as well as by ordinary post, to the employee's residential address as found in their personal file. If the letters come back with the postal endorsement "Not Found," "Not Claimed," or "Refused," then take a copy of the warning letter already sent and make an endorsement below the letter by hand: "Since you refused to receive the letter, it is once again being sent to you." This letter may be sent again in the manner mentioned above.

- Summarize all that has happened and send it to the employee's email ID. Please do not open the returned letters. They should be preserved in their original sealed condition. Many make the mistake of opening the cover. It should be opened only during an inquiry or before the court in the presence of the Enquiry Officer or the judge.

- For refusing to receive a charge sheet or a warning letter, you can initiate disciplinary action and impose a minor punishment.

Regards,
Fredrick Castro

Subject: Re: Employee Refuses to Sign Warning Letter

You can send it through registered AD to his last address. Then, you can inform him of the warning through the local newspaper, narrating all his refusals date-wise. That will serve the purpose.

Regards,
Binay Srivastava

Publication in Local Newspapers

Last option, if the AD (Acknowledgment Due) comes undelivered, is to give the same to local newspapers for publication. Also, mention the facts that the notice was refused and is not traceable to the last known address. The publication in the local newspaper is sufficient proof of non-acceptance of the notice/communication.

Thanks

Yes, I do understand that if an employee does not want to sign, it will still be acknowledged as it will be stated in the Offer Letter offered by the organization during the employment unless the clause in the agreement does not state such.

Handling Refusal of Warning Letters

First, you should try to serve a warning letter in the presence of two witnesses. If the individual refuses to accept it, write on the warning letter that it was refused and obtain the signatures of the two witnesses. Then, send it by registered mail with acknowledgment due. Even if the delinquent does not accept it, the letter will be returned (the postman should remark on every refused letter). You can then issue a show-cause or charge sheet for misconduct under section 24(x).

Regards,
Sacheein

I totally agree with the senior's comment. The following can be done:

Handling Refusal of Warning Letter

(a) Refusal is like acceptance, and you can mark the letter as "Refused to Take." Furthermore, take the signature of two employees as evidence and file it for future records.

(b) It can be sent to his/her correspondence address available in the office by Registered AD. If it comes back undelivered, then take action as per point (a).

In both cases, we can frame additional charges such as incorrect information, refusal, disobedience of superior orders, etc., as per the industrial employment standing order.

Regards,
Deepak Agarwal