How Can We Legally Terminate a Contractual Technician Accused of Theft? Seeking Advice from HR Experts

Dear seniors, our company is a manpower leasing company that engages contractual technicians. One such employee was accused of stealing company property, and the customer wants him to be removed from the premises. Although nothing has been proven against the employee and it is only a suspicion, I, as the employer, want to know how the employee can be terminated legally and how to close the matter. Neither we, the employer, nor the customer is interested in retaining the said employee. I look forward to relevant advice on this matter.

Is it Ethical to Sack Someone Based on Allegations Without Proving Guilt?

It is essential to consider the principles of fairness and justice when making decisions regarding an individual's employment status. Terminating someone solely on allegations without proper investigation or proof of guilt can be a violation of their rights and may lead to legal consequences for the employer. It is crucial to follow due process, conduct a thorough investigation, and provide the accused individual with the opportunity to defend themselves before taking any disciplinary action. Fair treatment of employees is not only ethical but also contributes to maintaining a positive work culture and upholding the organization's reputation.

In such cases, evidence plays an important role. As you mentioned, he is only suspicious, and there is no evidence against him. Therefore, taking any action against him would be unlawful and unethical, setting a wrong example for existing employees.

Since you are involved in contract staffing, I understand the client's expectations and pressure from them. I would advise you that if the concerned staff is truly not guilty in this case, you may consider transferring him from one client's location to another. This way, your client will be satisfied that the suspected person is no longer working on their premises, and you have taken action on their request. Additionally, the concerned employee will not feel unjustly treated.

However, if you still wish to terminate him, and you do not have any evidence of the incident, you may request a resignation letter from him. Treat the case as a self-resignation and close it with an immediate full and final settlement of his dues.

I still believe that following this process may be seen as unjust to him. If you aim to identify the actual culprit, consider filing a police complaint as they will be able to uncover the truth.

Regards,
Tushar Swar

I totally agree with Mr. Simhan's observations. It is unfair to terminate the services of an employee merely on the basis of suspicion. Nor can you conveniently use the customer complaints, which cannot be sustained, as a ploy to terminate the employee. The prudent step would be to transfer the employee elsewhere, to another site or with another of your clients, and keep a discreet watch.

Hope you will act in a fair manner, and the simplest test to ascertain this is putting oneself in the place of that person. Would you have considered it fair if you had been in his place and your services had been terminated just on a complaint without any proof or substance?

Warm regards.

It is interesting to find that Raj Kumar Hansdah echoes the first two paragraphs of Tushar's advice. This implies that he has some reservations about the final advice to take a resignation letter. It's this advice that prevented me from just appreciating and validating Tushar's advice.

One can only ask the concerned person to resign, explaining the allegation, but not force him or her. We have such incidents reported here where people have been forced to resign under duress. I know of incidents in the UK where staff confronted with the situation and given the options of either putting in their resignation or facing a disciplinary panel, which could result in the termination of the job with a black mark, have opted for the former. Thereby, they have implicitly accepted the guilt and settled for the lesser of the two punishments.

Hence, I would advise that the person be given the choice and not just be forced to resign.

Inquiry into Accusations

Is he only accused? Did you hold an inquiry to look into the charges? Are the charges leveled against the accused fully proven beyond doubt?

If your answer is NO to my second question onwards, then do not proceed with any stringent action against the accused employee.

Thanks,

R. K. Nair

When you sack a male employee, please consider that you are eliminating the breadwinner of a family, which can lead to an economic crisis and unemployment. Is natural justice ensured by sacking an employee based on unproven allegations? Just because you want to satisfy your client, if you dismiss him, it becomes highly materialistic. Even though he might sue you, please show courtesy to the employee by being humane rather than purely capitalist.

It is my humble request.

Thank you.

Termination Process for an Employee

There must be an appointment letter for him. As per the terms of the appointment order termination clause, you have to give a notice period or salary in lieu of the notice period (normally one/two/three months), stating that you have lost confidence in his employment and he will quit after the lapse of the notice period or salary payment in lieu of the notice period.

For this, you have to call him and politely ask him to resign. If he is not willing, give him a letter and close his employment.

I am not an expert on the technical aspects of how to terminate an employee or seek their resignation, but I can speak on the ethical aspect of the issue. As the learned member Mr. Simhan pointed out, given the gravity of an unfounded allegation and if that results in the loss of one's livelihood, the allegation of theft against an employee questions the very moral foundation of an employee's character. If such an allegation is unfounded or there is a lack of evidence to substantiate it, there will be a serious miscarriage of justice. If the employee is deprived of their job and it later turns out to be the handiwork of another employee, they not only leave the job with a stigma for no fault of their own. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct a thorough investigation into allegations that have a bearing on the moral foundations of an employee's character. If no evidence is found, then it is all the more necessary to protect their character to vindicate the employee. If the client still does not want their presence on the premises, you can transfer them to a different location, as the learned member Tushar has suggested.

Regards,
B. Saikumar
In-house HR & IR Advisor

If you have a grievance against him, please remember, he may have too many against you as an employer. Precisely for this reason, employees form a union to protect their rights.

Allegations and Evidence

First of all, there is no evidence, only an allegation. Are you going to terminate him based solely on an allegation? As our learned professionals have opined, he has every justification to seek legal redress if he feels wronged. Hence, before taking the next step, ensure you have all witnesses and evidence on your side. Seek legal support and follow your lawyer's suggestions. Please do not blindly follow your employer's advice. Sometimes personal prejudices and confrontations lead to such one-sided decisions without providing ample opportunities for the employee under discussion.

Legal Considerations

Once he goes to the labor court, we often find many skeletons tumbling out of the employer's cupboard as well!

As the HR professional is expected to remain neutral, consider the facts first, the ground realities, and be humane before resorting to victimization to appease someone's offended ego!

Best wishes

Simhan, Raj Kumar, Tushar Swar, and B. Saikumar have pointed out the various aspects of the case you mentioned and given realistic suggestions. However, there is one point you mentioned that doesn't really align with the rest of the aspects of the case: "Neither we, the employer, are interested in retaining the said employee."

Can you please elaborate on this? Why are you, as the employer, not interested in retaining him? It seems like you have already made up your mind and are only seeking ways from the members to terminate him without the company being affected.

Could you provide more details about this employee - how long has he been on the payroll, his role/level, his past performance, any previous attitude instances, etc.?

Regards,
TS

I totally agree with and respect all the views given by our HR fraternity. However, the real problem lies below.

This question is posed by a contractor who has no choice but to execute the orders of his client. If he executes this order without proving the theft, it will definitely be unjust to that particular employee. If he doesn't execute the order, he may lose his entire contract, and hundreds of his workers will be out of their jobs. (I have assumed that the contractor has no other site where he can transfer this employee, and the client is firm on his demand.) Is there any way out?

With Best Regards,
Gajanan

As Mr. Simhan said, it is difficult for members to provide clear replies when the queries are based on assumptions or when the queriest conceals facts. Therefore, the replies may tend to be presumptuous. In this particular case, the members have suggested transferring him to a different location. Since he has not stated that he has no other available location, it is assumed that he has a different site or sites to transfer the employee.

Regards,
B. Saikumar
HR & IR Advisor

Dear Rameshan, looking at your problem, the best option, as already stated above, is to immediately stop him from attending the client office. Furthermore, you can call him and confront him with the allegation made by the client and hear his side of the story. The fact that you are also not interested in keeping him further shows that his record is not very good.

Steps to Terminate an Employee

The question of how to terminate such an employee is complex and cannot be fully answered in this discussion forum with limited facts. First, ascertain whether he has completed 240 days of service. If he has not, then you can go ahead and simply terminate his service. If he is on probation, then for unsatisfactory service, he can be discharged. However, if the situation is different, the best option is to persuade the employee to resign from service. If none of the above is possible, then you need to consult experts who can guide you, as any wrong step can have serious repercussions.

Regards,
KK

I totally agree with Gajanan. I have been through contract staffing as an HR Representative from the contractor side as well as from the principal employer. There is not much choice for the contractor. Most of the time, they just need to follow instructions and always have the fear of losing the contract.

Advice on Handling Contract Staffing Issues

My advice is ethical and realistic. I myself do not want to be unjust to anyone. Therefore, instead of termination, transfer is a better option.

Regards,
Tushar Swar

Though Gajanan's question is seemingly an assumption, it can be real as it introduces more than an ethical dimension to the issue. However, I agree with the learned member, Mr. K.K. Nair, that it is not possible to discuss issues thoroughly when the facts are limited. The suggestions of members will also be punctuated by so many 'ifs' and 'buts,' thus tending to be presumptuous.

Regards,
B. Saikumar
HR & IR Advisor

Handling Employee Theft Allegations

Stealing can be purposeful. Some employees steal for financial benefit, while others do it as a form of grievance redressal, often driven by anger or frustration, such as when they feel undervalued or not engaged at work.

Steps for Termination Due to Theft

Termination of an employee is a deliberate step and should be conducted with a proper inquiry. An inquiry committee should be constituted to examine all relevant witnesses, determine the cause of the theft, and recommend dismissal. An order for dismissal should be routed to the highest authority with relevant comments from intervening authorities. The final dismissal order should be issued by the highest authority of the organization.

In cases where the stolen item's value is high, it is recommended that a police report be lodged. The accused should be given a fair chance to defend themselves, as dismissal will have a long-term effect on their character.

Regards,
Col(R) Pritosh Deb

Employee Transfer as a Solution

In my opinion, transferring the employee to another job station would be a better solution. If the issue persists, then as an HR practitioner, you should proactively gather evidence for the second/third time.

Regards,
Kiramuddin

Summary of Actions Regarding Employee Transfer and Termination

Justified action... Merely on suspicion, an employee can be transferred to another site. This saves the customer and a good employee. Upon being transferred, the employee may become more cautious and avoid being under suspicion. It is advisable to provide the employee with some directions upon notice and obtain his signature for record-keeping before the transfer.

Theft is a crime, and if the customer involves the police, based on the outcome of the investigation, you may terminate the employee with notice.

Unjustified action... Termination based on suspicion.

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You should investigate the charges, and if they are proven, then only should you consider it an ideal situation to terminate an employee. If the accusations are not proven, it would be unethical to terminate anyone.

Regards,
Syed Jamshed Kazmi