Facing Unfair Disciplinary Action in a Private Bank: What Legal Steps Can I Take in India?

I work in a private bank in India. I have been suspended for my negligence, which arose mostly due to my ignorance as I was still on probation when I joined this branch and was atrociously misguided by my boss. He will lose his job. However, I am afraid that the management may terminate my services as well, which I feel would be unfair. Even though there is an elaborate mechanism in India for the redressal of grievances of public sector bank employees, what legal recourse do private sector bank employees have regarding disciplinary actions that they feel are excessive and unfair?

It is very difficult to make any comment when we do not know what you actually did or didn't do. If you post the real circumstances, we can probably give a reasonable suggestion.

Like Saswata Banerjee mentioned, it's tough to guide you with actionable suggestions without more details. Especially since you work in a bank... PSB or Private Bank isn't the issue here at the moment. Did your negligence result in any financial issues or loss to the bank? If yes, then more details are a must before any member can give suggestions.

Having said this, Nathrao's suggestion asking you to 'write to your higher management explaining your circumstances & facts' will surely form a part of the solution... but the content will depend on the details.

Regards,
TS

Here, we have heard, albeit very vaguely, about your side of the story. We do not have the Management's version. Was there any cost involved, or was there any major incident that resulted in a loss of money or credibility for the bank? We can provide an honest opinion only when we have information from both sides.

You sound confident in your statement that your boss will lose his job; directly or indirectly, you are involved too. I could only imagine serious misconduct was committed by both of you.

Before the bank issues you a show cause letter, as suggested by Mr. Nathrao, you should approach your management and explain your reasons. The law will always be fair to employees, but as the seniors have mentioned, it depends on the nature of the offense committed.

Firstly, yes, I am confident the manager will lose his job as he has already been proceeded against legally. He has pleaded guilty to having perpetrated the fraud singlehandedly, without anybody's knowledge.

Yes, the bank is going to lose a large amount of money. While the manager did it in a premeditated manner, my inexperience, ignorance, and negligence were also instrumental to an extent. Because the branch was a new one and was handled entirely by first-timers (the manager being the only exception), it continued over a long period of time.

Case of Fraud

It's a case of fraud. I was hardly 10 months into my job when I was transferred to this branch. I joined my organization as a probationary officer, where the stipulated probation period comprises 24 months. The fraud is said to have continued over a period of 21 months, and I was there for the entire period. It may be noted that out of those 21 months, I was in probation for 14. I relied on the guidance of the manager (who already had experience of 6 odd years in the bank) for the discharge of my duties in the branch. During this period, the branch had been visited by auditors twice, and they had found the branch free from serious issues. But suddenly, in the earlier part of this year, a fraud involving a huge amount was unearthed. It was revealed that the branch head had perpetrated the fraud, misusing the login credentials of some officers, I being one of them. Though others escaped by saying that they had not shared their passwords (even though they had), I am in trouble as I admitted to having shared my password only under urgent situations when the branch operations would have been stalled had I not. I was charged with having broken extant rules, dereliction of duty, and working prejudicially to the employer's interest. An inquiry was ordered, and the inquiry officer found me guilty of having broken extant rules, dereliction of duty for which the fraud being perpetrated by my supervisor went unnoticed.

Explanation and Defense

I have put across my explanation and position, emphasizing the fact that due to circumstances prevalent at that point in time like manpower shortage, workload, urgency of the situation, I had to share my login credentials, which I was confident would not be misused by a senior. I also pointed out my relative inexperience, the role of the manager in misguiding me in areas where I had no prior experience. I have also pointed out other flaws that the inquiry was suffering from. For example, the management side has failed to produce any evidence relating to negligence, yet the inquiry officer has held me guilty of the same. My defense representative, who himself is an officer in the bank, told me it's natural for the inquiry officer to hold you guilty of charges as he also is a unit of the management.

Inquiry Process Concerns

It is clear that the management is not amenable to any rationalizing, reasoning, etc. It is also clear that the inquiry process, where you are supposed to get a fair hearing, in this case, turned out to be just an exercise in tokenism so that if tomorrow I approach the court of law alleging bias or unfairness, they can insist that the principles of natural justice have not been violated in this case.

Regards

It's a clear and exhaustive account of what transpired. Firstly, have you consulted any advocate—formally or informally? If not, I suggest you do so ASAP. Prima facie, it does look like you are in serious trouble; 'right' or 'wrong' isn't the issue in such cases. Since you said the manager has over 6 years of experience in this bank, he surely will try to find a scapegoat, which could be you, given that others have taken the stand that they have not shared their passwords.

Even though he may well know that he will be the most affected, such individuals, from a criminal psychology perspective, tend to pull in others with the hope that they can receive lesser punishment. I suggest waiting for other members to respond.

Regards,
TS

Bank Security and Responsibility

The banks have very strong security rules. One of those is not to share passwords, and you are responsible for all actions done under your login. You have shared that, and a massive fraud was conducted through it. You have admitted to sharing the login. So naturally, from the point of view of the bank, you are guilty and liable to termination. They can, if they wish, take legal action against you.

Seeking Advice and Next Steps

While it is always good to take the advice of an advocate (we still don't know what actually happened at the bank), I do not think you can do anything. You need to go and speak to HR and the operational head of your zone. Speak frankly and find out what your future is with the bank. If they are not interested in retaining you, resign and find another job.