Absconding Employee with company collections

anuradhagrewal
Dear All
Please advice if the company can file a police complaint against an employee who has absconded with the company money.
Here are certain other facts to the matter:
1)The absconding employee's salary for preceding month has not been paid.
2) The absconding employee's has joined a competitor company.
3)The company has sent him a formal show cause notice explaining why he should not be terminated for dereliction of duty, uninformed absence and non deposit of company collection money.
4)No response has been received till date and it has been almost 7 working days since the dispatch of the Registered AD letter and hence as of now the employee has not yet been terminated.
If the amount due can be recovered from his salary then are we still on the right to file a police complaint of theft and cheating.
Plz guide.
Rgds
Anuradha
nathrao
Non deposit of company money is a serious offence.
What were the duties of the employee?
For how long was money of company not deposited to the bank a/c of the company?
Has the company kept any security deposit/fidelity bond since he was handling cash?
First work out how much money was to be deposited and quantify the amount .
The police while accepting the complaint is going to ask for proof that employee was holding ---- of company funds/collections.
Conduct an inquiry(exparte if required) to determine amounts held with employee and for termination of service due to theft and absconding from duty.Send copy of notice of enquiry to his registered address by Speed post and also by SMS on declared mobile number so that employee cannot claim lack of knowledge of enquiry.
anuradhagrewal
Thanks Nathrao
I am very interested to know more about Fidelity Bond.
Have you done it in your organisation.
If so please share some details
Thanks
nathrao
Employees dealing with cash collection/handling can be covered by an insurance policy.
I had taken fidelity insurance on the manager of my housing society who used to collect monthly Charges from all owners for monthly society charges.
The company will lay down certain conditions on which they issue Fidelity bond.
It is worth taking such bonds.
Venkata Vamsi Krishna Patnaik
Fidelity Insurance policy/bonds can cover the employer from such absconding cases or irrecoverable amounts.
This is only an assurance for the employer's money.
Employer's liability of checking the employee's background comes into picture in these kinds of situations.
It is better to take employees after due verification and having thorough checks,beyond taking a Fidelity policy.
anuradhagrewal
Thanks for your inputs.
However I am still having a query that if the money can be recovered from the salary or other employee dues besides EPF then too can the company lodge a FIR.
The management is concerned that if such theft happens and all the company does is recovery from the absconding person it may start a nefarious practice among other employees.
As for background check we do a through background check and in the case in question the employee was with the company for the last 2 years without any negative feedback or report.
Please suggest the next best course of action as the accused employee has also declined to accept the show cause notice sent to him by speed post.
nathrao
"However I am still having a query that if the money can be recovered from the salary or other employee dues besides EPF then too can the company lodge a FIR."
Answer is YES.
Theft is theft once proved.
FIR can be lodged.
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