How Should We Handle a New Hire's Misconduct and Legal Threats from Their Lawyer Parent?

Recently, we made the mistake of hiring a culture misfit in our company. The employee joined just 10 days ago. Since certain behavioral issues have already been reported and observed, we have refrained from providing an appointment letter to him.

Objectionable Behavior

The objectionable behavior includes gossiping, asking about other employees' salary details, and instigating others to leave the organization because he believes they are underpaid. We have received 7 to 8 complaints about this individual in the last 10 days. Additionally, my team members have witnessed his rude and arrogant behavior. Furthermore, his previous company terminated him, and his relieving documents are not genuine. We acknowledge this as a significant oversight in our document verification process and take responsibility for it. It is also a valuable learning experience for us.

Legal Threats and Company Response

When we attempted to counsel him, he stated that the company could ask him to leave. Subsequently, when we made the decision to do so, his father, who is a lawyer, contacted the Head of Department (HOD) and threatened to sue the company.

In such a situation, to protect the company from a candidate who we believe is not a good fit for the organization, proper documentation of all incidents, complaints, and actions taken is crucial. It is essential to follow the company's policies and procedures regarding termination and legal matters.

Handling Legal Threats

Regarding the employee's father who is threatening legal action, it is advisable to handle the situation calmly and professionally. Engaging with the company's legal counsel to address the threats and respond appropriately is recommended. Open communication, transparency, and adherence to legal protocols will be essential in managing this challenging situation.

Documenting Misbehavior

First of all, document his misbehavior date-wise and incident-wise, with witnesses. Call him, counsel him, and warn him in writing. Take acknowledgment from the employee of the counseling and warnings. If you have proof of fake documents, just ask him to quit. A show cause notice can be issued for fake documents, and then you can terminate him without adverse remarks (since your company feels his legal talents can create problems). Call his bluff and terminate him by following due process. His lawyer father cannot do much if your due process meets the precepts of natural justice. Don't get bogged down and suffer his irrational and objectionable behavior. Also, remember this father is not the only lawyer in the country. The process of selection and verification needs a review.

Dear Aakansha, first and foremost, you deserve kudos for bringing up an actual workplace problem. Your honest admission of an anomalous selection shows humility. Rather than simply sharing articles, discussing practical workplace issues maintains the distinctive spirit of this forum.

Going by the description of the candidate you have selected, it can be deduced that the selected person is as problematic as a hot potato. The sooner you address this, the better. Additionally, he is insufferable. Coupled with his insufferableness is the presumptuousness or even cantankerousness of his father, who has tried to intimidate the HOD by throwing his weight around and making insinuations about his profession.

Anyway, Mr. Nathrao has given good suggestions. Let me add 1-2 more points. When complaints are received from individuals in other departments, ask them to provide written complaints with material evidence, if any. Secondly, initiate a domestic inquiry into the falsification of employment records. It should not be difficult to terminate him on this basis.

Learning for HR Professionals

The incident is a learning opportunity for all HR professionals. Admittedly, this is a recruitment disaster. Therefore, the question arises as to what HR professionals need to do to avoid selecting such candidates. Which questions in the job interview could have uncovered the candidate's quirks? Do we emphasize technical questions in the job interview with few or no questions on behavior? Which recruitment tests can discover a candidate's behavior that might not align with the company's culture?

Suppose HR professionals had discovered negative behavioral traits of the candidate, but he was cleared in technical rounds. In that case, how many HR professionals are empowered to decline the candidate's candidature? How many HRs get intimidated when the candidate is cleared by the "top boss" or "semi-top boss"?

Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar

Dear Aakansha,

"As is the father so is the son." Mr. Nathrao has clearly stated what should be done in this matter immediately, while Mr. Dinesh has advised on what to be done in such matters in the future. Follow their advice.

Handling Fake Documents in Recruitment

While you may have made a mistake during recruitment, there is a way out here. It is not possible to know that documents are fake until they are verified. Most companies do verification only after the candidate joins, as they don’t want the previous company to know the candidate is looking for a job. So, it is not a real problem that you have now discovered the documents were fake.

Suspend him immediately on the grounds of submitting fake documents. Conduct a domestic inquiry and terminate him. Don’t bother with behavior grounds; just this particular item stands indefensible. His lawyer father may send a legal notice or even file a legal suit. For that, you need to get a lawyer to fight. Aim to avoid a court hearing by giving a good and detailed reply. Also, your procedure must be documented, fair, and give the employee a chance to defend himself during the domestic inquiry. If it goes to court, then let your lawyer defend it. There is no option. You can’t keep such a person in the company anyway.

The Importance of Natural Justice and Employee Welfare

An employer must always show natural justice, kindness, and keep welfare in mind while dealing with employees. A happy employee is a productive employee. That is the basic way to get more productivity from employees. However, when an employee is showing his true nature by trying to destroy the company itself, there should be no hesitation in showing him the exit door promptly. In the process of showing the exit door, ensure natural justice is upheld. Here, the employee has submitted fake documents, and that itself is more than adequate to dismiss him. Take this offense into account, hold an inquiry as required in a proper fashion, and terminate. His father may be a lawyer, but that should not stop you from doing the right thing the right way by following the procedure quickly before the virus of indiscipline sets in.

Learning from Recruitment Mistakes

Mistakes in recruitment do happen; just analyze and set it right for the next hire. If the right lessons are learned, this experience will be invaluable in setting up and tightening recruitment norms. What to do with this individual employee is a matter of disciplinary actions. What is more important is to analyze how the recruitment took place. Did the company have checklists of what to check before and during the interview process? Were the educational documents examined carefully? What was the nature of the fraudulent documents submitted by the employee? Frame some questions for every potential employee and see whether the answers are indicative of fitment into company values. Several deep questions need to be asked so that recruitment mistakes are minimized. There is always a chance that the selected candidate may not be a good fit, despite all checks, but increasing the stringency of checks is good to reduce chances of errors.

Acting Decisively and Learning Lessons

At the end of it all, act decisively now in accordance with the principles of natural justice and learn the right lessons.

In the matter, our colleagues have already given their input. Sometimes our mistakes turn out to be a blessing in disguise.

You should withdraw the gate pass and restrict the entry of the person, as well as their attendance. The case is simple since you have not issued the appointment letter yet; therefore, the person cannot claim or treat themselves as your employee. The candidate and their father cannot do anything as they have no basis to be considered employees of your organization. Do not issue any official correspondence in the name of the candidate. If there is anything to communicate, do so verbally until the matter is settled. Any communication to the workmen or calling for an explanation at this juncture would harm the case.

You and your team need to verify all your documents and act sensibly to prevent further mistakes. Do not be proactive; wait and observe the actions of the person to decide your next course of action. You are in a safer zone, so remain calm and act in accordance with the law.

Thank you.

Hi, I am seeing a lot of inputs from our seniors. However, the organization also makes a mistake by allowing a person to join duty without issuing an offer letter. I don't see what ethics this is.

Having said that, you can straightaway tell him not to come the next day onwards and also advise your security to deny his entry.

If you had issued the offer before allowing him to join the company, then you need to follow documentary procedures. You should ensure that before anyone joins, they are issued offer letters with terms and conditions. This will provide you with the necessary power in your hands to terminate such profiles.

Regards, Ravichandiran

You should have provided details like whether this so-called misfit is a workman or non-workman, his designation/nature of duties, the nature of your business, and whether you are covered under the Factories Act or Shops Act to enable proper advice. As rightly observed by Prabhat and Ravishankar, you have not yet issued him an appointment letter, which is a plus point in the legal battle if it takes place. If you have also not issued an offer letter, this can be advantageous in denying the employer-employee relationship.

From the nature of the misbehaviors on his part, the person appears to be a goon-type union leader, and he must have done similar things in his past employments. Find out if possible, and document it. As Natharao has rightly observed, for the sake of a future legal battle, document all the incidents chronologically with witness signatures, etc. Involve a good labor lawyer right from this stage to create legal evidence.

Notwithstanding, if it is a fact that you have not issued any appointment/offer letter, just stop him from attending the office immediately by verbal communication. Don't get cowed down by his lawyer father's posture of threatening you, as he will have a weak defense for his deviant son. Tell him verbally upfront that the issue, if any, is between the company and his son, and he has no business to poke his nose.

Don't get into any written communication with him regarding his separation. At this stage, I am not in favor of the long-winding process of a show-cause notice, holding a domestic inquiry, etc., but after his verbal separation, produce our evidence before the court when things come to that pass. But, as I said, please have a good labor lawyer to advise you at every stage of the matter as he comes with the grips of ground realities.

We are sharing our views based on the particulars provided by the poster; it may be presumptuous. But go by the advice of the local lawyer.

Regards,
Vinayak Nagarkar
HR Consultant

Dear Ravichandiran ji, thank you for your inputs. We have issued an offer letter to that individual for your information. We have promptly taken action as recommended by Nathrao sir and Dinesh sir. Corrective and preventive measures have been implemented to prevent the recurrence of such instances. The individual has signed and accepted the code of conduct, attended induction training, during which we clearly communicated to him (both in writing and verbally) that any falsification of documents will result in strict disciplinary action, possibly leading to termination of services.

We do not issue an appointment letter until all relevant documents are submitted by the candidate. As the individual in question has not submitted all the required papers, the appointment letter has not been issued. Our legal team has also provided similar insights to those shared by the senior members of this forum. Their advice has been instrumental in understanding common practices in other industries.

Regards, Aakansha-HRD

It seems the interview was conducted without due diligence, and the selection process was not clearly aligned with the recruitment standards. Unfortunately, this resulted in a poor decision, and the institution now realizes that the individual brought into the organization is not suitable for the position.

Enquiring about salary and other matters is not a crime. Each employee's interaction with others must have had some impact. In fact, employees expressed their desires and displeasure to the newcomer and received suggestions, which surprisingly led to real issues.

The new employee engaged with the Head of Department (HOD) with questionable intentions, gaining complete knowledge of the organization's history, thereby exposing vulnerabilities.

Now, investigations reveal that the employee was not prominent with the previous employer.

Please call the employee directly into the office and conduct an interview for the suitable position with a set of questionnaires. We will ask three sets of questions:

First Set of Questions

A) Why did he leave/resign from the previous job?
B) What were the reasons for leaving the previous job?
C) What difficulties did he face in the previous job personally and with the organization's goals?

Second Set of Questions

D) What are his future plans in the new organization?
E) What special skills does he possess that the new organization can benefit from and develop?
F) What are his views on joining the new organization?

Third Set of Questions

G) What would the employee do if someone is gossiping in the workplace?
H) What action would be taken if someone provides false certificates about relief from previous employment?
I) Is it right for someone outside the organization to interfere in the workplace?

These are challenging questions, yet they are necessary to evaluate the employee and address the situation effectively. The organization's interests are more important than individual concerns.

Thank you.

Termination Clause in Offer Letters

Does your offer include terms and conditions stating that if any declarations made by the applicant are false or found to be incorrect, the services can be terminated immediately without any other reason? If so, issue the offer letter and obtain the candidate's acknowledgment that they agree to all the terms and conditions. After discovering that the previous employer's report is fake or unsatisfactory, you can terminate the candidate by citing the relevant clause in the offer of appointment. Allow the legal procedure to take its course.

Fire immediately if his previous company's relieving documents are not genuine.

Termination Considerations

If the candidate is not appointed, then the question of his termination does not arise at all. As regards the offer letter, if it has been accepted by the candidate, then his acceptance can also be terminated if the documents are found fake. Concerning the behavior of candidates, he can be immediately terminated on grounds of false behavior.

Legal Preparedness

In terms of legal suits, etc., create enough witnesses and evidence and be prepared to fight back. A strict hiring process with strong clauses is what is needed to avoid future failures.

Thanks to all senior members for their special attention to these kinds of issues and their valuable advice.

Termination Due to Non-Submission of Documents

Dear Ms. Aakansha, you must have a clause in your offer letter stating that non-submission of relevant documents at the time of joining would prevent one from joining the company. It has been around 15 days; you may issue a letter with a three-day time limit, citing that non-submission would lead to termination of employment.

Apart from this, you must mention the following things in your letter:

• The company permitted him to join on his verbal assurance to submit documents within 5 days at the time of joining.
• Repeated verbal reminders regarding the submission of documents.
• As per company policy, you can’t issue an appointment letter before submitting the required documents.

Then, after three days, you may terminate his employment for non-submission of documents. As per Schedule-I of the Model Standing Order Section 2 (b), his service is less than 3 months; in such a case, you are not liable to pay any compensation except salary till date. As per the ID Act, he has not completed 240 days of service, so his service is less than 1 year. This will limit his litigation chances.

If the employee refuses to accept the letter, you should send it (include this as well in the letter) to his residential address through registered post and post the same on the company notice board.

Regards,
Rahul

Circumstances for Employment Termination

There can be many grounds and reasons which can result in the termination of an employee, some of which are as follows:

1. Inefficiency of an employee - If the employer finds that the employee is not efficient enough and is not contributing to the growth and productivity of the business due to poor performance, then it is a strong reason for termination. Though generally, this clause is not inserted in contracts, in recent times there is a clause in the contract related to achieving a specific target in a certain time period, which if not achieved can lead to termination.

2. Disclosure of Confidential Provisions of the Company - It is the moral and legal duty of employees not to disclose any trade secret, confidential data, discussions, and policies to any third party not associated with the company, as this could lead to losses and damage to the business.

3. Breach of the employment contract - If an employee violates the terms and clauses mentioned in the contract and does not perform according to the conditions on the basis of which they were hired and posted at a particular designation, the employer can use it as a strong reason for termination.

4. Misconduct by the employee - If an employee acts outside their authority and engages in any improper behavior and misconduct that may cause loss or damage to the enterprise, the employer has the right to terminate the employment contract.

The following case discusses the termination of an employee who acted outside their authority, which can be considered misconduct: State Of Uttar Pradesh And Anr vs Kaushal Kishore Shukla 1991 SCR (1) 29, 1991 SCC (1) 691 is an example.

Thanks & Regards,
Somnath Prasad

Handling Threats and Evidence Collection

If there is a threat from an individual directly or indirectly to the company or its employees, it is essential to neutralize it. Keep all evidence within your custody, such as written complaints by other employees, false documents provided at the time of joining, any suspicious acts, or any audio or video conversations showing the individual provoking other employees to act against the company's interests or creating a hostile environment that affects employees' concentration on work. Once such evidence is collected, ask the employee to provide a justified reply to the complaints under the principle of natural justice. If their reply is unsatisfactory, you can take necessary action against them.

Understanding Human Behavior

Human behavior can vary; sometimes, individuals act out of curiosity or may pinpoint someone just for amusement to see how the other person reacts.

Addressing Legal Threats

If you are concerned about the employee's father's threat to sue the organization, remember that if your company is not in the wrong, there is no need to be afraid. Do what is right—seek advice from everyone, but make the decision yourself to do the right thing. As it is said, "Only the person who gets hurt can feel the pain," and only you can understand the gravity of the situation.

All the best with your search for the right thing to do.

Dear Aakansha,

I think you already have enough inputs. I have had such experiences of somebody threatening my colleagues to sue our company since we have strong pieces of evidence in everything we do. We encouraged them to do so. Sometimes people take undue advantage when they know you are afraid. Be bold and face the situation. If you need any further inputs on how to build evidence, do let me know. You can write to me at my email. Good day.

Regards,
Hanu B Krishna
Serial Entrepreneur

Please include the following note in your offer letter or offer letter email: "The company is responsible for conducting employee verification from the previous organization after accepting the offer letter and joining. If any credentials are found to be fake or false, your employment will be terminated immediately."

If you had mentioned this in your letter, the situation would not have been this bad.

For now, refrain from making any official communications and avoid phone calls as they may be recorded. Inform the individual that since fake documents were provided, a complaint is being filed with the police station, and the offer letter is being canceled.

Don't wait until he files a lawsuit against the company; issue a show cause notice regarding the 10 complaints received from others.

Handling Employee Misconduct: A Step-by-Step Guide

Yes, whatever you are told here, take proofs of his behavior. Issue a show-cause notice for all his impolite behavior with examples. Then, a closing sentence should be like this: "Why has disciplinary action not been taken against you for all the above non-syncing public company behavior?"

Give him a week's time and issue two notices explaining why he shouldn't be removed from service. Take his answer, whatever it might be. Then issue a removal letter stating that his misbehavior has truly violated the company norms of employees' disciplinary rules.

Please don't drag on the issue for months. Advocates, legal threats—never fear. According to labor laws, the employer has every right to remove any employee at any time, showing reasonable cause of action. Any legal laws support good Samaritan behavior in persons in any field. Law is very tough on mischievous people, even in any firm.

Regards, Gannahope, Nellore

With the appointment or offer letter, you should include a statement mentioning that, "If any fraudulent documents are found, your service will not be entertained by the company and will be terminated with no prior notice."

Most companies conduct background checks on candidates. If an associate has joined a week before, ensure that you collect and record the documents showing whether the associate has presented fake documents from a previous employer. Keeping accurate records can help in legal matters as well.

Termination of employees for submission of fake documents is a standard clause written into all employment/offer letters, and in most cases, it is even listed in the job application form (at least here in Malaysia, all companies have it as a standard practice). So you should be safe from harm if you can furnish proof of the fake documentation. Besides, that also reflects poorly on the person submitting the fake documentation.