School Clerk Caught in Theft: Can Labor Law Force Reinstatement Despite Confession?

We have a clerk in our school. He has committed theft in our fee collection and has not deposited the money in the bank account. He has also provided us with an admission letter confessing to the theft. Now, he has filed a complaint under labor law to be reinstated at our school. Can the labor officer send a notice to the school, or will the education department handle this matter?

Kindly advise on the appropriate course of action.

The notice sent by the Labour Officer is not invalid. You need to defend yourself properly, so please consult a Labour Law professional and act accordingly.

What is the content of the letter from the Labour officer?

Most probably, the complainant may not have told the full truth to the Labour officer. Collate all evidence about the theft—when, how much, how it was found, and related documents like deposit slips, passbooks, fee collection records, and also his acceptance of guilt letter. The locus standi of the Labour officer arises when a complaint is received from organizations in his jurisdiction. Keep a proper reply ready, vetted, and cross-checked by a local lawyer, and reply as directed in the notice.

Legal Implications of Employment Termination in Schools

There is no mention of whether your school is a government-aided private school or otherwise. Whatever it may be, your school is an "industry," and the clerk employed therein is a "workman" under the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. As such, if any complaint regarding the employment or non-employment of any such workman is received, the Labor Officer is bound to make an inquiry into it, conduct conciliation proceedings, and bring about a settlement of the dispute or issue a certificate of failure of conciliation to the Government. In case of dismissal, the workman can directly go to the Labor Court on receipt of the certificate.

Termination Procedures

There is also no mention in your post of whether you terminated him orally or in writing. You ought to have issued a charge memo to him and obtained his reply in writing. If he has admitted the charge unconditionally, you can terminate his services by formal orders in writing. If not, you should have conducted a domestic inquiry giving him all reasonable opportunities. Based on the findings of the inquiry officer, you can terminate him.

Thank you.

The posted material is insufficient to advise anything good. You need to contact a lawyer who deals with labor cases, providing all documents pertaining to the case.