Dear member,
You have expressed your fear that your employer may recover the losses caused because of your mistake. However, the information provided is too inadequate. Please confirm to us your designation, the nature of your duties, details of the incident, who discovered the wrong pay-out, when it was discovered and whether any follow-up correspondence was done or action was taken to recover the unauthorised payment.
The recovery of the losses can be done as a punishment. However, before awarding the punishment, the employer must order the domestic enquiry and give you a chance to defend your case. If your misconduct is established, then only the employer can award a punishment. However, recovering the losses, the employer cannot recover a 100% amount. It has to be a small % of the total amount.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar