Dealing With Employee Against Whom Criminal Proceedings Have Been Initiated

Dear Colleagues,
How do we handle an employee against whom criminal and legal proceedings are initiated on the personal front? This employee is unable to reprot to work too. Do we go ahead with a termination or wait for the employee to clear his name?
Rgds,
Saumya

Until and unless it is proved you cannot take any action on Criminal case part but as far as the absenteeism is concerned you can issue a charge sheet and initiate action and if the absenteeism copntinues you can terminate also.
Regards - kamesh

However in such cases, sending a chargesheet doesnt make sense since we know the reason why the employee is unable to come to work. Moreover, if he is unavailable at home due to police proceedings, chargesheet will come back undelivered. Then what do we do?

Saumya, how long you will wait?? i think, you need to terminate him and find a replacement for him quickly..
regards,
Devi

I think you have to cross match the offence with local applicable law for you organization. as exemple if your organization is a Industry then find the guide line from applicable Industrial law/code.
thanks
Haider

Normally the certified Standing Orders (Service Rules, in case the establishment does not have Standing Orders) of the company will have provisions to deal with such situations. Mere overhearing the matter should not be ground for termination. You should have proof to establish that the employee has been convicted by court. Otherwise, you have to initiate disciplinary action against the employee for continuous absence from work. For that you should send a registered letter to him explaining that he has been absenting without approval of leave and should explain why action should not be taken against him for not reporting to work. He should be given enough time also. This is because, a registered letter may take 3 days to reach the destination Post Office from where an intimation is given to the address to collect the letter, the addressee can collect it within seven days only and till then the Post master is expected to keep it. That means 10 days and the acknowledgement will take another 3 days to make it two weeks!

If he doesnot turn up, you can send another letter which will also take another 14 days to make it one month. Even after that he does not turn up, you have to send a letter stating that his services will be terminated if not reported to duty within 7 days. That will again takes 21 days! Finally, you can treat him as absconding by the end of 2nd month.

If you do not follow the above procedure, your act of terminating the employee will be treated as unfair and illegal.

Regards,

Madhu.T.K

madhu,
in this case, the employee is in custody, so him recieving the show cause notice is out of the question. In this case, does sending a show cause make any sense?

The court will only view whether there was any procedural lapse. Therefore, even if you know that he is under police custody, in the absence of evidence and in the absence of provisions in the Standing Orders of the company, issuing letters to the absenting employee is mandatory to prove that the employer had given all opportunities to the employee to show his innocence. If no procedure is followed his termination shall be nullified on the ground that principles of natural justice have not been followed.
Regards,
Madhu.T.K

Mr. Madhu T.K.
Sir,
Pls. let me the know the following
1. Due to criminal proceedings, if an employee is suspended, then any salary to be given or not. If yes, what is the criteria.
2. Suppose, after 2-3 years, the employee is acquited from the court. Then his service should be reinstated or not. If reinstated, then his all pending salary should be given in terms of arrear or not.
Thanks
SNC

How you can suspend an employee due to criminal proceedings. as far as the organization is concerned his attendance and working, if he is not attneding duty due to criminal proceedings you have to follow the route mentioned above and terminate.
Once the employee is terminated then the employer don't have any liability. Even after that if the employer wants to take him then it is a fresh recruitment / in extraordinary he is on rolls also there is no necessity to pay on the basis of no work no pay.
Regards - kamesh