Dear members
I have a doubt on the punishment deferment. On the serious misconduct of an employee, the charge sheet issued, enquiry conducted and in the enquiry the misconducted proved. The punishment for the misconduct is dismissal from the service. In this situation if management decide to give him a chance and taken him back to duties by deferring the punishment. If he commit the similar type of misconduct in future can we award dismissal basing on the previous enquiry findings, without conducting fresh enquiry as we have deferred the earlier punishment.
Kindly clarify my doubt
GIRI
From India, Hyderabad
4I have a doubt on the punishment deferment. On the serious misconduct of an employee, the charge sheet issued, enquiry conducted and in the enquiry the misconducted proved. The punishment for the misconduct is dismissal from the service. In this situation if management decide to give him a chance and taken him back to duties by deferring the punishment. If he commit the similar type of misconduct in future can we award dismissal basing on the previous enquiry findings, without conducting fresh enquiry as we have deferred the earlier punishment.
Kindly clarify my doubt
GIRI
From India, Hyderabad
I.D. Act formed basically on the concept that workmen are the poor side and management is the stronger side and rich to use maximum resources.
To protect management and company interest, you must make your file more strong. Every thing you did with workman must be in writing only.
What I would like to mention, if you want to give one more chance to your workman....take written statement from him that he will not repeat such misconduct in future, if he found again to repeat such misconduct....management may take any action against him including termination.
But, still I am not sure. whether he will repeat such misconduct....and . he will go to Labour Office or Labour court...in that case you have to follow all the legal proceedings again up to domestic enquiries to prove his misconduct again.
Manish Bali
Head - IR/HR
From India, Delhi
To protect management and company interest, you must make your file more strong. Every thing you did with workman must be in writing only.
What I would like to mention, if you want to give one more chance to your workman....take written statement from him that he will not repeat such misconduct in future, if he found again to repeat such misconduct....management may take any action against him including termination.
But, still I am not sure. whether he will repeat such misconduct....and . he will go to Labour Office or Labour court...in that case you have to follow all the legal proceedings again up to domestic enquiries to prove his misconduct again.
Manish Bali
Head - IR/HR
From India, Delhi
Dear Manish sir,
Thank you very much
I got from your reply that If we want to take action against the worker who has repeated the same misconduct in future, we have to follow all the procedure. We can use the earlier inquiry proceedings as a support to our further inquiry. Am i right sir.
Giri
From India, Hyderabad
Thank you very much
I got from your reply that If we want to take action against the worker who has repeated the same misconduct in future, we have to follow all the procedure. We can use the earlier inquiry proceedings as a support to our further inquiry. Am i right sir.
Giri
From India, Hyderabad
Yes Dear Mr. Giri..old proceedings will give more strength to your case. Regards Manish
From India, Delhi
From India, Delhi
Giri
Upon co's., discretionary power, it retains a misconduct proved employee for one event
So the employee cannot be awarded dismissal by referring earlier allegation & by not conducting fresh enquiry for recent misconduct
From India, Chennai
Upon co's., discretionary power, it retains a misconduct proved employee for one event
So the employee cannot be awarded dismissal by referring earlier allegation & by not conducting fresh enquiry for recent misconduct
From India, Chennai
Greetings Giri,
Though the earlier misconduct was proved and the termination awarded was not executed and the employee was taken back on compassionate grounds, you will not be justified in awarding a termination for a same misconduct. You need to go through the process of domestic enquiry once again to prove the guilt. The only strong point you will have in the event you conclude that he needs to be terminated in the second enquiry is that you have given him an opportunity to mend himself on a previous occasion and that he has not reformed himself. Hence, do not go by the past enquiry and take a decision initiate a fresh enquiry, prove the guilt and then act.
Regards
From India, Madras
Though the earlier misconduct was proved and the termination awarded was not executed and the employee was taken back on compassionate grounds, you will not be justified in awarding a termination for a same misconduct. You need to go through the process of domestic enquiry once again to prove the guilt. The only strong point you will have in the event you conclude that he needs to be terminated in the second enquiry is that you have given him an opportunity to mend himself on a previous occasion and that he has not reformed himself. Hence, do not go by the past enquiry and take a decision initiate a fresh enquiry, prove the guilt and then act.
Regards
From India, Madras
I agree with Kannan. You can not simply terminate a delinquent employee for a subsequent misconduct of the same nature for which he was proceeded against formally but let-off leniently on humanitarian grounds. Every misconduct is distinctly co-terminous with the final disciplinary action taken against it. So when repeated, you have to start afresh against it - of course taking the earlier one into account for reaching a befitting decision.
From India, Salem
From India, Salem
Once the Disciplinary Authority initiated a disciplinary proceedings and inquiry in which the employee is found guilty, the Disciplinary Authority needs to bring the proceedings to a close and logical conclusion by awarding him an appropriate penalty or even by condoning his conduct with a warning not to repeat such conduct in future as the DA enjoys the discretionary power to do so but cannot allow the disciplinary proceedings to hang as a Sword of Damocles over his head as a deterrent against repetition of such conduct in future by differing the decision to impose a penalty and then passing the penalty of dismissal on his committing a misconduct again as it is violative of principles of natural justice as the findings of inquiry in respect of one misconduct cannot be used to award punishment for another misconduct.Not only this, it may also amount to procedural impropriety as the service rules or standing orders direct the DA to award penalty,enumerated in the rules to the delinquent employee on his being found guilty in the inquiry but not provide for deferring penalty.as a deterrent measure.The DA has to initiate fresh disciplinary action if the employee commits a misconduct again and can refer to the past record while imposing penalty in respect of the such misconduct..
B.Saikumar
HR & Labour Law advisor
From India, Mumbai
B.Saikumar
HR & Labour Law advisor
From India, Mumbai
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