We had a female laborer who underwent an operation three years ago and was advised light duty. She has been working in our factory for the past 15 years. Following the advice, we assigned her light duty in the pantry. However, she initiated sexual relationships with a couple of our employees. Consequently, I had to terminate her employment. Now, she is harassing me by frequently visiting the factory with some local politicians, CPI union leaders, and the general secretary of our industrial area. They are even planning a protest. Please advise on how to handle this situation.
From India, Bangalore
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You showed her the door as she maintained a sexual relationship with a couple of your employees.

1. Does her involvement in a sexual relationship violate the standing order?
2. Does such an act fall under professional misconduct?
3. Did you also remove those other employees with whom she had a sexual relationship?
4. Did you conduct any domestic enquiry before terminating her service? If not, then such termination is unlawful and illegal. She can easily challenge such termination, win the case, and you will be liable to reinstate her and pay all back wages. Judging from her attitude as narrated by you, I am very sure that with the help of the union, she will raise an industrial dispute soon.

Check my blog at www.labourlawhub.com

From India, Kolkata
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nathrao
3180

Hi,

Was the higher management fully informed before the termination? Discuss the course of action with them. What the knowledgeable member mentioned is valid. If the termination procedures were not followed correctly, issues could arise, potentially leading to the reinstatement of the concerned individual.

What evidence was documented regarding the alleged sexual misconduct? Did it occur in the workplace, during working hours, or off-site? If the actions took place outside working hours and premises, her behavior might not be considered misconduct in legal terms.

Examine the situation from all perspectives, engage in dialogue with senior management, and determine the appropriate course of action.

From India, Pune
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Termination without a domestic enquiry is illegal. It is her choice with whom she can have relations. Did her relationship cause any harm to the company? If yes, can it be labeled as misconduct? If yes, was any enquiry conducted? Before you land in further complications, please settle the matter and try to seek her resignation if you do not want her to work for your organization, or take her back on the job. If the matter is escalated to authorities, your company will be in serious trouble. She may lodge a complaint of sexual harassment, though false. What will you do then? Be careful while dealing with female employees.
From India, Mumbai
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Before asking for suggestion how to tackle the situation, you could have mentioned in detail the formal adminstrative process you adopted to show her door.
From India, Delhi
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The information made available is incomplete. What do you mean by a sexual relationship? Did this alleged sexual relationship involve sexual contacts within the workplace? If so, what is the backdoor process adopted to remove her? What action have you taken against other person(s) involved?
From India, Kochi
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Dear sir,

Now, I suppose you have already terminated her without conducting any domestic inquiry. Have you issued any written termination letter? This has to be examined to see the reasons cited by you for her termination. You can seek an injunction from the labor court for restraining the dharna from being violent and for the protection of personnel and property. You can give a letter to the Police asking for protection. If she approaches the Labor Court, you can take the plea that you will justify the action by leading evidence before the court.

From India, Pune
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nathrao
3180

Dmc123,

These actions are only to save ourselves from legal action - justification. The primary point here is: did the company follow the proper procedure for termination? Was the sexual misconduct in the office or outside the office during office working hours? The company is not a judge of someone's personal morality in my mind. Her actions that led to problems in the office are the ones that matter.

Besides, in this query, the original querist is silent, and we are discussing the matter with full inputs lacking. In case the original querist does not contribute further, I think the thread should be closed.

From India, Pune
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Dear Venkibalaji,

Since your post leaves everything else happened in between the alleged misconduct described in very vague terms and the punitive termination to the readers' imagination, one has only to presume that the political and trade union support given to the issue is because of your hasty decision without following the legal formalities. If the alleged amorous affairs within the place and course of employment are true, certainly it would be a misconduct whether mentioned so in the Standing Orders or not. But, you ought to have proceeded against all involved in it and not the women employee alone. Whatever the reasons for the procedural lapses are, it is better to settle the issue amicably by negotiating for a monetary settlement.

From India, Salem
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Dear Mr. Venkybalaji03,

Though you haven't mentioned clearly how you came to know about this misconduct, inquiries should be made to establish the facts, findings, and recommend appropriate actions for punishment. One can infer this information through personal exposure to the industry and human resource practices. It appears that there are deviations from the natural justice process, and decisions seem to be rushed, leading to the complexities you have highlighted in your post.

From India, Gurgaon
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For the last 12 days, the author has been keeping silent and not responding to any queries. So far, he has received plenty of feedback but has failed to address the doubts of any of the responding members. This situation clearly suggests that he may have posted a fake or academic query to seek solutions for his academic exercise.
From India, Delhi
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