Wrongful termination is one the most common types of employment dispute. Every year thousands of employees are subjected to wrongful termination, but are completely unaware of the correct legal course against it. Before considering about taking an action against the employer, you need to establish whether the termination was wrongful or not.

Wrongful termination is difficult to prove, because most states have an “at will” policy when it comes to employment. Under this policy, either the employee or the employer may terminate employment at any time without consequence. However, there are illegal reasons to terminate an employee. Winning a wrongful termination suit requires that you produce sufficient facts that you were terminated illegally.

If you are considering suing your employer for wrongful termination, you should first consult an employment attorney. Below are a few steps towards filing a successful claim:

Determine whether you are an at-will employee;

Review your employment contract, which should give your insight on what type of employee you are, for what reasons you may fired, and the steps you need to take to file a complaint;

File a complaint with your human resources department; and

If your filed complaint does not turn out in your favour, speak with your attorney who, if need be, will be able to push forward with your claim.

What can you do?

Start by approaching the human resource department of your company. It will be in a position to explain where you stand legally and will help resolve the issue. You can also lodge a formal complaint directly with the department and should give it adequate time to evaluate your situation and suggest a solution. If you are not satisfied with the response, you can file a court case.
In case of a violation of your contract, you can file a case in a civil court. Cases of mental harassment can be filed in the civil court as well as a criminal court, if you add the charge of criminal intimidation. Consult a lawyer to see if your case can be settled through arbitration or by a labour tribunal as this is easier and more cost-efficient.

If you decide to take the matter to court, ensure that you prepare yourself well for it. Maintain a record of all the incidents that you think were wrong or in violation of your rights. If possible, note down the date and time as well. This will be immensely useful to your lawyer, who will be able to ascertain if you have a case at all. You can use this information even while discussing the matter with the HR team.

Looking toward the future, practice answering interview questions about the termination, and gather references from contacts to bolster your candidacy for jobs. Don’t let this reversal stand in the way of your success.

The post How to Sue an Employer for Wrongful Termination ? first appeared on Rightsofemployees.com.

Relatively unknown to many zero FIR is a step was taken in the right direction by the government, where it went out of the box to make the laws of the country more flexible and convenient to the people

What is zero FIR?

Zero FIR, in simple terms, means that an FIR can be filed in any police station, irrespective of the jurisdictional limitations and location of the incident.

This is transferred later on to the police station to which the location of the incident is allotted to. So the investigational duties will be handled by the police station to which the case is allotted to.

The respective police station takes in the FIR and marks it as a zero FIR by giving it serial number zero and immediately transfer the documents over to the concerned jurisdiction.

This has somewhat reduced the need for people to travel to the respective jurisdiction back and forth to file a case.

Zero FIR was introduced after the recommendation from the Varma Chatterjee report and led to the amendment of the new criminal law act in 2013.

How did it work?

Before its introduction, the police refused to handle or file cases outside their jurisdiction. This made it uncomfortable for many.

After the introduction of this FIR scheme, the central government has also recommended the state governments to make appropriate changes in their local law’s that they can fully accommodate zero FIR.

This was primarily introduced to reduce the delay in solving/fighting a crime and avoid wasting time which may lead to the offenders fleeing their locations before the law reaches out to them.

Failure by the police officer to file zero FIR will make him, eligible for imprisonment under section 166A. The imprisonment time can range from 6 months to 2 years, depending upon the level of complexity/severity of the committed incident.

How this concept works:

• A crime/offense is committed in a known jurisdiction.
• The victim or his representatives file a case in any jurisdiction that they want.
• After Filing the FIR, the station which makes the FIR transfers it over to the police station under which the crime has been committed.
• Responsibility is fully transferred to the second police station and they start to investigate the case. There may be a situation in which the initial investigation might be carried out by the others if there is any difficulty in transferring the case.

The acceptance of Zero FIR by police stations

The police officer may actually try to divert you to the jurisdiction of the incident, but by law, he is fully capable of accepting the FIR and if he refuses to accept the FIR he will have to face strict actions.

Sometimes the officer may refuse to file an FIR on the ground of suspicion or on the grounds of the case credibility, this is also not permitted by law as it states that an FRI should be filed no matter what.

Similarly, if the person who is trying to file the case is guilty on the same grounds if he raises false claims in the FIR.

With the increasing incidents of Rape, murder and other incidents, it is very necessary for the authorities to take quick and effective action to find out and catch the offenders. This will also help in giving less time for the offenders to destroy any potential evidence which they might do.

A zero FIR helps the police to make swift and immediate action regardless of the jurisdiction.

The impact.

• With the rapid increase in crime rate especially rapes and murder attempts on women, this practice enables them to file cases in any jurisdiction. This is helpful for women who are traveling as they can get to the place where they feel safe rather than trying to look for the nearest police station.
• It has also helped in easing rail passengers, now they can file a case in the very nearest police station without traveling back to the place of the incident.
• It gives an upper hand to the authorities as they can rush to the area of the crime and get eyewitness information as well as evidence.

Like any other rule, this one also has a bad side, now even if the case is transferred to the police station under the jurisdiction, the authorities will act lazy if the offender has influenced them in any manner.

Another disadvantage would be the outcome of the preliminary investigation. This is fundamental to a case and if this is done with regard to the so-called, victim alone, the case will most probably end up being one-sided and biased.

Although this can be avoided to an extent by continuing with the case and a good investigation team, the preliminary investigation still has a great influence on the overall outcome of the offense committed.

Conclusion.

Overall, the concept of Zero FIR and its implementation by the government is a great sign to the country in general. This is helped with crime fighting and empowered women to take the right action against offenders.

It was also implemented in a good manner by the local authorities. But for the law to be more successful, it should be brought to the eyes of the general public, even in 2018 many don’t know what this concept is all about. Legal awareness campaigns can be a great way of letting people know about the new rule.

A suggestion to the rule would be to provide a state wise or district wise committee to assist the police station in finding the credibility of the cases and also to help the victims, get their justice quicker.

Such a committee would also help the respective police station to transfer the cases quicker.

With the advent of some of the most brutal rape cases to date, this law is still not enough to fight of crimes in India. Along with the law for initial investigations, the punishment for such criminal offenses should be stiffened so that attacks on young children and women will reduce.

The post What is Zero Fir first appeared on Rightsofemployees.com.

Knowing the times that we are in, we give you, yet again, an overview of some important legal rights for women that every one must be aware of.

Free legal aid

Exercise your right to free legal aid. Often, women go to the police station unaccompanied by a lawyer to get their statement recorded, and they stand the risk of being misquoted or their statement being tampered with. The police may also treat the entire episode lightly and not lodge an FIR. So, it is necessary to have a lawyer with you while you lodge the FIR. “According to a Delhi High Court ruling, whenever a rape is reported, the SHO has to bring this to the notice of the Delhi Legal Services Authority. The legal body then arranges for a lawyer for the victim,” says Saumya Bhaumik, women rights lawyer.

Right to privacy while recording statement

Under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code, a woman who has been raped can record her statement before the district magistrate when the case is under trial, and no one else needs to be present. Alternatively, she can record the statement with only one police officer and woman constable in a convenient place that is not crowded and does not provide any possibility of the statement being overheard by a fourth person. The cops have to, by law, upkeep the woman’s right to privacy. It’s important for the person to feel comfortable and not be under any kind of stress while narrating the incident.

Time doesn’t matter

The police cannot refuse to register an FIR even if a considerable period of time has elapsed since the incident of rape or molestation took place. If the police tells you that they can’t lodge your FIR since you didn’t report it earlier, do not concede. “Rape is a horrifying incident for any woman, so it’s natural for her to go into shock and not want to report it immediately. She may also fear for her safety and the reputation and dignity of her family. For this reason, the Supreme Court has ruled that the police must register an FIR even if there has been a gap between the report and the occurrence of the incident,” says Tariq Abeed, advocate, Supreme Court.

Email to the rescue

According to the guidelines issued by the Delhi Police, a woman has the privilege of lodging a complaint via email or registered post. If, for some reason, a woman can’t go to the police station, she can send a written complaint through an email or registered post addressed to a senior police officer of the level of Deputy Commissioner or Commissioner of Police. The officer then directs the SHO of the police station, of the area where the incident occurred, to conduct proper verification of the complainant and lodge an FIR. The police can then come over to the residence of the victim to take her statement.

Cops can’t say no

Arape victim can register her police complaint from any police station under the Zero FIR ruling by Supreme Court. “Sometimes, the police station under which the incident occurs refuses to register the victim’s complaint in order to keep clear of responsibility, and tries sending the victim to another police station. In such cases, she has the right to lodge an FIR at any police station in the city under the Zero FIR ruling. The senior officer will then direct the SHO of the concerned police station to lodge the FIR,” says Abeed. This is a Supreme Court ruling that not many women are aware of, so don’t let the SHO of a police station send you away saying it “doesn’t come under his area”.

No arrests after sunset

According to a Supreme Court ruling, a woman cannot be arrested after sunset and before sunrise. There are many cases of women being harassed by the police at wee hours, but all this can be avoided if you exercise the right of being present in the police station only during daytime. “Even if there is a woman constable accompanying the officers, the police can’t arrest a woman at night. In case the woman has committed a serious crime, the police has to get it in writing from the magistrate explaining why the arrest is necessary during the night,” says Bhaumik.

You can’t be called to the police station

Women cannot be called to the police station for interrogation under Section 160 of the Criminal Procedure Code. This law provides Indian women the right of not being physically present at the police station for interrogation. “The police can interrogate a woman at her residence in the presence of a woman constable and family members or friends,” says Abeed. So, the next time you’re called to the police station for queries or interrogation when you have faced any kind of harassment, quote this guideline of the Supreme Court to exercise your right and remind the cops about it.

Protect your identity

Under no circumstances can the identity of a rape victim be revealed. Neither the police nor media can make known the name of the victim in public. Section 228-A of the Indian Penal Code makes the disclosure of a victim’s identity a punishable offense. Printing or publishing the name or any matter which may make known the identity of a woman against whom an offense has been committed is punishable. This is done to prevent social victimisation or ostracism of the victim of a sexual offense. Even while a judgment is in progress at the high court or a lower court, the name of the victim is not indicated, she is only described as ‘victim’ in the judgment.

The doctor can’t decide

Acase of rape can’t be dismissed even if the doctor says rape had not taken place. A victim of rape needs to be medically examined as per Section 164 A of the Criminal Procedure Code, and only the report can act as proof. “A woman has the right to have a copy of the medical report from the doctor. Rape is crime and not a medical condition. It is a legal term and not a diagnosis to be made by the medical officer treating the victim. The only statement that can be made by the medical officer is that there is evidence of recent sexual activity. Whether the rape has occurred or not is a legal conclusion and the doctor can’t decide on this,” explains Bhaumik.

Employers must protect

It is the duty of every employer to create a Sexual Harassment Complaints Committee within the organisation for redressal of such complaints. According to a guideline issued by the Supreme Court, it is mandatory for all firms, public and private, to set up these committees to resolve matters of sexual harassment. It is also necessary that the committee be headed by a woman and comprise 50% women as members. Also, one of the members should be from a women’s welfare group.

first woman lawyer in supreme court

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