Legal Question in Employment Law in Louisiana
dishonest employees
#1. an employee made a copy of my key to my towing truck without the owners permission, and will not return it. is this illegal to do? i would hope so. what would it be called? #2. this employees girlfriend (long story) works for another tow co. my employee was doing tows with my truck, my fuel and using my cell phones without my approval; what would this be called? and i assume it is illegal? #3. i owe this employee a final check, however, he backed into a new car at a dealership and didn't tell us, untill we got a fax from the dealership for a total price for damages. The driver and service writer both said that he would pay for damages. The driver claims he will pay for only the headlight and not for any other damages they are claiming. I refuse to give him his last check, and told him that he had to pay for the damages and anything left over was his? I can legally do this? he admitted fault, and failed to report it to begin with? one last question, a employee quits, turns in everything, except cash which belonged on a ticket; you owe this employee compensation and have no reason not to pay this employee, can an employee freely take money which belongs to the company to pay himself? what we owe is not even close to what he took
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: dishonest employees
Wow - you have a lot of issues. You should really talk to an attorney for a more detailed analysis, but I'll try and give you some quick advice:
1. an employee should be required to turn in all property of the employer when the employee leaves - many times, employers ask employees to sign acknowledgements that they will do so at the beginning of their employment; if the employee refuses to return the key, you may be able to have the motor "rekeyed" and charge the employee for the cost.
2. if an employee is using corporate property for his own use, that is called theft - plain and simple.
3. Louisiana's wage payment statute allows you to offset an employee's wages for damage caused by the employee, but it is very case specific. the risk you run is that by not paying the wages, you may end up incurring penalty wages and attorneys fees as well.
4. Again, if an employee took any property of the employer, including cash, this can be considered theft.
As I mentioned, you have a lot of issues going on - it would be best if you discussed these in detail with an attorney. Good luck.
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