Was terminated for workplace theft, need advice!

[707supra]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

Story:
Hey everyone, I worked for a healthcare facility that was owned by (to keep it confidential) "Company A", for about 2 years. THEN, just 2 months ago, the beginning of September, my facility was bought out by Company B, so Company A no longer was my employer even though I still worked in the same building. Company B essentially acquired our facility from Company A.

About 3 weeks ago, Company A called my NEW employer, Company B and told them I made illegal charges (with hardware store credit card) on one of their Hardware store accounts, which they didn't notice until AFTER I was under the new company. There was an investigation and I was terminated by my NEW employer, Company B, for credit card misuse. I work as a maintenance tech, and made purchases totaling around $1000 for personal use. I made a bad decision and paid for it by termination. It was the first time I had ever been fired from a job, yet alone in trouble, and trust me, I regret it very much. I had a great working relationship with everyone there, and was a hard worker, it just kills me throwing it away because of stupidity.

Question:
Can Company A, my old employer pursue legal action against me even though I was not employed by them at the time of the findings? And would it be worthwhile to them from a financial standpoint to make a case against me? I already told them I'd be willing to pay back the amount in full, and was already terminated by my new employer, Company B.

I haven't heard back from anyone, the Thanksgiving break might have affected that, I just want some closure and move on with my life.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[racer72]

Can Company A, my old employer pursue legal action against me even though I was not employed by them at the time of the findings?

Yes.

And would it be worthwhile to them from a financial standpoint to make a case against me?

That would be up to their attorneys. Besides restitution for the theft, you could also be liable for the legal fees too.

 

[cbg]

???? You think that they're prohibited from taking legal action from anyone who steals from them unless that person is working for them at the time they discover the theft?

Uh, that would be a no, good buddy. Whether they WILL take legal action against you is unknown, but they CAN. Just because they didn't discover it until after the new ownership had taken over does not mean they are barred from pursuing it. As to whether it would be worthwhile for them to do so (there are more reasons than financial why they might), only one opinion makes any difference - theirs.

 

[Ohiogal]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

Story:
Hey everyone, I worked for a healthcare facility that was owned by (to keep it confidential) "Company A", for about 2 years. THEN, just 2 months ago, the beginning of September, my facility was bought out by Company B, so Company A no longer was my employer even though I still worked in the same building. Company B essentially acquired our facility from Company A.

About 3 weeks ago, Company A called my NEW employer, Company B and told them I made illegal charges (with hardware store credit card) on one of their Hardware store accounts, which they didn't notice until AFTER I was under the new company. There was an investigation and I was terminated by my NEW employer, Company B, for credit card misuse. I work as a maintenance tech, and made purchases totaling around $1000 for personal use. I made a bad decision and paid for it by termination. It was the first time I had ever been fired from a job, yet alone in trouble, and trust me, I regret it very much. I had a great working relationship with everyone there, and was a hard worker, it just kills me throwing it away because of stupidity.

Question:
Can Company A, my old employer pursue legal action against me even though I was not employed by them at the time of the findings? And would it be worthwhile to them from a financial standpoint to make a case against me? I already told them I'd be willing to pay back the amount in full, and was already terminated by my new employer, Company B.

I haven't heard back from anyone, the Thanksgiving break might have affected that, I just want some closure and move on with my life.

Thanks for any advice.

You committed theft -- could be a felony. You may find yourself facing prison. Yes, Company A can pursue legal action against you. They can also file a criminal coplaint against you. You will be lucky to ever get a job in a position allowing trust if they pursue all of their legal options. You, by the way, did NOT make a bad decision. YOU chose to steal and become a thief. You are only upset because you got caught.

 

[jiggy78]

And your chances at collecting unemployment are pretty poor as well.

I wouldn't expect to hear about any legal action they may take against you overnight.

 

[707supra]

Thanks everyone for the insight so far. Like i said, i made a mistake, and will face the responsibility that comes with my actions. Just wanted to know what "could" happen next.

 

[707supra]

Also, if they were to pursue legal action, why didnt they do so during my termination? I would think they would have something to show they want restitution, etc?

 

[cbg]

Perhaps because they want to review the records and make sure you didn't steal anything else from them that they haven't found out about yet. Perhaps because they are in the process of taking the matter up with the police or prosecutor and you haven't been notified yet. Perhaps a lot of things. As I said, they may pursue it and they may not. If they do, they still have plenty of time and the fact that you've not heard anything yet does not signify that they are not planning to do anything.

 

[707supra]

So essentially a year could go by and they could come knocking on my door? Not saying it would happen like that, just saying.

 

[cbg]

Yes. Not saying it will but it could.

 

[jiggy78]

If contacted by the police saying nothing except "I will not answer any questions without my lawyer present".

 

[commentator]

No, honestly, this person does definitely need to file for unemployment benefits immediately. There's no downside to his doing so. Because even though company A can definitely press charges against this OP if they want to, company B cannot keep him from receiving benefits if they choose to fire him because there is no work related misconduct related to them. The work related misconduct occurred when he worked for another company.

Company B can say they fired him because they were told by Company A that this person stole from them while employed. Okay, he did a bad thing, but he did not do it while on the job at Company B. No work related misconduct there.

OP, file for unemployment benefits. You do not need to confess your misdeeds or express remorse. This is not about what happened when you worked for company A. Which by the way, you were transferred from Company A to another employer, you were not fired there either.

You will be asked why you are no longer working for Company B. They will ask what was said by Company B, what was the reason given that you were terminated. Simply tell the system you were terminated because the old employer called the new employer and told them they had discovered you had misused the company credit card while you were working for them.

It sometimes happened in my fraud days that a company had already laid off an employee and they were receiving unemployment insurance from that lay off and then the company discovered the former employee's fraud or theft or misconduct of some type. They'd always call and want the person cut off of unemployment benefits.

What we always told them was, "This was not the reason you originally laid off the person. You can press civil charges against them if you want to, but you cannot keep them from receiving unemployment benefits after the decision to grant benefits has already been made." (Unless, of course, they become incarcerated, at which time they'd no longer be eligible for benefits due to being unable to seek other employment.)

And if a company fires you only because they hear you did something bad while working for an earlier employer, they did not have a good work related reason to terminate you. If they also had caught you stealing and had proof of that before they fired you, you would have been fired for genuine misconduct.

It is definitely worth a shot to file for unemployment benefits. It may be a long time, even if you are not prosecuted for your misuse and fraud and theft from Company A, before you find another job.

 

[707supra]

Thanks for the informed advice, i just didnt know how the situation would pan out since i was terminated by my current employer who had nothing to do with my previous employer and my theft.

 

[You Are Guilty]

Hypothetically speaking, many employers would be less inclined (although no way to say how much less) to press criminal charges were the misappropriated funds to be repaid voluntarily. However, this is the sort of thing that is best handled by an attorney, as one could easily accidentally criminally implicate themselves were they to deal with the employer directly.

 

[707supra]

Thanks.

Although I was terminated, I offered to pay back the amount if need be, especially to avoid any legal implications, or at least lessen the punishment.