The man took sick leave many times due to back pain and foot pain, but the company discovered that he had taken more than 16,000 steps on WeChat on the day he had foot pain. The company suspected that he was taking sick leave and fired him for absenteeism. The two parties went to court.
Xiao Chen is a spring coiler at a company in Jiangsu. On February 22, 2019 (Friday), he accidentally sprained his waist while working. After work that day, he immediately went to the hospital for diagnosis and treatment.
On the morning of February 25 (Monday), he applied to the company's human resources manager for leave to recuperate, informing him of his injury at work last Friday. He also took photos of the sick leave certificates issued by the two hospitals and sent them to the company, which was immediately approved by the human resources department.
From March 4th to 5th, Xiao Chen worked normally for two consecutive days. On March 6, Xiao Chen's waist discomfort recurred, and the medical diagnosis was "lumbar sprain." The doctor recommended continuing to rest, and he immediately submitted another sick leave application to the Human Resources Department.
On March 18, Xiao Chen returned to work. At noon, he complained of foot pain and asked for sick leave from the production manager. Later, he went to the hospital for treatment. He took a photo of the diagnosis certificate stating that he was diagnosed with "right foot pain" and recommended a week's rest and sent it to the production manager.
On March 25, Xiao Chen went to the hospital again for medical treatment. The doctor diagnosed him with a "calcaneal bone spur" based on the results of the X-ray and recommended three days of rest. After that, Xiao Chen applied for sick leave for many days in a row due to persistent pain in his feet.
On April 3, the company sent a dismissal notice to Xiao Chen, which listed "deliberately using sick leave as an excuse to defraud vacation and absenteeism" as one of the reasons for dismissal.
Xiao Chen, who was suddenly dismissed, decided to apply for labor arbitration.
After the trial, the arbitration committee made a ruling that the company had illegally terminated the labor contract and needed to pay Xiao Chen 118,779 yuan in compensation. The company was dissatisfied with the ruling and filed a lawsuit in court.
The company claimed that Xiao Chen made false claims about his condition from February 22 to April 3, 2019 (except March 4 and 5), and when submitting the sick leave form, he did not provide the company with the original medical records.
In order to prove that Xiao Chen’s condition was false, the company provided the court with the surveillance video of the factory gate on March 18, 2019 and Xiao Chen’s WeChat movement records on that day. The video shows: Xiao Chen ran into the factory at 7:52 that day and left the factory on foot at 11:09; WeChat exercise records show that Xiao Chen’s total number of steps at 18:55 that day was 16,949. Based on this, the company maintains that Xiao Chen’s right foot is normal and there is no fact of illness.
Xiao Chen retorted that it was untenable for the company to conclude that his condition was false simply based on WeChat Sports’ step records and monitoring footage of him running and walking.
The court of first instance held that: The Labor Contract Law gives the employer the right to terminate the labor contract if "the employee seriously violates the employer's rules and regulations", but the employer should bear the burden of proof.
Judging from the outpatient medical records provided by Xiao Chen and the diagnostic certificates that have been submitted to the company, it is true that Xiao Chen went to the hospital for low back pain, right foot pain, etc. and took a rest. Moreover, the relevant diagnosis was not only Xiao Chen’s main complaint. The hospital also performed lumbar spine scans, X-rays (bone spurs) and other examinations on Xiao Chen.
There are many factors that affect the number of steps taken by WeChat. It cannot be inferred that Xiao Chen’s right foot is normal just because he took many steps on WeChat on March 18, 2019. Nor can we conclude that Xiao Chen’s condition is false because he was running or walking in the video on that day. The company's conclusion that Xiao Chen was absent from work was obviously insufficient.
In summary, the court of first instance ruled that the company's termination of the labor contract with Xiao Chen lacked corresponding factual basis and was an illegal termination, and a compensation of 118,779 yuan should be paid.
The company was dissatisfied and appealed. The second-instance court held that the first-instance judgment established the facts clearly and applied the law correctly and should be upheld. Therefore, the appeal was dismissed and the original judgment was upheld.
Source: Suzhou Intermediate People's Court, Dahe Daily
