Time-tracking Software Catches Time Theft

Update by Erin Brandt, Cofounder

When an employee is let go from their job they usually receive notice of their dismissal or severance pay. If an employee is fired because they did something wrong (such as stealing from their employer) they might not be owed severance. That was the case for Ms. Besse in Besse v Reach CPA Inc., 2023 BCCRT 27.

Background

Ms. Besse worked for Reach CPA Inc. (“Reach”) for approximately 5 months. After a few months of Ms. Besse working remotely, Reach installed a time-tracking program called TimeCamp on Ms. Besse’s work laptop. Shortly after, Reach became concerned about a few timesheet entries Ms. Besse made. Reach looked into the issue further and concluded that that Ms. Besse’s timesheets didn’t match TimeCamp’s data. Reach then dismissed Ms. Besse from her employment.

Ms. Besse started a legal claim at the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal (the “CRT”). She asked Reach to pay her additional wages she said she earned and one month of severance pay.

In response, Reach argued that Ms. Besse’s time theft justified dismissing her for just cause, and that Ms. Besse wasn’t owed additional wages or severance pay.

Reach took the matter one step further and filed a counterclaim against Ms. Besse to recover 50.76 hours of wages Reach paid to Ms. Besse that they said she didn’t earn, as well as pay Reach advanced to Ms. Besse that she hadn’t fully repaid.

Decision

The CRT found that TimeCamp likely accurately recorded Ms. Besse’s work activity, and that the TimeCamp records showed that Ms. Besse worked 50.76 less hours than she claimed on her timesheets. Accordingly, the CRT concluded that Ms. Besse engaged in time theft which led to an irreparable breakdown in her employment relationship with Reach, and that dismissal for just cause was appropriate in the circumstances. Ms. Besse was therefore not entitled to any severance pay.

Instead, Ms. Besse was ordered to pay Reach back both the 50.76 hours of wages that Reach had paid her as well as the outstanding amount she still owed from the pay advance.

Takeaway for Employees

Notably, the CRT did not criticize the employer’s use of time tracking software (the employee in this case was aware it was installed and monitored her computer behaviour). Further the CRT seems to have endorsed that time-tracking software does in fact reliably capture an employee’s work and non-work activities.

Takeaway for Employers

This case highlights the importance of gathering reliable evidence before asserting just cause and reinforces that time theft, where proven, can relieve an employer from having to pay a dismissed employee severance. Further, when faced with a wrongful dismissal claim from a disgruntled former employee, in some situations a company can both defend the claim, and pursue a claim of their own.