I hope you are doing well. I would like to seek your advice regarding a situation that occurred last week involving one of our female employees. The employee in question was found to have stolen a mobile phone from her friend, who reported the incident and filed a formal complaint. After conducting a thorough investigation, including reviewing security camera footage, it was evident that the employee accessed the locker room and took her friend’s phone. During the investigation, the employee admitted to the theft and requested forgiveness, citing her difficult personal circumstances. She explained that she is facing financial hardship, her husband recently lost his job, and she has a six-month-old baby. According to company policy, theft is a serious violation, and normally such an offense would result in termination. However, taking her personal situation into consideration, we decided to issue a strict written warning and decided not to terminate her employment at this time. Afterward, one of our employee council members approached me to question why we did not proceed with termination, as per company policy. I explained to her that the management had taken into account the employee's challenging circumstances and opted for a more lenient approach, hoping to give her an opportunity to correct her behavior. I would like to seek your opinion on whether we made the right decision in not strictly following the disciplinary policy and terminating the employee. While I understand the importance of adhering to company policies, I am also concerned about the potential consequences if we had terminated her employment. Given her personal struggles, there is a real concern that such an action could lead to severe emotional distress or even self-harm, which could harm the reputation of the company. In your professional judgment, do you believe we acted appropriately, or should we have been more strict in enforcing the disciplinary policy?