3 months notiice period issue

Have you got an employment offer from elsewhere? Do you want to resign now?  Are you with a Government organisation? What are the liabilities of the employer if he retrenches you from job? Was it also one month earlier and three months now? The employer cannot arbitrarily change the terms of employment?

If you leave without 3 months' notice, what hold the employer has got on you? It is now less than 2 years since you joined. You would not have accumulated much of any service benefits.

Any agreement can be amended by mutual consent. If there was a term for your resigning there may be a similar term allowing the employer to retrench you from employment. Hence if you protest now the employer can turn you away from service according to his terms in the agreement. You can  then be without an employment.

Generally if you give notice of resignation payment of your salary and other dues will be stopped frothwith. If you leave without being relieved, the withheld salary may never be paid to you.

The only strategy available to you is to quit without notice if you get another employment forgoing any arrears due from your employer.

The best solution without any altercation and dispute I serve notice period of 3 months.

Or prepare well and organize your defense in case of confrontation.

Employee should resolve the matters in his favor and apply exceptional levels of rapport, goodwill, persuasion, persistence, negotiation, reasoning skills, and must not hesitate to approach good offices of appointing authority, MD, Chairman, and Company Secretary and should not limit to HR, line management.

2^nd alternative it is felt is that you should firm up everything in writing with your next employer before leaving current job and joining next company.

You may write to new employer even if by email and mention that your current employer is unwilling to issue acknowledgment/acceptance of both notice of resignation/resignation, handing over of charge, acknowledgment of company property, acknowledged copy of exit form, last salary slip, FNF statement, Form16, work experience/service certificate, relieving letter and hence you can submit these and can provide only the copy of notice of resignation/final resignation letter sent by you , proof of its dispatch by redg. post and next employer should confirm in writing that it can employ you on the strength of these documents only. And if next employer wants it may dispatch another copy of your final resignation from its office. You may add that you have stated in your notice of resignation that company may adjust/deduct the notice pay.

The next employer may appoint you and ask you to sign affidavit/indemnity that you are not employed elsewhere.

If the past employer is adamant it may still write to your next employer that you have not been relieved and you would need to convince them that you have resigned and past employer is unwilling to subscribe to its own contractual obligations.

The registration certificate of the current company should be displayed near entrance. You may check and confirm if your company is industrial or commercial establishment and accordingly look into enactments applicable to your company.

The notice period is part of service conditions. The service conditions are governed by standing orders of the company appointment letter. The notice period in standing orders shall supersede notice period in appointment letter. Thus if notice period in standing orders is 1 month it should prevail.

The employer should display standing orders near entry/gate on notice board and provide certified copy of standing orders to employee against nominal charges say Rs.10/.

Company which has kept other policies on HR portal might have/must keep standing orders also on HR portal. Or you may submit a request in writing under acknowledgment with a copy to you for standing orders.

If IESO Act is applicable to your establishment and standing orders have been extended to your designation you may look into these. If certified standing orders have not been framed model standing orders shall apply.

If your company is covered under SE Act you may look into SE Act applicable to your state. Model standing Orders/IESO Act/SE Act may be available at Dept. of Labor web site of your state.

e.g. SE Act Delhi: 30.  NOTICE OF DISMISSAL, 33.  RECORDS, 34.  EMPLOYER TO FURNISH LETTERS OF APPOINTMENT TO EMPLOYEES,

Model Standing Orders; 13.        Termination of employment, 16.       Certificate on termination of service.-, 17.    Liability of 17[employer

The change in service conditions should be supplied to employee and should be accepted in writing. The employee may take a stand that change in service conditions is not supplied/ circulated to him and have not been accepted by him.

While the company might be counting and banking on some statement in appointment letter issued to you reading as” terms and conditions communicated by company from time to time shall be applicable and acceptable” and hence the email or a new policy kept on HR portal.

It shall be good if employee declines to accept the new condition in writing under acknowledgment with a copy to employee.

Relieving letter is issued post all settlements and confirms nothing is due against employee.

In case of separation initiated by employee, the employee should handover the charge and company property under acknowledgment.

You have posted that:

“The offer letter which they gave me has 1 months notice period mentioned.”

Offer letter is issued after selection and is valid up to a specific date of joining.

Upon joining appointment letter narrating the detailed terms and conditions of employment is issued which is signed by both employer and employee towards acceptance.

Has this company issued you offer letter only or appointment letter also?

If no appointment letter is issued have you submitted a representation in writing under acknowledgment to appointing authority till date? Company may claim that appointment was accepted without order of appointment an employee has been drawing salary.

“However later in Apr 2012, they implemented a new notice period policy and that too without taking employees in confidence.”

What exactly you mean by without taking employees in confidence?

Did the company circulate new policy by a circular or by email or by letter?

Company would take a stand that it has placed the new policy in the knowledge domain of the employees by putting it on HR portal which can be accessed by all employees.

Did any employee decline to accept the new policy/service condition in writing? Company may claim that no communication by employee is deemed acceptance.

You may carefully look into the language in the circular/email/new policy/ appointment letter, and show these to a competent and experienced labor consultant/service lawyer and give inputs in person. You may also consult elders in the family.

--“ I would have never joined this company if they had told me 3 months notice period.”

You could have declined to accept the new policy in writing.

Are you still a trainee/probationer or your services have been confirmed in service in writing? The new policy is made applicable to employees in training/probation or confirmed employees also?

3 months notice period during probation period may be termed unreasonable. 

--“ I am ready to pay salary of next 2 months,”

Have you mentioned in your notice of resignation that the notice pay towards shortfall in period may be adjusted in FNF statement/or the amount may be informed to you in writing so that you can tender the same by cheque favoring the company and competent employee of the company shall have to issue proper receipt under original seal and signature by hand on the spot?

Even if you don’t write company shall encash paid leave and adjust notice pay in FNF statement.

If your next employer is buying out the notice period and you tender notice pay in cash/by cheque/DD you shall be subjected to double taxation. It shall be better to have notice pay adjusted in FNF statement and obtain correct FNF statement and Form 16 as per correct FNF statement.

 --“ but my current employer forcing me to serve 3 months or leave without the reliving letter.”

Do you have it on record in writing and do you have any witness that you are being forced?

Employee should record such transactions {audio/visual. Mobile is useful.} and keep evidence/witness.

 If company has not issued any communication in writing then have you submitted any representation to good offices of your appointing authority, MD, Chairman, Company Secretary, seeking relief and narrating that on dated…….Mr/Ms……designation….dept…..address….has coerced/forced you in office premises by stating that you serve notice period of 3 months or relieving letter shall not be issued even if you comply to company norms by agreeing to tender notice pay for the shortfall in notice period if any.

--“What does Indian labor law says about length of the notice period; is 3 months justified according to it.”

Company would claim it is contractual obligation. You need to prove it is not.

The contract of employment is within Indian Contract Act.

You may put everything which is bothering you/is your grievance/bone of contention on record in writing and seek relief from internal mechanism and good offices of the company {avoid your parlances with HR/Line management}.

You may fine tune your representations as suitable to you.

Valuable advice of learned experts/members is sought.

thus ur new appointing company insisting you to submit relieving letter