You have posted that:
---“I work for an IT company in Chennai for a senior role.”
What is your designation and nature of duties?
Has the company issued offer letter and appointment letter (both) and has your role been defined and explained in these?
Is your service confirmed in writing or are yo under probation period?
Has the company stated that in appointment letter that service conditions shall be governed by ……………………..HR policy, Service rules and regulations……………………..and do you have copy of such rules and regulations?
Your lawyer may ask you a set of structured questions and can opine that you shall be covered as ‘Employee’ as in Tamilnadu Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, and as ‘Workman’ as in ID Act or not?
Designation alone does not decide employee shall be covered or not.
If you are not covered by such enactments then your service conditions may be governed by as inserted in appointment letter, standing orders applicable to the establishment {Certified (CSO) or Model standing orders}. Standing orders being instrument of law/statue shall prevail upon any private agreement that employer has signed with employee e.g. appointment letter, contract of employment etc……………..
If the Govt. of Tamilnadu has not granted exemption from standing orders and your company did not submit draft standing orders for certification then Model Standing Orders shall apply.
Notice Period as per Model Standing Orders is NIL in probation period and max. 1 month after confirmation.
If standing orders are not applicable to you then service conditions shall be governed by service conditions inserted in appointment letter and your company shall claim that:
---service conditions as stated in HR policy etc referred in appointment letter shall apply.
---the relationship between you and employer is that of Master-servant is Specific Relief Act shall apply and contract of personal service can’t be enforced in court of law.
---jurisdiction of courts is as inserted in appointment letter.
IT/ITeS employees as per various publications and even threads at LCI are ill informed, un-organized and hence prone to exploitation, harassment.
Trade Unions are more than willing to embrace employees of IT/ITeS sector.
>>> Are you aware that:
--- Employer personally can be held responsible for faithful observance of standing orders?
---Employee’s can form ‘Work’s Committee’ and such committee is an authority as in ID Act?
---Employer’s in states like AP formed their associations and decided that notice period of all employee’s shall be increased to 3 months and notice pay in lieu of notice period shall not be accepted!......................................And such conditions shall be inserted in appointment letters!
While it may not be permissible as per various enactments applicable to the establishments it might be being implemented with full force as Employer’s are united while the employee’s are not!
--- Trade Unions are willing to embrace the employees from your sector.
---The IT/ITeS companies are covered by (Name of the State) Shops and Commercial Establishments Act. This Act was enacted to govern the service conditions of employees working in establishments covered by it.
The notice period/pay is one of the service conditions stipulated in this Act.
Notice period depends upon length of the service as per this Act and is not more than 1 month. As pointed out by another employee in another thread the Chief Inspector decided that notice period as stated in this Act i.e. 1 month shall prevail even if employer has inserted more than 1 month in appointment letter.
---The IT employees in Karnataka persuaded and blanket exemption granted from standing orders was withdrawn.
---IN Kerala the state Govt. has notified Minimum Wages for IT sector and has brought all commercial establishments covered by Kerala ( IT companies are covered) under the purview of standing orders.
>>> You have posted that:
---“I have signed an agreement/doc during the joining time. “
What is this agreement?
The company has created it in lieu of what?
You have signed it in lieu of what………………………extra ordinary favor by the company say some certified course of training?
Do you have copy of this agreement?
Has the company inserted clauses on Non Compete, Non disclosure, Trade Secrets, Non Solicitation etc in it? Have you shown it to your lawyer?
Your lawyer may opine that if no such extra ordinary favor was granted the contract may be unconscionable, unreasonable, void…………………
---Are you a member of some employee’s, IT/ITeS employee’s unions, trade unions?
Traditionally unions have been strong in Kerala.
>>> The company may issue communications by phone, letters, notice, legal notice and demand notice pay, liquidated damages stated in agreement signed by you.
Approach a lawyer/law firm well versed in Labor laws/service matters, and provisions of Indian Contract Act.
