Dear Mr.Reddy
I forgot to ask you about the location of Cognisant wherein you worked while in India. However, in Tamilnadu software companies are covered by the provisions of The Tamilnadu Shops and Establishments Act. Therefore the Payment of Gratuity Act is applicable to them according to the provisions of Section 1(3)(b) of the Payment of Gratuity Act. Persond engaged for software development would come within the definition of "employee" as defined under Sectioon 2(e) of the Payment of Gratuity Act. Therefore employees of software companies are governed by the provisions of the Payment of Gratuity Act unless the terms of gratuity offered by the software company are better than those of the Payment of Gratuity Act, in which case the terms better than the Act will prevail . In your case assuming that you had worked in Tamilnadu, you are entitled to claim gratuity from your employer if you had worked with them for five continuous years. As in on site also Cognisant is your employer, the services rendered by on site has to be reckoned for computing your length of service with Cognisant. If the length of service rendered by you at the time you leave the company, is not five complete years that is 4 years and few months, then to decide whether the balance of the months after four years would be reckoned as a year of service, the number of days you worked in the balance of months have to be at least 240 days. In case you have worked in a different State in India please write back. I will try to clarify.
V.HARIKRISHNAN
Joint Commissioner of Labour (Retired)
Government of Tamilnadu
Labour Law Consultant
Chennai
I forgot to ask you about the location of Cognisant wherein you worked while in India. However, in Tamilnadu software companies are covered by the provisions of The Tamilnadu Shops and Establishments Act. Therefore the Payment of Gratuity Act is applicable to them according to the provisions of Section 1(3)(b) of the Payment of Gratuity Act. Persond engaged for software development would come within the definition of "employee" as defined under Sectioon 2(e) of the Payment of Gratuity Act. Therefore employees of software companies are governed by the provisions of the Payment of Gratuity Act unless the terms of gratuity offered by the software company are better than those of the Payment of Gratuity Act, in which case the terms better than the Act will prevail . In your case assuming that you had worked in Tamilnadu, you are entitled to claim gratuity from your employer if you had worked with them for five continuous years. As in on site also Cognisant is your employer, the services rendered by on site has to be reckoned for computing your length of service with Cognisant. If the length of service rendered by you at the time you leave the company, is not five complete years that is 4 years and few months, then to decide whether the balance of the months after four years would be reckoned as a year of service, the number of days you worked in the balance of months have to be at least 240 days. In case you have worked in a different State in India please write back. I will try to clarify.
V.HARIKRISHNAN
Joint Commissioner of Labour (Retired)
Government of Tamilnadu
Labour Law Consultant
Chennai