Is It Possible to Take Action Against My Company for Not Paying the Agreed Salary?

Dear All,

One of my friends has joined a company through a consultancy. At the time of joining, they agreed to pay 10k as gross, and the same was confirmed by the consultancy and the company had paid one month's salary, i.e., 10k, to the consultancy. However, my friend is not receiving the agreed-upon amount; they are being paid less. It has been a year since my friend started with the company. Whenever asked about the salary, they mention it will be rectified in the upcoming month, but the salary has not been revised yet. Additionally, my friend was not given an appointment letter; only an offer letter exists, which does not mention the salary.

Please suggest if any action can be taken against the company or the consultancy. If so, how should we proceed, and what requirements should we fulfill? Your valuable suggestions on this matter are greatly appreciated.

With Regards.

Dear,

It all depends on the agreement you signed. Anyway, send a detailed email narrating your plight and request them to put you on direct rolls and require transparency. If not complied with, you can then go for specialist local legal consultation.

With Regards

E-mail: rajanassociates@eth.net

I presume this as a situation where the employee is not on the company's payroll and, as such, he/she is not signing the muster rolls of the organization where he/she is working. If there is a specific understanding with the HR consultants who engaged the employee, the matter can be referred to the consultants only. However, if the company itself has issued an offer letter, then the company is responsible for paying the agreed salary. In this case, the offer letter does not mention anything about the salary.

From a legal standpoint, such offers are voidable because an offer (the basic element for any contract) should specify the consideration (in this case, the salary paid in return for the services the company receives) for which an employee is being hired. In the absence of this information, the contract becomes revocable. The company can argue that there was a verbal understanding regarding the remuneration to be paid, and the employee cannot dispute it as he should have been aware of the actual salary before joining.

Since the offer letter is silent regarding salary terms, you cannot prove in court that you were offered Rs 10,000. Even if you take legal action against the company, it may lead to a lengthy court battle without a clear outcome. Therefore, since the offer, being incomplete, does not specify the salary, you have the option to leave the organization considering the offer as revoked.

Regards,

Madhu.T.K

Dear Mr. Madhu,

Let me express this if you don't mind. First of all, the employee has to have strong proof of employment in the organization in any form, as the organization may even refuse to allow her to work with them if the employee legally proceeds. (Verbal evidence counts less than documentary evidence.)

1. Appointment order / Offer Letter / Confirmation Letter
2. Company-issued ID card / Attendance records / Time Records
3. Payslips if provided / other proof of payment from the company to the employee.

Also, please note that an "Offer Letter" does not serve as a document of employment; it's the offer made by the company towards employing the person. The next process after the offer letter is accepting it in writing, and then the company will have to provide an appointment letter on the first day of service (or within the first week). Then a confirmation letter, etc.

In this case, neither the employee is on the payroll nor issued with an appointment letter / ID card / business card, etc., nor even with payslips.

There are two options which may resolve this:
1. Taking up this issue with the current employer and the consultant.
2. Trying for some other jobs.

I doubt there will be a positive response from the consultant as they would have already been paid the consultancy charges, as it's been 1 year since the candidate has been appointed.

Please comment.

-Saravana Rajan.

Dear, you cannot prove in a court of law that you are engaged for Rs 10,000. Therefore, you cannot take any legal action against the company.

Thanks,
J.S. Malik

Hi, I would suggest that you change jobs at the earliest opportunity. Please remember that you are living in India. My friend has been fighting a cheque bouncing case for the past three years involving Rs. 73,000. Even a five-year-old child can see that my friend is in the right.

Regards,
Pinaki

Dear One year, so long; why kept quiet? If you had protested earlier, your problem would have been solved long back. Anyway, try this: Almost all the consultancies are engaged in the same money-making business. So, if your friend has the agreement copy that she signed before joining the company or consultancy, review the clauses mentioned by them. Based on that, we can fight for our rights. If you find any clauses or terms that are against your interests, we are back in this case. Refer to the agreement copy. If you do not find any drawbacks favoring your side, go ahead. Good luck! Regards, Deepu [Login to view]

My friend, how can an offer letter not have an offer? I fail to understand this. And how can your friend work without understanding his remuneration clearly? Anyways, there seems to be very little hope here as there is no proof (documented) that states the compensation offered would be to the tune of Rs. 10,000. I suggest your friend to move out from there at the earliest, and examine all these aspects carefully before taking up his/her next assignment. Good luck!

Was this a verbal agreement or a written one? Which country has this incident taken place in? In most countries, unless it is in writing, either in the contract or in an official letter, the matter cannot be taken up legally. So please make sure you have the facts, the written agreement, and the law that governs the country of employment before you waste your energy. PVQ

Dear,

Your auditable attendance register is more than sufficient to present in any court in case you have signed your presence in the Company.

All the Best

Regards,
Shirish

Hi,

1. When your friend has not paid anything to the consultant, you cannot take action against it.
2. What are the terms and conditions of the salary mentioned in the appointment letter? If the company is not providing the salary and other benefits as per the agreement, why continue with such a company for a year? Your friend should leave and search for another job. Also, if possible, could you provide his salary breakdown as per the salary slip?

Thank you.

Friends,

We all are wise enough to understand the plight of this employee. The instant case is an example of victimization in connivance with a placement agency. The placement agency can't do much in this case because they have a business, and the employee got cheated by his employer. Whether the employee is permanent, temporary, or a contractual employee is not the issue here. Because in the interview, the employer promised a certain sum as salary, then it should honor this commitment. However, the employer has simply reneged on his commitments.

This is a simple fraud case. He is exploiting the employee's inability to switch to another employment, which can be understood how difficult it is to change employment even if you are not satisfied. The employer is an opportunist and is conning a fellow. We don't have a remedy for such things if the employee does not have any proof of the salary figure on record for legal recourse.

Regards,
Sawant