How Should I Handle Salary Payment for an Employee Serving a Shortened Notice Period?

Hello All,

I have a Technical TL who submitted his resignation on paper on the 30th of April. Our salaries for the month are usually credited on the 7th of the following month. Since this employee is currently serving his notice period and is willing to work for only 15 days instead of the full 30 days (without an official policy in place), would you advise me to process his salary for the month of April 2009? If I process and pay him, there is no guarantee that he would stay for the entire 15 days required to complete the transition.

Please help me with this decision. I feel completely handicapped without established policies in place... :-(

Regards, Sherry

Hi Sherry,

I would suggest that you follow his employment contract. Secondly, his resignation should be accepted by the Department head. If the Department Head feels that his service is required more than the notice period, you have to give him in writing that his last working day would be so and so.

In terms of settlement, you can hold a part of his salary until he completely hands over and receives a clearance letter from his Department.

Saji

Hold the salary of the employee and pay him all his dues after full and final settlement. You have to take all clearance papers from the reporting head including signed copy of accepted resignation with comments. Send a formal mail to your Head – HR regarding notice period deduction (as you said there is no policy in place). Keep Head – HR's Comment in your records as what to do in future. This will help you to do the full and final settlement.

Regards

Pankaj Chandan

Yes, please hold his salary until his final settlement and pay him at the end of the notice period with the documentation if any. Don't pay him right now!

You can't relieve him unless he has completed his notice period and undergone a proper transition.

Satish

Hi,

I had a very good opportunity with Y Company, and the current company is a good one but full of false promises. I have been excellent at my work for the last six months and waiting patiently for a chance which is in the near future (1 year). Meanwhile, I got a job at Y Company.

Now, my manager is not ready to relieve me immediately. I have a notice period of one month!! I had discussions with my manager and his seniors for a week, and he stopped me from sending a resignation email for 10 days, and ultimately, I did it. Now, Y Company wants me to join ASAP.

I do not want to lose this opportunity, and at the same time, I do not want to be unprofessional to the old company. Unfortunately, I fell sick and did not attend the office, and they started suspecting that I am attending the new company. They did not even give my last month's salary, saying that it would be done in the final settlement.

My new company is ready to accept me with the resignation acceptance letter, which I already have. I am running out of money now, but I am worried about the future if I join the new company without a relieving letter. Please advise.

We also have a policy that says the notice period of one month can be bought out in the company's documents, but the manager is so adamant that he says it can only be done when the parent company agrees to it.

In case I join the other company and then return to the old company because they have not yet given me one month's salary that I worked for, am I doing something wrong?

If I join the new company, will the old company pay me for one month which I completely worked? They said that they would pay it in the final settlement. But I may not serve the entire notice period. I have already served 20 days out of 30. My salary is still pending.

In fact, there is nothing unprofessional about you joining the new company since you already know that your present company makes a lot of false promises and is now withholding your salary. Please don't waste time there and immediately join Company Y. Your resignation letter from the present company, accepting your resignation, will be beneficial for your future documentation and proof.

Your salary for the last 20 days must be of least concern to you now, as your future there is uncertain, even regarding the final settlement except for your PF contributions, if any. Don't waste time. Leave! 😃

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I have corrected the spelling and grammar errors in the text and ensured proper paragraph formatting with single line breaks between paragraphs. The original meaning and tone of the message have been preserved.

Please go through your offer letter and see the terms and conditions spelled out for separation. If it is a one-month notice period or salary in lieu thereof, you can inform your management in writing that you are willing to pay the salary for the shortfall and would like to get relieved immediately. As long as you have the letter from the company accepting your resignation, there would be no cause for worry in the future. However, it is always best to leave any organization in good taste as it is a small world, and any references made by your future employers may not fetch a good response. Meet your boss and explain to him the reasons for your absence and also give him a letter or send him an email (as you will have a copy for proof) saying that you would like to get relieved immediately and you are willing to pay for the shortfall in the notice period. You are within your rights to come out without serving the notice period as long as you are willing to pay the salary in lieu of the notice period. The employer has to settle your dues, including gratuity (within one month of your leaving) if you are eligible for the same.

All the best,

He has sent some people from the company to my home to check whether I am going to Y company all these days. My parents told them that I was ill for the last 10 days, which is the truth!! Still, they do not believe me. They are making my life a living hell.

Hi, thanks for your advice.

Now the management says that only if I serve my entire notice period, I would get my relieving letter and final settlement. I told him that I'm ready to go for a buyout, but he says that it would only happen when the parent company agrees.

He is very adamant!!

😔😔😔

What to do? I would never get such opportunities again...

Please reply ASAP!!

Hi,

If you have served part of the notice period and there is a written clause that says "one-month notice period or salary in lieu thereof," there is no way the company can stop you from leaving early. Any conditions of employment have to be fair to both parties; otherwise, they are not valid in a court of law. Despite your mentioning that you are willing to buy out, the company still insists. You can leave and join the other company. Discuss the issue with the other company and seek their approval for you to join them without a relieving letter but with an acknowledgment from your present company accepting your resignation. This suggestion is made to avoid embarrassment to the company you are joining in case your present employer sends them a letter or some form of communication stating that you have not been relieved, etc. Though it is unethical and illegal, you may not be able to stop them from making a call and talking. If they do not settle your final dues, you can file a lawsuit, which again will take years. However, if the opportunity you have been offered is good, it is worth leaving the present company, who have already proven themselves unprofessional in handling separations.

All the best