Worried About Legal Action After Leaving an IT Job Without Notice? Let's Discuss Your Options

Hi, Once I had joined an IT company. There, I was given very unpleasant work to do. The notice period was 2 months, also in the probation period. I left the company after just 1 month without informing anybody. I wrote an email to the HR after leaving. This incident occurred a year ago. The company did not provide me with Form 16 for that one-month period because I had not cleared the notice amount.

What might happen now? Can the company take legal action against me? If so, what would be the outcome? I have heard of many absconding cases... do companies take action against them? Is there a rule that allows a company to recover the notice amount from the employee by pursuing legal actions?

Please help.

I am not sure about what applies in your case, but Form 16 is the employer's liability, and companies are fined heavily if an employee's Form 16 is not issued on time.

Hi, Thanks for the reply. The company has sent me a letter to clear the notice amount dues. Otherwise, it will take legal action against me. Please note that the HR denied giving me Form 16 (for the one month served) because I hadn't cleared the notice amount dues. Please let me know what the result would be.

Hi ranjan_mx,

Usually, offers made by companies cite the probation period as a zero-liability period, where either the company or the employee can leave without notice due to not meeting the other's expectations (e.g., company can terminate due to lack of expertise or inability to fulfill job requirements). Check the offer letter for any mention of this clause.

If you left without informing anyone, it is assumed you do not have a relieving letter, and as a result, you will not receive the Form 16 or a relieving letter because you did not complete your notice period.

While I am not a legal expert, I do know that companies typically do not take action in such cases and would likely refuse to issue your Form 16 and relieving letter. However, legal actions may be pursued by the employer in such instances. I recommend continuing this discussion in the "Legal" category on CiteHR for expert advice.

That's all from me. I will not be able to provide any further inputs, whether valuable or not.

PL&E