Facing Pressure and Unethical Practices After Resignation: How Should I Handle This Situation?

Hi All,

I recently received a decent offer from a company based in my hometown. Immediately, I submitted my resignation letter the very next day after serving here for more than 15 months. As per my employment contract, I am required to serve a 30-day notice period before being relieved of my duties.

Nowhere in the appointment letter does it mention that leave balances expire when submitting a resignation letter within the notice period. However, the management is pressuring me not to resign, offering unrealistic deals and false promises to retain me.

During a discussion with my manager, he mentioned that once my current company finds out about my new employer through a background check, they may engage in unethical practices like creating obstacles that could harm me in my new position.

This has left me disturbed and unable to sleep properly at night. I have been fair and ethical to my present company, working here dedicatedly and honestly for 15 months. It is disheartening to see their true colors during my departure.

If they cause me harm, I could retaliate by informing my contacts about opportunities in the market, potentially increasing attrition rates and causing other issues. However, I am a peaceful person and do not wish to seek revenge or engage in conflict. I prefer resolving issues amicably.

I seek your advice on this matter and the optimal solution that would work best for me. Should I also disclose to my new employer the poor HR practices my current company follows, so they are aware of potential issues in the future? Would it be appropriate to share this thread with my new employer?

Regards,
Harry

Hi Harry,

Welcome to the "Dog in the Manger" corporate world. They don't live and won't allow us to live.

Don't give a reference from your company (or provide a genuine well-wisher's reference). Also, avoid back-biting. If the management is poor, the attrition rate will be high, and it will be obvious. Let them self-destruct on their own.

Generally, from my experience, leave is adjusted against the notice period (for example, if your notice period is 30 days and you give 15 days' notice, then normally, the 15 days' balance is adjusted against the Full and Final settlement or 15 days' salary - the salary for that month is not paid). Just mention to your new employers that you have followed the standard process.

When I sent my resignation notice to my employers, I used to send a copy to my personal email. In case the company threatened, I could always show my personal mail as proof and avoid any blackmail.

You are on strong ground. Sleep well, eat well, and let your ex-employers shoot themselves in the foot. Just confide in your new bosses and inform them about the situation. Once you are in the new job, it's your company's responsibility to take care of you. All the best in your new assignment.

Hi Ramesh,

I had a discussion with the manager, and he told me that he wants to know the name of my new employer. I declined to reply to this. Then, he said the main issue is that when I will join my new company, which is a good payer and has better brand value, my new employer will poach other employees from my ex-company as they will come to know about the loopholes of my ex-company and then they will leverage on that. So, they are mainly concerned about the poaching, and because of that, they are building pressure on me. It is clear that I won't inform them about my new employer. However, during background verification, they will obtain the information anyway. So, my question is, can they cause me any harm during the background check? Should I inform my new employer about the poaching situation and the whole issue so that I am at least safe?

Please help.

Hi Harry,

Don't speak badly about your company. Assure your present boss that you won't take anyone with you.

You are going to your hometown and would have gone for the same salary or a little bit higher. For others, they may have to shift, and the cost of relocating, especially if they have families - kids studying, spouse working, and aged parents - will be high.

In our previous organizations, we had a clause wherein at the exit interview, we gave an undertaking that we would not take any of our colleagues along with us for a year. This was fair for the company as good (or disgruntled) bosses tend to take their best workers with them, hampering the process in their former company.

Provide a reference from someone in any of your earlier jobs or from your hometown. Alternatively, give someone from the present company who you believe is your well-wisher and fair in his/her dealings.

Don't say anything about your employers - good or bad. Take the valuable lessons you have learned from them. Consider the negative experiences as part of your learning.

If your current employers are not good or if the management is poor, employee turnover and attrition rates will reflect that. This is how the corporate world operates, and for fresh graduates, office politics, backstabbing/betrayal, and the management's attitude can be shocking. Maintain a balanced view of your job - there will be exceptional days and challenging days. Embrace the good ones and learn from the tough ones. These experiences will help shape you into a better, more resilient worker.

Learn the job, adapt to the new environment, improve your skills, and perform well - you will have no worries. All the best.

Hello Hrpreet,

You can take up those words said by Ramesh. You don't need to discuss your new employer's name with the present company. You can also take the opportunity to inform any higher person in the grade of Head-HR in your new company and explain the situation.

Chill down, dude. Companies strive to retain employees, and you are free to choose your own path.

The Impact of Speaking Negatively About Your Employer

Speaking badly about your current or previous company will not do any good for you. On the contrary, it will harm you more and create a negative image of yourself: "If you can talk badly about your current employer, you can also talk badly about your prospective employers." Let's not talk about ethics and being fair. Ethics is about completing the period of the contract and then looking for a change. Instead, you are coming across as an opportunistic person.

No company will give you a hike just because you have been working there for some time. Increments or hikes are given on the basis of performance. Companies will keep you at the same package for years if you are not adding value to your work and completing your tasks on time. You need to share more about your work, your performance, your productivity, your attitude towards work, as well as your relationship with your seniors and peers.