Job Consultant Threatening Legal Action for Not Joining: What Are My Rights and Options?

Dear sir,

Please advise, recently I accepted an offer from a job consultant to join the job. Now, due to some reasons, I am not joining the job. The job consultant has threatened me and is asking me to pay 15% of the annual CTC for not joining the job. If I couldn't pay, he is telling me he will complain to the current employer's management.

Please advise on what I should do and what rights I have. Can I take any legal action against the job consultant?

Please reply with your suggestions.

M. Faiz Ahmed
Email: mohammedfaizahmed@hotmail.com

He nobody has the right to do the same. Do not worry, it's totally up to you to join that organization or not. Ask the consultant that bothers you to do the same; otherwise, I'll complain to the police.

Madhu

Yes, I agree with Gupta. The decision is yours; no one will force you to pay for that job. This is a simple issue. Don't pay anything to that idiot. Just say boldly that if he continues, you will give a complaint at your local police station. May I know the reason for not joining the job.

Hello,

Be bold and don't be afraid to tell the consultant that you have filed a case against him at the local police station. If possible, have a friend call him, pretending to be from the police for an inquiry.

Hi,

You do not need to pay the consultant any amount. If he harasses you repeatedly, you should lodge a complaint against such person at your local police station. Thereafter, the police will look into the seriousness of the matter.

Mohan Rao
Manager HR

Dear Mr. Faiz,

Did you sign any such contract with that consultant where, in case of not joining, you will have to pay compensation? If you did sign any contract, kindly read it carefully for such conditions. If you haven't signed anything of that sort, he can't compel you to agree to the same now. You are legally protected, so don't worry. [:)]

Consultant people simply threaten you. They play tricks to hold you and make you join the company. Do not bother, be happy.

All is well.

That's an easy way out for squeezing money. Can you furnish the name of the consultant on this forum so that we also become aware and avoid dealing with that consultant? This has happened to you today; it might happen to us as well. But you need not worry. They are just trying to bully you.

Regards,
Arindam

M. Faiz Ahmed,

Let me have more details... I would like to know whether (1) you accepted the offer from the company and promised to join but then did not join, or (2) whether you did not accept the offer at all.

In case of 2 - there is no pressure on you to accept any offer from any company if you are not okay with the offer. The consultant can only guide you and cannot force you.

In case of 1 - it becomes your duty to properly explain the reason for not joining the company, and if the company's HR is okay with it, it's not an issue. Again, the consultant cannot ask you for money. NO WAY you should pay. Henceforth, please take care while accepting the offer because once you accept the offer, it becomes unethical on anyone's part not to join. At most, the new company can blacklist you from future openings in their company and nothing more.

It is clear that the consultant cannot ask you for money. NO WAY you should pay.

Prash

Dear Hidaytulla Baig,

As a consultant, I can understand the pressure from the client, but everyone, including the client, needs to understand that consultants can guide people – they cannot force people to take up jobs. Also, you need to understand that what you are doing is a business, and every business has its ups and downs. If you are okay with the ups, be ready for the downs. Convincing the client is the consultant's job – why are they paid 8.33% then? Just to download CVs and send them? No consultant has the right to ask for money from the candidate. In such cases, one needs to be mature enough and scout for better candidates rather than threaten the candidate.

Nagesh,

Unfortunately, in India, most of the recruiters get into this business to make money and not because they enjoy the HR gamut of business. In fact, some recruiters are not even aware of HR fundamentals. Let us avoid making such sweeping comments for all. Some of them are qualified and true consultants, but their efforts get swept under the carpet because of unethical recruiters.

Dear Mr. Faiz,

Did you sign any such contract with that consultant where, in case of not joining, you will have to pay compensation? If you signed any contract, kindly read the same carefully for such conditions.

In case you haven't signed anything of that sort, he can't compel you to agree to the same now. You are legally protected, so don't worry. 🙂

As Khusboo mentioned, there is no rule where you have to sign a contract with the consultant. However, I need to understand from you, Faiz, whether you were employed by the consultant or the company. Why a contract with the consultant? I would like to know which consultant this is.

Prash

You are not required to pay any amount to the consultant. However, there is every likelihood that he may inform your employers, not directly, but through some other source.

I suggest that you take your HR Manager in your present company in confidence. You may also inform him that, in spite of a better offer, you are not inclined to leave your present employer because you are happy working for them.

Hi, I am a recruiter too. I have my own consultancy. What you are saying is absolutely true, Mr. Baig. Starting from the BDM of the recruitment agency to the HR of the client, a lot of efforts and man-hours are wasted just because one candidate accepts the offer and later says he is not interested.

On the other hand, don't you think this is very much common in our business? Of all the candidates who are selected, 30% will not accept the offer in the first place, and another 20% will not join the company after accepting the offer letter. Every candidate has their reasons for not joining the company. We cannot force them to do so, and we definitely cannot demand money from them. It is completely unethical.

Regarding your issue, Mr. Fiaz, Consultancy business, apart from good recruitments and a good number of clients, its reputation is also important. Next time when the consultancy people call you, tell them very clearly that you are going to lodge a complaint against them at the nearest police station and also tell them that you would raise the issue in newspapers. No matter what, DO NOT PAY THEM unless you have signed an agreement with them to do so. Next time, try to be more professional in accepting or declining an offer. It truly costs us a lot of time.

Wishing you all the best in your new company.

With regards,

AMK Raju
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HR Studio Solutions

Generally, headhunting companies or consultants charge the companies that engage them to look for people and not the other way around.

I think you need to determine if you have agreed or signed any agreement with the consultant to make payment in the event they find you employment or determine if there is any penalty payment in the event you back out from an offer made to you. If you have not agreed to such an agreement, you have nothing to worry about. In fact, I think you should go to the police and make a complaint to revoke their operating license.

However, having said the above, you should also be responsible when accepting or rejecting an offer made to you. You should not be accepting offers with the hope of using the offers as leverage for better offers.

Regards,
Mong
HR Manager for a local Bank in Malaysia

I am looking at the situation from both sides. Once a candidate accepts the offer, they should uphold their commitment to joining. If there is any difficulty in joining on the agreed date, they can ask for an extension of the joining date. Companies will not mind that. However, nowadays many candidates use the offer letter as a bargaining tool to negotiate a higher salary in their current company or elsewhere, which is not acceptable. Refusing to join outright is also not appropriate.

On the other hand, the consultant cannot ask for monetary compensation. At most, they can request the candidate to refer suitable friends for the position.

Hi Bhavan,

Yes, there are such regular cases. Even candidates at senior levels do that. All we can do is create a database of such candidates and ensure that they are not recommended for any future jobs. If any legal action can be taken, it is the company that can do that, not the consultant. However, the underlying point is that the consultant cannot ask for money.

Dear Fiaz,

You are not required to pay any amount unless you are in any bond/contract kind of deal with the organization. But do always remember that this is truly unethical on your part or on any candidate's part if he accepts the offer and then decides not to join the company, as one should be aware that it really requires a lot of effort and cost from the recruiter and the organization to get the candidate on board. I really don't know the reasons for you not joining the organization, but going forward, please think twice before you accept any offer. This really helps you avoid being in the negative part of the company's database.

Regards,
Kalyan
9908800688

Hi,

A consultant cannot take any action unless you have agreed to the conditions in writing. So, don't worry; instead, you can take action on them.

Thank you.

Faiz, if the consultant is trying to harass you, then I would advise you to ask him to send the payment details to you in writing on the Consultant Letterhead. I assure you that the moment you ask him to provide something in writing, he will stop harassing you. If he continues, then publish that recruiter's name on Citehr.com.

Dear Faiz,

I am also a job consultant. Do not pay any money to a consultant, since he is supposed to charge his fee to the company. If he works smart, inform the company regarding this, and I am sure the company will put him on a blacklist. If you encounter any problems, we have an association named ERA (Executive Recruitment Association) where you can file a complaint against him, and they will support you in this regard.

Today, no consultant can ask for any money or charge any amount to a candidate.

Dear Faiz,

If you have not signed any legal contract with the consultant, there is no need to worry. The consultant will never demand any payment in writing. At the same time, it is not a good practice to accept an offer letter and then refuse to join. For this reason, many companies have stopped providing offer letters with salary details included, as it has been found to be misused for securing a higher pay in the current company or used as a bargaining tool with other companies.

Thank you.

Dear Faiz and all users,

I think we are missing one very important point of contract law. If you read carefully, Faiz has accepted the offer. If he does not fulfill his part of the contract, he stands to commit an "anticipatory breach." It is up to the company to either lodge a claim for the breach or wait until the joining date to ensure that Faiz has actually committed a breach of contract. The company has the right to claim reasonable damages from Faiz.

It is not known whether the offer letter contains any clause for a claim of damages, such as 15% of CTC. If it does, then Faiz has no choice.

However, it is usual that when a new employee is engaged, they are given a probation period during which the services can be terminated by either side without giving any notice. In the present condition, I would join the company and exit as soon as possible after joining, taking advantage of the company's rules.

In most cases, the engagement or offer letter contains a paragraph that states that "your services will be governed by the rules in force from time to time." If the company has provided a set of applicable rules along with the offer letter, Faiz should consult these before taking any step.

My friends in the community have responded well to Mr. Faiz's problem.

Well, as per my opinion, accepting job offers from companies doesn't bind you to that company. A prospective candidate has every right to join the right company of his choice as he is the one who can think of his future more than anybody else. In this case, I would advise a candidate to study as much as possible about the companies where he is applying for jobs before accepting such offers.

As far as offer letters issued by the companies are concerned, I do not endorse the thinking that the candidates use these offer letters for either getting a hike in their present organizations or bargaining with another employer. In fact, one accepts an offer on agreed terms, and he only needs to inform the other employer that his/her offer is unacceptable as he has a better offer in hand (why would he need to show a letter to prove his point?).

Yes, it is not unusual for a certain percentage of candidates to refuse an offer at any stage before/after joining during the probation period.

Hence, a lot of homework needs to be done before selecting and recruiting the right fit.

The truth is that the majority of consultants just go through the CVs (on job portals) and call the candidates to fix appointments with the employers without making an initial assessment, not even meeting them personally.

With regards to one and all and best wishes for a happy new year!!

Debashis

Legal Actions Against Placement Consultant Threats

Talk tough to the placement consultant. His threat to you is illegal. You may lodge an FIR with the police. In case he does try to harm you in your present employment, you can file a civil suit if you have some evidence to prove that he has informed your employer. This is professional misconduct.

Whenever you apply for a job, mark "Confidential" on top of the covering letter. In the case of a resume, mark the same if it is a hard copy with your signature. If you are using email, add a sentence as the last line: "Please treat this as confidential."

Regards,
Dinesh Kumar Sinha

Legal Steps Against Placement Consultant Threats

Talk tough to the placement consultant. His threat to you is illegal. You may lodge an FIR with the police. In case he does try to harm you in your present employment, you can file a civil suit if you have some evidence to prove that he has informed your employer. This is professional misconduct.

Whenever you apply for a job, mark "Confidential" on top of the covering letter. In the case of a resume, too, mark the same if it is a hard copy with your signature. If you are using email, add a sentence as a last line: "Please treat this as confidential."

Regards,
Dinesh Kumar Sinha