Can HR Change Resignation to Termination After Acceptance? Seeking Advice on Next Steps

Hello,

One of my friends in a top IT company in India resigned and left the organization after receiving the resignation acceptance letter from HR. He received a negative Full & Final Settlement (status is resigned in FFS) for not serving the two months' notice period because he only served one month. He paid the negative balance and requested the relieving letters. The HR issued a Termination Letter and mentioned, "Previous Employment Background Verification Status is Red, hence terminated."

However, this issue was not discussed while he was with the company; he only found out when he requested the relieving letter. Even though the FFS status is "Resignation," and he received a Resignation Acceptance Letter, HR stated it was stored as Termination in the system.

I would like to know if HR policies allow for this discrepancy and what steps to take. Are there any labor or HR policy acts to obtain the Relieving Letter instead of the Termination Letter?

Regards,
Sridhar

Few questions for you:

How long was your friend there?

Has he absconded from the services after one month's notice, without proper communication to his manager and HR?

Has he approached the employer in person to understand the gap (as they are following an automated system, there could be a typo/error)?

Does he have a copy of the no-dues clearance?

It's better to interact with the employer and resolve the issue rather than going to the labor office to avoid any further delay.

KK

This generally happens when a particular employee has a very bad rapport with the management. It's totally unethical, but to avoid such issues, we need to be very smart as to what can be done. I would say "nothing" because your friend has accepted the relieving letter and signed on the dues. But it can be solved by talking to the HR manager on moral grounds as it could affect the person's career!

Regards,
Sidharth

Hi Sridhar,

As mentioned by you, your friend's Full and Final sheet had deductions in it as he did not serve his 2-month notice period. This can only happen if the employee resigns as per the appointment letter. Once the FnF has been made, the company cannot change "resignation" to "termination". In fact, if the company terminates someone, the company has to pay the notice period amount to the employee. If your friend has a copy of the FnF, I suggest he needs to escalate it to the Head of HR citing the reasons mentioned above. Any sensible senior HR personnel would know that it is a mistake from their side and should make amends to it. In case this doesn't get resolved that way, this case is worth fighting for in the labor court. The case is very strong in favor of the terminated employee if he has an original copy of the FnF sheet. The case might take some time, but you can always get compensated with interest.

Hi Sridhar,

Praveer is right. You must talk to senior HR personnel and resolve the issue. Furthermore, you can go to civil court (Labour Court is not for you) and fight the case.

Best of luck,
Manish Gupta

Hi,

Legally termination cannot take place without formal notification and clarification. If a company has done this, your friend could go to any court and seek justice. The company would be bound to release the payments, or the promoters would be put behind bars for forgery. This ruling is from the Gujarat High Court.

Moreover, only fraud in reference checks could be negative, but it becomes null and void if the person resigns. Furthermore, no court could ask for a notice period as it would lead to forced labor, which is banned in India.

Regards,
Amit

Hi Amit, Manish Gupta, Praveer26, Sidharth,

Just had a talk with HR, and they said that they can provide an experience certificate stating the experience without mentioning the status, whether relieved or terminated. However, they can't issue a relieving letter as it shows as terminated in their system. He served 1 year and 9 months with that company.

Can he proceed directly to civil court?

Regards, Sridhar

Dear Sridhar,

Please take the experience certificate and then go to the civil court or labor court. In termination cases, all the proceedings have to be submitted, and giving an experience letter without it can result in a single hearing case.

Regards,
Amit
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