Worried About a Relieving Letter Mentioning Non-Performance? Need Advice on What to Do Next

Hi, my name is Mark, and I was working as a sales engineer in a small company in India. I had signed a bond for two years from the date of joining, which now has one year left. Recently, I received an offer from another organization that pays triple the amount of my original salary.

During a meeting with my previous employer, they informed me that they were letting me go due to non-performance. They provided me with a relieving letter, stating that they had terminated my services for this reason. However, during my time at the previous company, I did not receive any support, motivation, or have a proper workplace. These conditions could potentially harm an employee's health. They obtained my signature stating that I was terminated due to non-performance.

I am unsure whether I should submit this relieving letter, which prominently mentions my non-performance and failure to meet the company's expectations, to my new employer. They have requested a joining date, and I am concerned that they may reject me based on the information in the relieving letter. I am feeling confused and would appreciate your opinions on this matter.

Thank you.

It will not be a wise move for you to present the relieving letter from your previous employer, which states that you have been terminated from service. However, by reading your case, it appears that the previous employer has deliberately terminated you from service, stating that you have not performed, after hearing from you that you wish to quit from services.

If the new employer does not insist on a relieving letter, avoid producing the relieving letter. If he insists, then in my opinion, you have no choice but to furnish the same. You may have to explain the case convincingly to your new employer, and I trust that he will appreciate your honesty, integrity, and courage to furnish such a letter.

ALL THE VERY BEST!!!

Regards,
M.V. KANNAN

Is it compulsory for the company to provide me with an experience letter? I haven't received it from them. Additionally, they have stated in the relieving letter that I should not promote products that compete with the company. Is it legal for them to exert control over me even after I have resigned?

It is very sad to hear that you are being terminated from your organization for such a reason. However, it would be significant to know whether you fell short of the organization's expectations or if you have something to explain. Do your previous employers know about the offer you received before they decided to terminate you? Was this information known to them before the offer letter, or was it related to a previous issue? What do you believe is the root cause of your shortfall – a lack of support from your company or a personal shortcoming?

Receiving such a relieving letter could indeed pose a challenge when joining a new company.

With regards,

Shivendra

Hi Shivendra, I had not been provided with enough resources from the company and did not receive proper guidance to carry out my duties. I believe I could have achieved more than what they had expected, but since it was a sole proprietorship, he was the ultimate decision-maker and never granted full control to discharge duties. Additionally, I may have been the only person who stayed for 1 year there as others were terminated after just 3 or 4 months.

If you decide to share these details with your new employer, be cautious and only provide your documents if they persist in requesting them. It would be wise to thoroughly analyze the situation, as it is in your favor that they retained you for such a long period and only found faults once you received a better offer. If there is a sole proprietor, your words may hold weight with the HR person you will be working with. Your track record of achieving targets may speak for itself, but I believe you should refrain from expressing your grievances to the new company, as it could leave a negative impression.

All the best,
Shivendra

What Shivendra has advised you is relevant to a great extent. One more thing that can be discussed with your new company regarding the offer is that your previous organization has restricted you from promoting products in the same line as that of your previous employer's. This restriction was due to their fear of facing tough competition that you might bring to them, given your successful handling of such products during your tenure with them. By mentioning this to your new employer, you indirectly refute the reason for your termination as stated by your previous employer. This is my perspective.

Good luck to you.

Regards,
RAJ

I sympathize with you, but the question I fail to understand is:
1) Did you resign after getting the new job? Or did you discuss with them about the new job? If you resigned from the job, depending upon the contract bond, they can ask you to pay the money if this was a two-sided contract—i.e., if they had sent you for some special training abroad or provided special training in India. Otherwise, this contract/bond would have no meaning. If you have resigned and in their relieving letter, they have given reasons for termination as non-performance, then you can approach the court for this. Otherwise, the best way to get out of this is to inform your new employer about the situation, be honest in your approach, and work hard to achieve the goals of your new company.

Write back to me if you have any other queries.

Regards,
Vivek

Thanks, Mr. Vivek, I had spoken with my boss regarding resignation and sent an email to him regarding the same. But he has disabled my official email ID of the company and sent a reply to my personal email stating your resignation is not required as your services have been terminated due to non-performance. Also, it is a two-sided bond; I could have paid and broken the bond, but he has not allowed. Is it compulsory for him to give me an experience letter?

If the date of receipt of your resignation letter (receipted copy) is prior to the date of your releasing letter, then you can explain to your new employer regarding the service bond of two years and inform them that they had tried to malign you since you broke the bond. This is reasonable.

But in the absence of the above condition, it may be difficult for you to explain your position.

Regards,
SC

Hi, I said I would submit my resignation letter the next day. He replied saying it's not required. So the next day, he released me from the bond.

Regards, Mark

Hi,

I had sent an email stating that I would resign, but he replied saying it's not required as my services are terminated. The next day, he gave me this letter.

Regards.

Hi, my name is Mark, and I was working as a sales engineer in a small company in India. I had signed a bond for 2 years from the date of joining, with one year remaining. Recently, I received an offer from another organization that pays three times more than my current salary.

During a meeting with my previous employer, they decided to terminate my employment due to non-performance. Although they provided me with a relieving letter, it states that they terminated my services because of non-performance. However, in my previous company, I lacked support, motivation, proper workplace conditions, and things that could impact an employee's health.

My previous employer made me sign a document stating that I was terminated due to non-performance. Can I submit this relieving letter, which explicitly mentions reasons such as failing to meet the company's expectations, to my new employer who has requested my joining date? I am uncertain whether they will reject me based on the contents of the relieving letter.

I am confused and would appreciate your opinions on this matter.

Hi, then how do I show the experience? My employer has not given me an experience letter. Is it mandatory for him to give an experience letter to me?

Dear Mr. Mark,

I have gone through all the posts on this thread and I have the following comments/suggestions:

- Do not submit or even mention the relieving/termination order you have to your new employer.

- In case the new employer is insisting on a relieving order or service certificate, simply inform them that your ex-employer is not issuing it to you since you have not fulfilled the terms of a bond.

- You can try once more with your ex-employer and get a simple two-line service certificate stating, "Mr. Mark was employed with us from (date) to (date). He was designated as (designation). We wish him all success for his future endeavors."

- It appears to me that your ex-employer is inexperienced, unprofessional, and immature in his approach. Generally, in the case of non-performance, the employee is eased out by being informed about his non-performance and the organization's inability to continue with him. He is then asked to submit resignation. Termination is used only in cases of fraud, cheating, etc.

Regards,

In my opinion, it is unimportant for you to obtain a relieving letter (since you already have a letter indicating your termination) or an experience certificate from your ex-employer. Please ensure that you consider your employment with them as concluded for a period of one year. If required to show the period of employment, you may do so, but avoid presenting the relieving letter to any future employer as it may not be beneficial for you.

You can simply explain that, being a small company, they did not have relieving formalities or issue experience certificates. Remember, an experience certificate is not mandatory.

Regards,
M.V. Kannan

I completely agree with vkokamthankar. Try to avoid producing any documents related to your past employer as he seems to be unprofessional.

Regards,
Mustufa

I somehow differ from what others are thinking. I feel that it is always better to clear up all things with the new employer because these days, with a strong HR team in place, there are very high possibilities of a background check. The candidate could be thoroughly screened right from their last job to the reporting manager.

Therefore, it is always better not to lie and come out in the open with all your problems; failing which, you might be at a loss for words when the results of the background check turn out to be different from what you had said in the interview.

All the best!

Please note my number [Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]. You can call me anytime, and I shall be happy to help you in this case. But I want to know:

1. How many years did you work in this organization?

2. Do you have a copy of the resignation letter you had sent to your boss?

3. Were you fired after the receipt of this resignation letter?

4. What kind of bond was this? If this was a bond that you would serve them for two years because they had given you the job, this kind of bond has no meaning.

5. What was your profile?

6. Did they serve you any charge sheet for non-performance? If yes, did you reply to that?

7. Do you work for an IT company?

Once I get all this information, I shall be able to guide you properly. This termination is stigmatic, and for a lot of good reasons, this has to be reversed.

But if you want immediate relief, you should take a copy of this resignation letter to your new employer and inform him of the truth. There is a 95% probability that they will accept the same, and 5% is just luck.

I wish you all the best, and if you feel that I can be of any help to you, do call me.

Regards,
Vivek

I would like to suggest that you do not submit your relieving letter from the previous company because it clearly mentions that you were terminated from service. If you submit this letter to a new company, they may mistrust your abilities.

If the new company insists on the relieving letter from your previous one, you may better explain the failure to submit it by discussing your bond signing details. You can inform them that you were not given a relieving certificate and hence your bond period was not completed.

Be honest, Mark, and tell them everything frankly. Morally and ethically, being honest is better, but for your future, it will also be good. If you hide some details right now, but your current company will cross-check your details, then what? We all face failures in our careers, but we need not give up, dear! I will help you if you need any help in your job.

Moreover, be a performer in your new job; that will vanquish all doubts too. Be honest and live happily rather than be dishonest and in tension.

Regards,
Khyati Pandya
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
Ahmedabad
Samyak Infotech

Explaining Your Position to HR

If you explain your position to the HR personnel of your new company, most likely they will understand your situation. However, it ultimately depends on the HR department, as they are the ones who understand the ground reality of a person like you. You may meet them unofficially and put the ball in their court. I hope they will definitely help you out.

My best wishes from and on behalf of the HR fraternity.

It's not necessary that every organization requires your experience letter or relieving letter. Sometimes, they may ask for it, or they might only request the offer letter that you received when you joined your previous employer. However, the present company can also contact your previous employer for a reference check, and that should not be negative.

Hi Friends, Thanks for sharing your views, and I appreciate your help in analyzing my situation. I requested my employer to give me a letter stating that I was working from [start date] to [end date]. He provided that letter in a single line. After speaking to HR about this letter, he accepted the document.

Regards, Mark