Is My Wife Bound by a 3-Month Notice Period Without a Signed Agreement? Seeking Legal Insights

Hi, I am writing regarding the company (Synova) where my wife is employed. She has been with the company for almost 2 years. Upon joining, she signed a contract that stipulated a 1-month notice period prior to leaving. However, after 1 year of her employment, the company altered the policy, extending the notice period to 3 months through an email notification without issuing a new agreement for my wife to sign.

Question on Notice Period Policy

My question is, does this updated policy of a 3-month notice hold if there is no signed agreement to that effect? Currently, the company is requesting her to forfeit 2 months of pay if she wishes to leave early or to opt for a buyout. Is she legally entitled to challenge the company on this matter?

Looking forward to your valuable feedback.

Thanks in advance,

Adi

It will depend upon the content of the mail that is forwarded to employees and the action taken by the employee. In law, there is a provision of an implied contract, according to which in some cases, action is taken as consent, or you can say silence is also considered as agreed. So, we have to check case by case.

Review the Signed Agreement for Clause Changes

As per my opinion, if there are other clauses in which it has been mentioned that any of the conditions or rules (inserted in the agreement, which has been signed by her) may be changed, modified, or amended, with or without intimation to the employee, then it may be possible that they can change the clause of the notice period from 1 month to 3 months. I would like to advise you to review all the conditions available in the signed agreement.

Regards,

Thank you for the quick reply. As you said, the changed policy states that it is with reference to the Separation Clause in the appointment letter. So, I guess there is nothing that she can do about it except to blame herself for not questioning it in the first place. But I have another question related to the period of notice. I have been reading some posts about the natural law of justice and ID law regarding keeping the notice period the same for both parties. However, in the changed policy, it is only 1 month from the company's side. Does this stand? Can I approach legally, considering this? Sorry if I am being pushy, but the fact that a company is asking for a 3-month notice period just doesn’t seem right to me. I would like to take action, especially when her work only requires a 2-day transition.

Separation Policy in Appointment Letter, Signed April 20, 2010:

This contract of employment is terminable by either party by giving 30 days' notice without any reason thereof. The company reserves the right to pay or recover salary in lieu of the notice period. The above terms and conditions are subject to Company Policy.

Changed Policy Sent in an Email:

There is intense heat coming from our competitors/clients more rapidly than we ever expected. Keeping this in mind, we are implementing an initiative effective today. This is with reference to the Separation Clause indicated in your appointment letter. Please note that the clause is now revised and is applicable as below and comes into effect as of the 21st day of July 2011. The Employee shall have the right to terminate this Agreement at any time, with or without cause, upon three months' prior written notice. The company reserves the right to go legal on the employee if there is any dispute over the completion of exit formalities. In addition to this, the Company shall have the right to terminate this agreement without cause by providing 1 month of written notice.

Kind Regards,

Adi

Don't worry, dear. Without the signature of the agreement, it is void as per the Contract Act. Only sending an email for a change in company policy or conditions of the agreement is not accountable.

Regards,
Adv. Balaji
Executive-Personnel

Based on the narration of clauses, it seems that the decision to change the notice period from 1 month to 3 months is taken in the interest of management only. I think it has to be accepted when it is signed by the other party, i.e., the employee. So, in your case, if she has not agreed and not signed the acceptance copy, it would not be binding to her. Still, for more confirmation, consult with a labor advocate for further steps.

Regards,

Policy Changes and Employee Grievances

Always, rules are rewritten, and nothing is permanent. Most appointment letters would have a line mentioning that they are subject to changes at the discretion of the management. The company has sent an email to every employee, and it is expected that they have displayed the same on the official notice board of the organization.

If employees had grievances, they could have taken them to the HR department or management when they received the email or heard about it. Many employees who did not accept might have resigned in that month or the next month. Since they issued the appraisal letter in May for 2011, they might have thought to send an email to all or inform through another method. Surely, this year's appraisal will mention the same in writing. Since they have not raised any objections, it shows they have accepted the policy.

Thank you.

Change in Conditions of Service

The management of a company is entitled to change the conditions of service from time to time. The only issue is whether the process for effecting the change has been adhered to. I am not sure from the available material whether the same has been done. However, it is clear that the change was notified way back in July 2010.

Notification Requirement Under the ID Act

Normally, the ID Act requires that any proposed change must be duly notified. The purpose of such notification is that a person concerned can then lodge their protests against the move. If there are protests, they must be considered, and only then should the decision be changed. Thereafter, the changed rule takes effect.

Legal Implications and Considerations

The issue has many connotations. The net gain by filing a legal case for this reason may not be commensurate with the trouble that will have to be undergone in taking the case to its logical conclusion. I believe that waiting out the notice period or foregoing the pay for two months needs to be considered by your wife.

Regards,
Ranjan

A similar situation like this happened in the organization where I work. Staff were entitled to two days off within the week as contained in the employment letter, but later the policy was changed to one day off. The entire staff was made to sign letters sent to them accepting the change, and one of the signed letters was kept in the employees' file while a copy was given to each of them.

I think this is what should have been done in your wife's company for them to be on the safe side, but in this case, they are not.

Dear Adi,

Would you please read the highlighted portions in RED vis-a-vis BLUE? Both are at variance. The red portion says "30 days' notice" on either party, whereas the blue portion, which is a changed one, gives a different meaning. This, according to the employer, cancels the right of the employee to quit with one month's notice, but the employer can terminate upon 3 months' written notice. In my opinion, this amendment by email infringes the fundamental right and is also contrary to the signed agreement (despite the fact it was only conveyed through email, which was not acknowledged and cannot be proved). This is all the more one-sided and legally cannot be enforced by the employer, being arbitrary and not consented to by you. You can hold on to the signed contract for sure. The only thing you should have is proper documentation of one month's notice to quit and handing over formalities.

All the best.
kumar.s.

Agreement Validity Concerns

The new agreement circulated by email is one-sided and biased towards the employer. It has not been signed or accepted by the employee, and therefore, it does not apply to her.

Regards.

Company Policy Amendments and Notice Periods

The company has every right to amend the rules according to the circumstances from time to time. In the initial stages, it may have been a one-month notice period. Subsequently, they have amended it and also intimated the same through email. As such, the three-month notice period holds good.

Regards,
D. Gurumurthy
LL. HR & IR Consultant.

Agreement and Acceptance

An agreement is a two-way process: offer and acceptance. In your wife's case, she has accepted the offer by signing the offer letter and accepting all terms and conditions stated in it. When an amendment is issued to the original agreement, it should also be signed as a token of acceptance. However, a mere email message does not hold value as it serves as an intimation rather than seeking your acceptance as part of the original agreement. Legally, it would not be binding for employees unless the amendment is signed along with the original document.

Best regards,
T Kumar

Email Communication in Company Policy Changes

In today's scenario, permission, leave, or resignation is often communicated through email to higher authorities. Why can't management communicate changes through email as well? All written communications are legally valid according to the law. Email communication is a form of written communication and is addressed to individual employees or members of the respective project.

Moreover, the email content should clearly specify that if you have any grievances, you can contact the HR/authorized person within the time limit; otherwise, the change is considered accepted by you (which you have not mentioned).

Regards

Policy Consistency in Employment Contracts

I have seen both the separation policy in the appointment letter and the changed policy details. I feel management cannot have a different policy for employees and a different one for themselves. When they change the policy for employees to three months, management should also give three months' notice. There should be a proper uniform policy; they cannot have the advantage, and it should not be one-sided. The acceptance of both parties is necessary in a contract.

Regards,
Joga Rao

As the Appointment Letter or Contract issued to her upon joining the company is signed by the authority of the company and ACCEPTED & ACKNOWLEDGED BY SIGNATURE by her, the decision to change the notice period has been made in the interest of the company. Any agreement or changes in specific clauses should be accepted (signed & acknowledged) by the other party, i.e., the employee. In her case, if she has not signed the acceptance of the same, it does not apply to her. For added security, please review the corresponding clause in the main Appointment Letter or Contract Letter.

Regards,
Pradeep D.
Dy. Manager HRM