Forced Night Shifts and Harassment: Can I Take Legal Action Against My Manager?

Forced Night Shift and Harassment

I was forced to attend the night shift despite the fact that my manager knew I was on medication. I informed him multiple times that I would not be able to attend the office at night due to medical reasons and being the only female employee in a team of approximately 50 men. However, he forced and harassed me to work the night shift, calling me more than 10 times.

When I raised this issue to his manager and the HR head, he became quiet for some time but then resumed pressuring me to take on shifts lasting 11-12 hours per day. When I explained that it was not feasible for me, he started threatening to fire me if I did not comply with the night or 12-hour shift requirement. Eventually, I resigned from the organization as I was pressured to commit to staying for one year.

I raised my concerns with the HR head, but no action was taken. I never received any follow-up from the HR team. It was not just me who faced problems with his behavior; his entire team had issues with how he conducted himself. Can I take any legal action against him?

Dear Deepika, you could have mentioned what type of industry you are in and what your designation or nature of work was. How come your shift hours are 11-12 hours? You want to take legal action now, but do you have sufficient evidence? Have you recorded your discussions with your manager or HR team? Do you have documentary evidence? By the way, is your industry exempted from having women staff work at night? Just because you were told to attend the night shift, how can you take legal action?

After raising your concern to the HR Head, why did you not approach your MD? When your manager was threatening you, why did you not approach higher authorities? Before taking legal action, I recommend you approach the labour officer in your area. Let us see what he says. However, you need to properly prove "harassment" to him with sufficient evidence.

Ok...

Regards,
Dinesh V Divekar

I am an Engineer in the Telecom Industry. I have worked shifts that include mornings, evenings, and nights for my organization. I had internal mobility within my organization itself and was transferred from Noida to Bangalore. I never had issues attending night shifts until I got an injury that required strong medication.

I informed my manager about the reason for my reluctance to attend night shifts. I also informed him about the issues I was facing during the morning shift, as I was the only female employee in the team. I was uncomfortable with the language and behavior of other team members.

He behaved rudely multiple times. I informed my general manager about it (his manager), but no action was taken. I requested to be moved to another project, but again, no action was taken. Despite not being assigned to any project at that time, I was not released by my manager. I documented most of these issues in emails.

When no action was taken and I submitted my resignation, my manager called me and asked me to accept a release within 6 days, even though the company policy states a 1-month notice period. He pressured me to accept. According to the organization's policy, the notice period should be a mutual decision between the employee and the manager. With no other options, I contacted the MD, VP, and HR head of India via email, but received no response. However, after a discussion, my general manager agreed to a one-month notice period.

I am unsure about what actions to take on my end. After dedicating almost 2 years to the organization, I felt disheartened. In my previous role, I provided 24*7 support, even working during festivals like Holi and Diwali. When I needed help, no one even responded to my queries.