Employee Attrition in First 3 Months: Is Requesting Original Certificates Legal?

I am experiencing significant attrition in my business unit among employees with less than 3 months of tenure. They are leaving without any proper communication. If I ask for original certificates from the employees upon joining, are there any legal implications? Please help me.

I don't know of any legal implications; some companies are following it. You can also try a refundable security deposit or bond for a specified time period.

Handling Employee Attrition: Strategies and Legal Considerations

We can collect the original certificates from freshers only. If the people have some experience, they won't submit their certificates.

For freshers, we can take certificates and ask them for a commitment of 1 or 2 years (based on your need).

For experienced individuals, we should be very particular about their background verification. We should also focus on their continuity of service with the past company or companies.

We can keep half-month salary as a security deposit. For example, every employee should serve a notice period; if not, we will retain this security deposit. Additionally, we will not issue any experience or relieving letter.

Just find out the reasons for high attrition; either the atmosphere of the company or the salary structure is not up to the mark.

With regards,
Shashi Pandey

An employer has no right to keep the original certificate. WITHHOLDING A CERTIFICATE OF AN EMPLOYEE

Keeping an employee's certificate tied to your establishment amounts to a form of bonded labor, and you may be liable to respond to labor officials for such actions. You have no right to compel an employee to work for your company. Better working standards and pay should attract employees to your company.

Strategies to Address Employee Attrition

1. What you are offering - reduce it by 75% and inform them that once they complete 6 months, it will be paid with retrospective effect. Otherwise, that money will be used to recruit new people if they leave.

2. Just to get feedback - arrange an exit interview.

3. Bring your own "mole" as a new recruit and strictly instruct them not to disclose your friendship. Get real feedback on why people are leaving. You need to hit the bottom and uncover the real issues.

4. If you ask for certificates - (I do not know what company you are in) you will be treated like Marwari companies - even though they are the best.

As far as legal implications are concerned, you cannot withhold the certificates of employees except for the purpose of verification. Secondly, there may be significant loopholes in the working system that you need to address.

Considerations for Employment Terms

As someone has already mentioned, you may want to specify the minimum number of years of employment and compensation. Consider including critical termination clauses such as a minimum notice period until a replacement is found, salary withholding during final settlement, potential legal actions, and a written resignation letter outlining reasons for leaving related to the workplace.

Addressing Attrition Issues

Issues such as salary discrepancies, relationship conflicts, or workload imbalances may be contributing to the attrition rate. It's crucial to conduct a thorough analysis and work towards resolving these issues.

Wishing you good luck in addressing these challenges.

Dear GVP College student,

Greetings! I appreciate your participation. Please let me know on what basis you mentioned that you can take certificates. Can you please quote any statutory sections of the law? Reply soon.

Regards,

I know some companies in the finance sector keep original certificates of their employees. If it's not legal, then how come these well-known companies are following this practice?

Regards,

I don't think that is proper and legal. The employer can ask for a notarized copy of the original to keep in records. The concerned officer can ask for the "production" of the original to compare with the notarized copy and return the original at the "same" time. By law, nobody can keep the original document except the owner of that document.

Alternative Approach to Manage Attrition

Rather than facing regular attrition, take the employees on a contract roll initially for a short period (minimum 3 to 6 months) through a proper contractor or consultant. Inform the employees that based on their performance and attitude, they will be moved to the direct company roll. This may work out in two ways: you don't want to waste your time replacing people while you have a contractor (on a signed agreement for these arrangements). Also, you can keep the right persons with you.

Always keep the right people, those who have performed well. It's good for the organization's health and growth.

Wish you all the success.

What you said is correct, but it is not applicable for all, like a software company. There is a need to provide training for 6 months, with no assurance that the employee will stay after completing the training. We need to find something more that can help with management. Deducting half the salary is a good idea, but it needs to be checked whether it is legal or not.

Regards,
Sharief