Protect Yourself from Company Harassment: Why You Should Never Hand Over Original Documents

Advice for Employees: Protect Your Documents

This is a suggestion or advice to all employees who are working. Please do not submit any of your original documents to anyone. In January, I joined XYZ Company in Nagpur. They mentioned that they would be retaining all educational and other documents for two months until the probation period is completed. According to their policy, if you resign during the probation period, you only need to serve a 15-day notice period or pay for 15 days.

The company was very harassing; it was truly the worst company, and I had a very negative experience there. Therefore, I decided to resign. Upon giving my resignation to the CEO, I was informed that I did not need to serve a 15-day notice period but had to pay for two months' salary. With only one year of experience and not being familiar with the rules and regulations, I complied and paid for two months. During that period, I was subjected to a lot of mental harassment. So, it is my humble request to all of you: please do not provide your original educational or other documents to anyone.

Instead, provide them with photocopies. Additionally, before joining any company, try to obtain details about the company. Otherwise, you might end up working as a slave or a victim.

Thanks and Regards,

Ritu

Employee Document Retention and Notice Period Issues

This is a very common issue. I've even heard of major MNCs doing this—holding employee documents hostage to make the employee serve their notice period. While the issue seems illegal, the fact is that the employee agrees to serve the notice period when they sign the appointment letter. The issue of harassment is mainly because there is no accountability, and the issue of inhuman behavior is present in almost every aspect of life in India.

We are responsible for this too—people are not doing their jobs well enough, and for the top management, being humane is a secondary issue. With most operations at the mercy of inept people, there are way too many issues to handle. Without proper government intervention, we will all continue to live in this for many generations to come.

Regards,
Sid

It's poignant to understand the situation nowadays. Don't you think that you've taken a hasty decision in submitting the originals? We are all well-educated individuals and behave disarrayed in getting a job. A job is important to everyone, and if it is something prioritized, one should also learn to face such situations.

On the contrary, we should also understand the employer's perspective as they pour in their efforts to search for the desired candidate. If such terms are not considered, the deeds on the grounds of leaving/absconding are seen in the organization. We have very well called it a term "ATTRITION."

Important Tip for Employees

One of the most important tips to every other survivor: Serve a proper notice and get relieved. If exasperation still persists, you should take immediate steps to battle the employer. Behaving with insolence is ignorance.

I worked for one employer in the 60s in India who never kept my original documents. I have worked in the UK for six different organizations between the late 1960s and 2008. None of the organizations kept any originals. It's a shame that organizations resort to such tactics in India.

Handling Original Documents: A Cautionary Approach

Clear copies of all the documents, duly notarized as true copies, are all that should be required. Though it may cost a bit more, consider getting color photocopies if you can. I do not believe anyone should have the right to take your original documents, and you should never surrender them under any circumstances due to the difficulty of replacing them should something untoward happen.

If people ask for originals, give them copies and tell them the originals are kept in a locked safe at the bank or your lawyer's office for safekeeping, as they are your private and personal property. People or companies can maybe ask to view the original document, but that is where it should end.

While I understand that some people have a need to get a job, I would be thinking very seriously about whether I wanted to work for such an unethical organization.

Dear Friends, Thanks for providing your valuable suggestions and sharing your thoughts. This situation occurred for me due to blind trust, aspirations for a successful career, eagerness to work in an IT company, being a fresher, lack of knowledge, and so on. I humbly request all of you to please convey this message, especially to fresher individuals. They are often highly enthusiastic and may join any company at the beginning to gain experience, unaware of the potential darker aspects and exploitation by corporations.

Please share this information to help prevent others from facing such exploitation and to contribute to safeguarding the well-being of individuals and the nation.

Apurva mam, my email ID is [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]. I would be glad to disclose the company's name through email correspondence. You can either send me an email or provide me with your email ID.

Thanks and Regards,
Ritu Kadyan

Dear Nashbramhall, that's true, but this happens in India; it's still happening. The best thing we can do is to create awareness among the people.

Thanks and Regards,
Ritu Kadyan

I am sometimes surprised by these practices. This again depends upon the values of the organization. Organizations know that this is illegal, but the people working there enforce these practices. In the recent Bharati-Walmart case, the CFO and the whole legal team were sacked. The issue was bribery. Here, Walmart knows that giving bribes is illegal in the US and even in India, but the CFO and the whole legal team were responsible for encouraging the practice.

The same thing applies to the practices we are discussing. The HR community needs to be more proactive and consult the management regarding the wrongness of their actions.

Regards,
Vinod Bidwaik