Am I Eligible for Gratuity After 4 Years, 11 Months, and 10 Days of Service? Seeking Advice

I have worked in an organization for a period of 4 years, 11 months, and 10 days (including the notice period). The details are as follows:

Employment Details

Date of Joining: 11-Oct-2007

Date of Resignation: 27-Aug-2012

Last Working Day: 20-Sep-2012

My company requires a 1-month notice period, which they specify as a 21 working days notice period.

Notice Period Calculation

I gave notice on the evening of the 27th and left on the evening of the 20th of September, resulting in an 18-day notice period. I took off for 1.5 days during the notice period, so my effective notice period was 18 - 1.5, which is 16.5 days. According to company policy, I should have given a 21-day notice, so I was 4.5 days short of the required notice time.

I had 5.5 days of leave remaining, which the company needs to compensate me for. Therefore, 5.5 - 4.5 days means the company needs to pay me for an extra day. They have paid it.

Gratuity Eligibility Inquiry

I am inquiring about the gratuity bonus because I have learned that I am eligible for gratuity. However, my company says that I am not eligible because I have not completed 5 years in the organization.

I want to know if I am eligible for it or not. If I am eligible, how can I claim it if my company denies giving it?

I will be thankful for valuable suggestions.

Thanks,

Dinesh

You are very well eligible for payment of gratuity. For your ready reference, I am attaching the Madras High Court Judgment on the same issue.

Regards,
VP Jain

Thank you for your valuable reply. Please also let me know what steps I should take in order to obtain my gratuity if they are denying it and trying to prove that I must have completed 5 years to be eligible for it.

1. I have already communicated with them via email and received a response stating they are not in favor of granting it.
2. I have also sent them Form I via registered post approximately 20 days ago, and I have proof of sending it as well.

Thank you,

Dinesh

I have completed around 4 years, 9 months, and 14 days in the organization. They are telling me the same thing—that I am not eligible for gratuity as I have not completed 5 years. Could you please confirm if I am eligible or not?

Employment Details

Date of Joining: 24 April 2007
Date of Resignation: 08 Feb 2012

Thanks in advance,

Regards,
Arun Kishore

Just send a reminder to your employer immediately and attach the xerox copy of Form-I, which you had sent to him 20 days before through registered post, and wait for a week. If you don't get any response, you can send an application in the prescribed Form 'N' under the Payment of Gratuity Act to the Controlling Authority, i.e., the Labour Officer of the region, for direction.

Please go through the attached notes for your information and use them to claim your gratuity.

Yes, you are eligible for gratuity if you have completed 240 days in the 5th year. If you have worked for 5 years and 11 months, you have surpassed the 240-day requirement in the 5th year.

Thanks,
J.S. Negi

As per the Payment of Gratuity Act, once you complete 240 days in the fifth year, i.e., 8 months, you become eligible for gratuity payment. In your case, since you have completed 8 months, you are eligible for it. Hope that helps!

Regards,
Mahwish

Eligibility for Gratuity

Once you have completed 240 days in the last year of service, you become well eligible to claim gratuity. Just post a written letter to your previous company with the above reference given by me and even mentioned in the gratuity act. So, don't go straight away for any kind of legal action. Just resolve the issue out of court by making them aware of the actual law. After that, if there is no response, you can go for legal action.

Thank you all for the valuable suggestions in this matter. I will proceed by reminding them about the law and sending them a xerox of FORM I again. If I don't get the expected answer, I will get in touch with you again.

Thanks,
Dinesh

You can quote the attached S.C. judgment in respect of "continuous service" and "240 days per year of service," etc., for the purpose of gratuity.

All the best.

Regards,
Kumar S.

Thanks to all who replied in this thread with their valuable information. I was able to convince my employer, and I received the gratuity as well.

Many thanks,
Dinesh

Hi Mahwish Khan,

As you mentioned, according to the Payment of Gratuity Act, gratuity is payable once an employee completes 240 days in the fifth year of service. My question pertains to whether these 240 days include weekends (i.e., we have weekends off every Saturday and Sunday in our organization).

Looking forward to your response.

I have been working in a Central Government PSU. The reporting date for the induction training is called the Date of Joining. After a few months of training, we are appointed to the present grade, and this date is called the Date of Appointment.

Gratuity Calculation

1) For the purpose of calculating gratuity, which date is considered: the Date of Joining or the Date of Appointment?

2) Although I have recently completed 5 years of service, I was on Extraordinary Leave (XOL or EXOL - Loss of Pay) for ten days without a medical certificate due to personal family problems. This occurred during my third year of service. Generally, these 10 days are treated as a break in service. Am I now eligible for gratuity for my five years of service?

Regards,
[Username]

Dear Sir, I have worked in an organization for a period of 4 years, 11 months, and 27 days (including the notice period). The details are as follows:

Date of Joining: 11th November 2011
Date of Resignation: 7th October 2016
Last Working Day: 7th November 2016 (as per the resignation acceptance letter, but I was actually relieved on 3rd November 2016)

My company requires a 1-month notice period. I am inquiring about the gratuity bonus because I have learned that I am eligible for it. However, my company states that I am not eligible because I have not completed 5 years in the organization.

I would like to determine my eligibility for gratuity and understand the process to claim it if my company denies me. I would appreciate any valuable suggestions.

Thank you,
Gaurav

If you have worked for 240 days in the fifth year (which I think you have), you are entitled to gratuity. Send Form I under Registered post to the company and wait for a month. If they do not pay, file an application under Form N before the Controlling Authority under the Payment of Gratuity Act.

Since your last day of work is the 7th of November '16 and more than three months have already passed, you are also required to file an application for condonation of delay along with Form N.