Facing Early Release Without Full Notice Pay: What Should I Do Next?

I am working in an MNC as a software engineer. I have given my resignation, and I am in a 3-month notice period. One month of this period is about to be over. Suddenly, I found out that they are going to release me after completing the first month of the notice period only, instead of paying the remaining 2 months' salary.

I have not requested early release from the company. According to the company policy, if the company releases an employee early, they have to pay the remaining salary for the notice period.

However, I have heard that they are planning to release me early without paying me the remaining two months' salary. In that case, what should I do if they treat me this way? Please advise.

Awaiting your advice.

Thank you.

This is a very uncomfortable situation where you are not sure what exactly is going to happen because the surmises you predict are based on information from unconfirmed sources that may or may not hold true. If an employee leaves the company without serving the complete notice period, then the company has the right to recover the unserved notice period's salary amount from that employee. Similarly, if the company wants to relieve the employee prior to the completion of the notice period, then it has to pay the employee salary for the balance notice period (both of these are post-resignation cases). This is the routine practice of any professionally managed company. Talk to some HR authority in your company and get a clear idea before taking any further steps.

Regards,
Pravin

Thank you, sir, for your prompt response and your suggestion. I had a discussion after that with my PM. As per my prediction, he told me the same thing – that it's my last working day and the company is not going to pay me for the remainder of my notice period. Moreover, he is threatening me that if I don't accept this early release without pay, the company will terminate me, which could have a negative impact on my future career prospects when joining another company. I have not received any written communication from my management as of now. Please suggest what I need to do in this situation. Thank you.

It is indeed a tough situation for you, and while you could fight your case, you should first consider if the effort is worth the rewards. Unless the pay in question is worth the fight, I would suggest you graciously exit the company without any bad blood.

While it may not seem fair, having been the one who tendered your resignation, you also lose the moral high ground in this fight. A lot of companies prefer not to have non-key personnel hanging around after resigning to prevent poaching or for morale reasons. Also, the feeling, rightly or wrongly, would be that you no longer have any incentive to give your 100%.

I presume you tendered your resignation because you got a better offer elsewhere. You should let your new employers know of your availability to join immediately; they would probably take you in. If not, join a skill enhancement course for the two months or just take a holiday.

Regards,
Gokul

I completely agree with Mr. Gokul's suggestion. Please ask for written communication from the management before you accept your full and final settlement, such as relieving letters, experience certificate, and Form 16.

All the best!

Regards,
Laxmi Doddamani