Facing Legal Threats After Resignation: Can My Wife's Employer Really Take Action?

This is regarding an employment contract signed by my wife and me in her organization. There were a few terms and conditions, but later the company is not providing the salary on time. Every month after the 20th, we receive the previous month's salary, and the working hours were also difficult. She has to work from 9 am to 6:30 pm (9.5 hours) each day. This has caused her a lot of stress, and she found it challenging to balance work with family life. As a result, she decided to resign and submitted her resignation.

She had a discussion with the director, who agreed to some revised conditions, including reducing her working hours by half an hour. However, even after a week, they have not sent the revised conditions as promised. Frustrated by this lack of follow-through, she decided not to go to the office from March 21st onwards.

Now, the director has sent an email threatening legal action if she does not report to work this week. Is it possible for them to take legal action in this situation?

Initial Conditions of the Contract

The initial conditions of the contract were as follows: It's a 2-year contract with a monthly deduction of Rs 2500. The notice period is 3 months, with 2 months unpaid and 1 month paid. If you leave before the contract period ends, you will not receive the deducted amount. Additionally, there is no provision for Provident Fund (PF) contributions.

Could someone please review this situation and advise me on how we should respond if they send a summons or notice?

Thanks in advance.

Legal Considerations for Employment Agreements

Check the legality of the said "agreement"—the company seems like a charlatan, and this appears to be a case of "fraud in the factum."

Give one more written communication (via registered post) to the employer, mentioning your "incapability to continue with work due to mental torture and physical overburden resulting in ill health."

Ensure you generate and maintain documents regarding your intention to quit and management's offer to modify.

Let the financial adjustment be made as per the "terms" of the contract.

Do not worry excessively; if you take a tough stand, he is bullying and cannot harm you.

The precedence of the court states: "If a breach of a term of the contract permits a party to not perform the contract, the burden lies squarely on the party complaining of the breach to prove that the breach has been committed by the other party. The test in such a situation would be who would fail if no evidence is led."

Regards,
Shailesh Parikh

[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Location and Agreement Details

First of all, clarify where you are located. You mentioned that your wife, along with you, has signed the agreement. Is this in Itasca, US? Was there an appointment letter, and what were the terms and conditions? Is there a violation of these terms? Did you understand the terms of the agreement before signing, or was there any coercion or blackmail involved?

Legal Action and Advice

If the company is in India and the situation described is genuine, please file a complaint with the labor authorities and seek advice from a labor law consultant. It is evident that any agreement violating the constitutional and fundamental rights of Indian citizens is illegal and null. An advocate can provide guidance in this matter. Such mistreatment by an employer and any illegal agreement should not be tolerated. Seek proper advice. Best of luck.

The agreement is one-sided and exploitative, and there is a very high chance that it will be thrown out of court. However, fighting in court has a high cost. The actions you take will depend on various facts.

Contractual Status

For example, is she under a contract as a consultant or an employee with fixed-term employment? Does she fall under the definition of a workman?

I do not think the employer will be ready to actually take the matter to court, so that would not really be a problem. Someone who has not paid salary on time cannot take the risk of going to court over it.

Possible Actions

One way is to ignore the matter and forget the amount that is due to her. You probably make enough money not to worry about two months of her salary. The chances of getting it are low anyway. Forget and focus on moving to a good company.

Alternatively, you can reply to the email explaining why he should be concerned about you going to court and that he should stop harassing you and instead pay the remaining salary.

The second option is to go to the labor officer and file a complaint with him to see if he can or will be willing to help. If he can, then a notice from him to the company asking for settlement of the salary and any previously deducted amount will be the first step.