Navigating Resignation Policies: Can My Son Be Forced to Serve Notice Without Pay?

Dear Amod, Eswararao, B S Kalsi, Varghese Mathew, Gia & Ors members,

I need your help in understanding the principle of resignation. If I am not mistaken, as per any establishment policy, it is either a 1-month notice or 3 months on either side, or 1-month pay or 3-month pay in lieu of not serving the terms of 1 month or 3 months. My query is: does the employer insist staff to work for 1 month or 3 months as per policy without accepting the salary in lieu of not serving the terms?

Any citation of court in the above matter is welcome. Please kindly revert with your valuable advice as it pertains to my son's case. In my son's case, the management is not accepting the resignation letter and giving an acknowledgment receipt. Furthermore, in his appointment letter, it is mentioned that on confirmation, he should give 3 months' notice or pay in lieu of the same.

The management has changed the policy, intimating through email that from 1st April 13, the practice of notice pay in lieu of 3 months' notice has been stopped. Can management resort to such practice by intimating through mail?

Which clause prevails: the appointment letter clause or the email communication?

What remedy is available if the Branch Head is not giving the acknowledgment receipt?

For your information, there is no union functioning in the establishment. Please revert with your valuable advice.

Regards,

Azim Charania.

Policy Change and Resignation Acknowledgment

Please let me know if the change in policy email was just sent to your son after he resigned, or was it circulated to all staff as an announcement before 1st April 2013.

As far as my knowledge goes, there is no rule under the Shop or Factories Act which states that employees have to serve the entire notice period without having the option of settling the notice period dues.

Acknowledgment of the resignation is not a big issue as long as the employee resigns and has a record of the same (email resignation). If the management does not accept or acknowledge the resignation formally, it can be treated as accepted provided the individual has served the notice period.

In your case, I understand your son has resigned but has not received acknowledgment from his supervisor or management yet. He does not want to serve the complete notice period but is willing to settle the dues in lieu of the notice period. The company policy states Notice Pay in lieu of a 3-month notice has been stopped. Here it is very important to know if the policy announcement was made previously or now after the employee resigned. If the policy email has been sent now and only to your son, then it is certainly malpractice from the company's side, and you can definitely confront the management about it. The employee can simply go by what was given to him in writing in his appointment letter.

Hope the above info is useful.

Regards,
Gia

Dear Gianim Sir, My son joined the establishment on 20th August 2012 and tendered his resignation in hard copy on 11th July 2013 to the Branch Head. He has not yet received an acknowledgment that the resignation was received. Unfortunately, my son did not specify his last working day but requested to be relieved "as soon as possible" because he has received a job offer from a multinational company based in the UAE, asking him to join by 1st August 2013.

The current company's appointment letter states that upon confirmation, there is a 3-month notice period on either side, or in lieu of the same, 3 months' pay.

While referring to the resignation letter, the Branch Head verbally informed my son that the practice of a 3-month notice in lieu of notice had been stopped from 1st April 2013, and he would have to work for the full 3 months, with no alternative.

Regarding the policy announcement, it is generally done prior to the resignation letter being submitted by my son via email from the VP-HR Department, not now.

My son does not wish to serve the complete notice period but is willing to settle the dues in lieu of the notice period.

Can the management resort to such a practice by informing through mail about the stoppage of the practice in lieu of the notice period?

Which clause prevails, the appointment letter clause, or the email generally announced?

What remedy is available if the Branch Head does not provide the acknowledgment receipt?

Kindly revert, as time is running out with 1st August 2013 approaching very soon.

In case the Branch Head declines to give the acknowledgment copy and my son does not fulfill the terms of the notice periods on either side as per the appointment letter, what action can be contemplated by the employer against my son? As mentioned in the previous email, there is no union functioning in the present establishment.

The UAE company does not require any relieving letter from the previous employer.

Regards, Azim Charania

If the policy was announced to all staff, then it is a company-wide policy change. By the way, is your son currently working in India or Dubai? If he is presently working in Dubai itself, then I think you should check for any local laws which may be applicable for an expat while switching employers. Presuming he is in India and has to join a Dubai company, in that case, it would be best for him to negotiate with his present employer and take a smooth release. He can upfront inform that due to personal constraints, he just cannot serve the full-term notice but is willing to pay the notice period pay and also do his best to make a smooth transition. It would be advisable if he submits it in writing and specifies his date of release. In the end, if the company still does not respond, he can take release and move on.

Regarding Policy Changes via Email

Regarding your query if policy changes can be communicated via email. Yes, it can be if the announcement/applicability is for all staff.

Regards,
Gia

Dear Gianim Sir,

Presently, my son is working in India - Maharashtra - Mumbai with a Private Sector Bank.

Notice Period and Resignation Concerns

Regarding your suggestion that he can upfront inform that due to personal constraints, he cannot serve the full term notice but is willing to pay the notice period pay. Sir, my son has verbally informed the Branch Head, but it is not being acknowledged, and there is no acceptance of the resignation letter in hard copy. Additionally, he was verbally instructed by the Branch Head to serve the Bank for 3 months as per the change in policy announced through mail.

How should we proceed in this matter? Please advise.

Regards,
Azim Charania

Resignation Letter

Since your son has handed in the original hard copy, he should not worry about a written acknowledgment. To expedite the process, let him email a copy of that resignation letter (to document his action and have an email backup). He can include an email stating something like:

Dear XXX,

Further to my resignation letter (copy attached), which I handed over to YYY on [date], I am writing to highlight that I have not received any response from HR or my supervisor. I am following up to request that I be released by [specific date]. As per my employment contract, I am serving my [number] months' notice period from the day I handed in the letter, which totals up to [number] days. For the balance of [number] days, I will be paying in lieu and have the amount deducted from my total final dues (or he can also use his outstanding leave to offset some days if he has those days).

What I am getting at here is that he should be very clear and concise on the matter.