Resigned Before Confirmation: Do I Really Need to Serve a Longer Notice Period?

I am working with a reputed company. The problem is that I have resigned from my job. At the time of my resignation, I was not a confirmed employee of the organization, and my notice period was only one month. However, the day after my resignation, I received my job confirmation email, and I was informed by my senior that I now have to serve a notice period of three months.

Please guide me on what my notice period should be in this situation. Before resigning, I did not have information about my job confirmation status, i.e., whether I was a confirmed employee or not.

Thanks.

I suggest that you write back to your employer. Simply inform them that you have already resigned and that your services were confirmed post-resignation. You can explain that the terms of service as they were at the time of your resignation will continue, not the revised terms. Therefore, kindly notify them that your resignation, with a month's notice given in advance, is valid and proper. Please request them to release you accordingly.

This will be helpful.

Regards,
Adv. K. H. Kulkarni

If you have resigned while on probation, you don't need to serve any notice period if such a provision is mentioned in the employment letter. However, as a professional, you can consult with HR regarding finishing the assigned projects to some extent. Handing over the documents and credentials before leaving would also be advisable.

The company management may have misconstrued the reason for your resignation, citing a delay in confirmation, and they might have confirmed you hurriedly soon after your resignation. In this case, you must talk to the concerned HR and get the matter clarified. If this is not the case, then the suggestion of a preceding member best suits the present situation.

Regards.

Please clarify the points below:

Probation Period Details

How long is the probation period in your organization according to the policy? Have you completed your probation period? Was your resignation acknowledged by HR or your immediate supervisor? Which team is the "Senior" that you mentioned in your query?

In general, you should approach the HR department to clarify this issue. Ensure that you are not tied up in any projects or deliveries. Further suggestions can be provided once you provide the necessary information.

You cannot be considered confirmed unless you have accepted in writing the confirmation letter issued by your management. However, if you have decided to resign and get relieved, you must also have an acknowledgment of your resignation in writing by your HOD and HR Department.

Regards,

Dear Mahesh,

Probation Period and Notice Query

1. The probation period is 12 months.
2. I have completed my probation period.
3. I have sent an email to my immediate supervisor, and I have a printout of the same.
4. I have also sent the same query to the DVP HR of my organization, but no reply has been received from their side until now.

Here, I also want to share that I have already served a 30-day notice. Please suggest.

Regards.

Keep your cool and speak to your immediate boss, even if he does not communicate with you properly. In my opinion, do not attempt to discuss legal terms now (such as the probation period - 1 month notice at the time of resignation, etc.). Politely explain to him that you have given an assurance to your prospective employer that you will join within a month based on your offer of employment, and he may not hold the offer any longer.

I am not certain from your communication whether you have informed your prospective employer of the situation.

My suggestion is, if you have not done so already, do it now. Explain to him that you expected to be released after serving the 30-day notice period as stated in your offer of employment. Also, inform him that your intention is to join his company, but you plan to complete the transition process smoothly without causing any inconvenience to your current employer. Assure him that you will definitely join and state that you do not have any other offers or intentions to negotiate with your current employer based on the new offer.

Any employer will appreciate a candidate who is eager to facilitate a smooth transition process.

I trust that this will lead to a resolution.

Regards,
M.V. Kannan

You have not mentioned the reason for your resignation. Was it solely because you had not been confirmed, or have you found another opportunity?

In case it is the former, you can request the withdrawal of your resignation. If it's the latter, you can request a waiver of the notice period or pay the notice pay as applicable.

Warm regards.

I somewhat differ in my views with many of the learned followers. First of all, being an employee of any organization, you must understand that merely tendering your resignation does not relieve you. There is an obligation on the part of the management and yourself to accept the resignation, convey their intent (on the part of management), clear all dues, and obtain a "No dues" certificate. However, if you are truly uninterested in continuing, you need not worry much about what HR personnel are thinking or how they are behaving. At most, they will not issue you a relieving letter and may withhold the amount payable to you.

Now it is up to you to decide whether you want to exit as a bona fide employee or just leave.

Best wishes for your future.

Regards,
AK Jain
HR Personnel
NCL, CIL

You've already received lots of inputs; however, let me add to it just a bit. From your post, I interpret that your company is purposely bringing in the 'confirmation' issues to get you to extend your notice pay. They cannot force you to serve a 3-month notice since you were not 'confirmed' at the time of your resignation. If your company tries to play tricks with you and refuses to relieve you or issue a relieving letter, then please escalate the matter internally.

(The following may not be relevant to you; however, I would like to share this perspective.)

In my experience, I have seen some senior folks in operations playing such tricks with employees. Sometimes, they do not have logic in their argument; hence, they behave badly with the employee and provoke him to lose his cool and say/do something unprofessional. Then, they complain to HR about his behavior and try to get the employee terminated. Their basic objective is to pass a message to other employees that if they don't follow the instructions of senior ops guys, then the employee's relieving will be screwed. You must remain calm and not get provoked.

I'm sure someone in top management will see the merit of your case and help you with your relieving. If you are sure that no one in your company can/will help or issue a clean relieving letter, then don't waste your time behind them. Try to build a convincing case for your prospective employer, so they allow you to join without a relieving letter.

Not sure how much this will help you, but I'm just trying to give you a different perspective/option.

Regards,
Ritesh Shah