Is My Gratuity and Overtime Claim Valid? Seeking Advice on Salary Discrepancies

I was working in a partnership firm for the last 9 years and 10 months. My employer was entering my salary as basic + HRA + CCA + TA in the salary sheet. I claimed gratuity on my total gross salary, but he is counting it based on the basic salary only. Please tell me if my claim is correct or not.

Another issue is that our duty time exceeds 9 hours, and our employers never paid any overtime to anyone. I have heard that an employee can claim at least his last 3 years' overtime. Please tell me if this is correct.

Understanding Gratuity Claims

Gratuity, as Deepa said, is based on the basic salary, so you cannot claim it on the gross amount. Therefore, you do not have a basis for any action.

Filing for Overtime Claims

Regarding overtime, the rule is that you can file a claim with the labor officer or in the labor court for any amounts owed but not paid. Since labor laws mandate that the employer keeps records for up to 3 years and not beyond, there may not be any supporting documents available in the records, unless you are fortunate. This is the rationale behind the concept of 3-year claims. Furthermore, the statute of limitations is also set at 3 years, meaning you cannot claim something if you have not done so in the past 3 years.

However, on what grounds would you make a claim for overtime? Are there any authenticated records on which these claims will be based? How will you substantiate the claim in court? Keep in mind that if the employer proves that you did not work overtime, you may be required to cover the costs of the employer's lawyers. Additionally, do you have the time and resources to pursue a court case?