Leaving a Job After 14 Years Without an Appointment Letter: Do I Deserve Leave Encashment?

I had been in a company for 14 years, though I had never been given an appointment letter. On 28 March 2014, I submitted my resignation letter stating that I would be resigning from the company effective April 1, 2014, giving 5 days' notice. We were in a situation where the company set a target to be achieved but did not provide adequate work for the target to be met. So at the end of the month, the company was deducting salary even though they were not providing enough work. We had PF, but the company was failing to submit the PF as well. We had leave encashment benefits, and I had 24 days of leave to be encashed, meaning I had taken only 3 out of 27 leaves and was supposed to get the encashment of 24 days. However, when I received the salary for March 2014, I only got the salary, and no leave encashment was provided. When I asked the company manager, he informed me that since I had served only a 5-day notice, he had to adjust the remaining 24 days of leave, and I was not entitled to receive anything in cash, and he could have even withheld the salary for March. It is to be remembered that I was not given any appointment letter for my job during those 14 years. Is what he did justified, or do I have any legal right to receive payment for those 24 days? Any suggestions or advice will be cordially welcomed.

Thank you

It seems they haven't issued you the appointment letter. This means you are not bound by any terms and conditions of the company. So, on what grounds are they deducting 24 days' salary from your leave encashment? You should ask for an answer regarding this.

Moreover, since you have worked for 14 years, you are entitled to terminal benefits such as Gratuity.

Having worked with them for the last 14 years, you must have some proof of your employment, such as salary slips, increment letters, ID cards, employment cards, etc. Based on this evidence, you can file a complaint with the regional Labour commissioner against this injustice. This is an abuse of employees' rights, and your PF matters can also be resolved, ensuring you receive all the benefits applicable to you.

Not issuing the appointment letter is a double-edged weapon for the employer as well. Without any specified nature of your employment (casual, permanent, contract, etc.), it may be easier to prove that there is no employee-employer relationship between you.

Therefore, seek advice from an advocate on how to smartly handle this situation.

Regards,
Tushar Swar

It is surprising that after working for 14 years, you left without proper notice. Irrespective of whether you have an appointment letter, you are bound by the terms of employment (you can't deny it after 14 years) and therefore you have to give 30 days' notice as the company rules say. It's a standard and fair term, so you have no grounds to complain about that.

The company is completely right in deducting the notice pay from your dues.

Checking Provident Fund (PF) Status

For PF, you can check with the PF Online Website to see how much is deposited each month. If the amount is not showing, you need to file a complaint with the PF Department. I think there will be a PRO who will help; otherwise, you can talk to the PF commissioner (I find they are very much willing to talk to anyone who has a complaint about non-payment).

Leave Encashment Queries

Where you do not have any appointment letter, where does the 24 days' leave encashment come from? Is there an HR Manual where it is stated? Or leave rules? If not, then you have to go by the factory act or shop & establishment act. The act provides for encashment of pending leave (of the maximum number specified in the act) on termination of employment. So you have a right to ask for it.

As Tushar said, you are entitled to Gratuity.

Considering Legal Action

The question then comes: how can you claim? What do you have? If you at least have a PF account, then employment is proved. The second question is - is it worth fighting for? You will take a long time to get any results from the courts (or from the labor office, who finally has to go to court). Either you be prepared for a long-drawn fight, which will also have an effect on your new employment, or you just use the legal notice/notice from the Labor Officer as a scare tactic to make the company pay you.

We do not have much of the info, so none of us can help you further than this.

Regards.

I am sorry to say that I do not agree with your first two paragraphs. When you say that employees should follow the rules and regulations, why is it that when the company's turn comes, it is treated defensively?

As you mentioned, an employee cannot leave without serving a notice period after 14 years and is bound by all terms and conditions (even if there is no signed legal document). I would like to ask: Does the company not have the responsibility, ethics, and professionalism to provide an appointment letter to an employee who has been with them for 14 years? In fact, the company should be more concerned about potential future accidents and take preventive measures to avoid any direct or indirect losses.

In this context, we should consider what the law states rather than relying on logical and emotional opinions. If the company has not provided an appointment letter in 14 years, it can be assumed that the company was no longer interested or serious about keeping the employee bound by any terms or conditions. Similarly, in terms of legality, since the employee has not signed any documents related to terms and conditions, any document without the consent of both parties should be considered null and void, regardless of whether it is oral or physical. It is not regarded as a promissory note or an Agreement under section 10 of The Indian Contract Act, 1872.

"All agreements are contracts if they are made by the free consent of parties competent to contract, for a lawful consideration and with a lawful object, and are not hereby expressly declared to be void.

Nothing herein contained shall affect any law in force in India, and not hereby expressly repealed, by which any contract is required to be made in writing or in the presence of witnesses, or any law relating to the registration of documents.

Regarding gratuity, I believe that if an individual has worked in an organization for 14 years, there must be evidence of said employment such as salary slips, PF slips or documents, ID cards, any authorized letters for various reasons, attendance registers, ESIC card, etc.

In response to your last sentence, I would like to emphasize that we should keep an open mind and consider the views of other members as well.

Regards,
Tushar Swar

Understanding Your Employment Rights After 14 Years

As you stayed with the company for 14 years, and I'm assuming you have proof like an ID card, salary slip, email records, etc., it doesn't matter (in a court of law) if you were given an appointment letter. Your and the company's actions deem you to be accepted by the company.

Now, as far as your unused leave is concerned, I am not sure whether your company's stance is correct or not. However, it is surprising to me also that you left your 14-year-old job with just a 5-day notice. Moreover, you would obviously be eligible for gratuity and PF. Please claim the same.

Understanding the Indian Contract Act in Employment Context

First, please understand that the Indian Contract Act does not apply to employment. The employee-employer relationship is not covered under the Indian Contract Act. General rules of agreements are a part of Indian jurisprudence, and to that extent, the principles are applied to employment disputes where the conditions are not already covered under specific legislation.

In any case, the Contract Act clearly states that it is not necessary for an agreement to be in writing, and oral agreements are just as enforceable as written ones. For other aspects, you need to refer to the Indian Evidence Act to determine what is allowed as evidence if the agreement is not in writing.

Furthermore, please consider the concept called the doctrine of estoppel. When your actions indicate that you have accepted the agreement, you are prevented by law from denying that you agreed to the terms. Fourteen years is definitely a sufficient period to be covered under promissory estoppel.

Ethical Considerations and Legal Rights

Regarding the company's duty to be "ethical," it is not in question. I am not a representative of the company, and I do not have the facts to decide whether the company has acted ethically. However, it is definitely unethical to leave with only 5 days' notice. In the original post, we are informed that the company has taken certain actions, and we are asked what remedy he has. Claiming that he is entitled to a full month's wages and exempt from the notice period is not correct. I have provided as many details as possible regarding what he is and is not entitled to.

We cannot provide more information as the original poster has not provided all the details, as pon has also pointed out. We should wait for the original poster to provide further details to give a more accurate answer.

Thank you, sir, for taking the time to answer my complaints. To give you more details, I received PF, a company ID card, a salary slip, and my salary was paid through the bank. Is there a universal law for a notice period of 30 days?

Once again, thank you all for taking out your precious time to answer my questions.

Best regards,
Suvro

There is no universal law as such. However, general business practice is to give a 30-day notice, which, by virtue of being customary, carries the force of law. Furthermore, standing orders (which are standard terms of employment that apply to any factory or office which does not have its own) provide for a 30-day notice period. Therefore, it is unlikely that either a court or a labor officer will help you on that count. For other things, I have made my assumptions. You have enough proof of employment to take action on other requirements.