Stuck Without a Relieving Letter: How Can I Resolve This Without Hurting My Career?

I worked for a Mumbai-based mid-size company for 2 years. As per the appointment letter issued and agreed upon, both parties should give a 3-month notice period. However, when I submitted my resignation letter, I was asked to leave in 5 days. After my last working day, I neither received my relieving letter nor my pending dues (earned leaves + 15 days' salary + 3 months' notice period amount + gratuity deducted as part of CTC).

I have sent 15 reminders so far to HR. Every time I write to them, they route it to the CEO of the company, and the CEO responds rudely, stating, "not to disturb for 2 years... after 2 years if my mind changes, I will release your dues." Without a relieving letter, I lost two long-term onsite opportunities.

I need your guidance on how to get these issues resolved without having any negative impact on my career.

Thanks & Regards,

Notice Period Waiver and Relieving Process

First, the company can waive the notice period and relieve you before the said notice period on the grounds of mutual understanding. In this case, they can't recover the notice period from you nor pay the notice period, but they need to pay you the actual worked salary.

As we assume that if they waive your notice period and relieve you before the agreed notice period, there should not be any problem in the clearance of your Full and Final (F&F) settlement. Therefore, the relieving letter is based on your clearance of F&F and employment history.

Gratuity Eligibility Clarification

Secondly, as you only worked for 2 years, you are not eligible for gratuity. Many employees misunderstand this regarding their Cost to Company (CTC). Most companies show gratuity contribution in the CTC, and employees feel that it is a deduction from their salary or CTC, similar to Provident Fund (PF), making them eligible for gratuity. Please be clear on this point.

Notice Period Payment

Thirdly, as mentioned above, you are not eligible to receive the notice period of 3 months as the resignation was given by you and not terminated by the company. On the grounds of your resignation, they simply waived your notice period, so no payment or recovery is required.

The company is obligated to settle your F&F, and no CEO or company can ask you to wait for 2 years for settlement.

If you have any written document regarding the adjustment of your notice period, you can send a legal notice to settle your dues.

Regards,

Kindly file a claim petition under the Payment of Wages Act with the appropriate authority. For more details, see [Labor & Employee Relations - CiteHR Human Resource Management Community Knowledgebase](https://www.citehr.com/labor-employee-relations-f50.html).