When Should HR Issue Experience and Relieving Letters: On Last Day or Before?

I am working as an HR executive in a manufacturing company. One of our staff members has resigned.

Timing for Issuing Experience and Relieving Letters

My question is, when should we give her the experience letter and relieving letter? I believe it should be provided on her last working day, but she is requesting it one day before. Please advise.

Thank you.

No, you should provide her with both letters on her last working day.

You cannot provide the service certificate and relieving letter before her last working day. Just express this to her smoothly.

Regards,
Ravichandra

You have not mentioned the reasons for resigning and whether the employee is confirmed or on probation. Now, the question arises about relieving from duty. It depends on the service conditions laid out in the appointment order issued to the employee. Based on that, the management can decide. Normally, for a confirmed employee, he/she should give one month's notice. Upon receipt of the resignation letter, you can issue the acceptance letter mentioning the date of relieving, and accordingly, the employee can be relieved from duty.

Regarding the experience certificate, you should issue this only after the employee is relieved from duty, if possible, along with the final settlement.

Regards,
Adoni Suguresh Sr. Executive (Pers & Admn)

Normally, on the last working day, we organize a farewell for the employee. During the farewell, we give him/her a memento and hand over the relieving order, service certificate, and the final settlement check. Before that, when the employee submits the resignation, we provide the employee with an acknowledgment of the resignation through an official letter. In that letter, we inform the employee of the tentative date of relieving, subject to satisfactory handover of charge and obtaining of no dues on a clearance form. We attach a clearance form to the acknowledgment letter.

We are a manufacturing firm, and we follow these protocols to ensure that the employee leaves with a positive feeling and becomes a good ambassador for us. I am sure that IT companies and BPO companies will have better practices, given that they are all human capital-intensive companies.

Cheers

No, you should not give her an experience letter and relieving letter before her last working day.

The best thing to do is to acknowledge the resignation the day it is received, with an indication of the relieving date, and ask the employee to complete the no dues procedure before the last working day. A relieving letter one day before the LWD does not serve any purpose.