Maternity Leave Dilemma: Should We Ask for Notice Period Payment After Extended Leave?

Dear Seniors, Recently, one employee has resigned after availing 89 days of maternity leave and 3 months of leave without pay. My query is, "Should we ask her to pay for the notice period, as it is clear that we cannot ask her to serve the notice period in this condition (extension of maternity leave)?" Looking forward to hearing from you ASAP.

Thanks and regards,
Aparna Singh

For the first 84 days, you paid her salary. Now, she has extended her leave for 3 months, so she will not receive anything during that period. Please advise her to resign from her job and serve her notice period. If she is unwilling to be in the notice period, then you can deduct the money for the notice period. Do not process the Full and Final (F&F) Settlement until that time.

The company is not asking her to resign. The employee has resigned after availing of Maternity Leave. Since there is no salary pending, how do you recover it? To the best of my knowledge, such employees are not going to bother to pay. You cannot hold back PF, Gratuity, or Experience Certificate for settling notice pay (at least not legally).

First of all, thank you for your response. But my query is, "whether we can send the recovery letter to her regarding payment against the short notice period." Is it within the law?

Thanks and regards,
Aparna Singh

Yes, you can send a recovery letter. Nothing in the law states that a person taking maternity leave does not have to give proper notice when resigning from the company.

When she transfers her PF or opts for withdrawal, she will definitely need your assistance. In that case, you should hold her PF due to a shortfall in the notice period.

Holding Back PF and Legal Implications

Holding back PF, refusal to transfer, or not signing the requisite forms is an offense under the act. It is, therefore, a bad practice. Incidentally, the employee can always withdraw or transfer without the approval of the previous employer. The procedure for that has been discussed many times in this forum.

In addition, I believe that in the case of a complaint, the PF commissioner can impose a penalty on the company for harassment and refusal to complete the forms. I am not sure if it amounts to a criminal complaint of harassment, but fines can definitely be imposed.

You can't deny any of her statutory dues. Declining the same is an offense. This has to be paid to the employee.