Can My Company Force Me to Resign for Refusing a Sudden Job Transfer?

Hi all, my name is Pankaj Jadhav from Pune. I am currently working as an Assistant Project Manager at Manipal Business Solutions Private Limited, which is a part of the Manipal Group. I have been working here for the past 2 months since November 2014.

Originally, my home is in Mumbai, but I had to shift with my family to Pune for this job. After just 2 months, I was informed that I would be transferred to a location in Manipur near Sikkim. I was quite shocked by this sudden notice and requested them not to transfer me as I had recently relocated. However, they made it clear that if I refused to move, they would either terminate my employment or I would have to resign.

On my offer letter and salary slip, it clearly states that the job location is Pune. Can they terminate me?

Please help.

Please review the letter and clauses again. Although the joining location could be Pune, if the offer or appointment letter states that the company has the right to transfer you for business reasons, they have an edge.

Transfer Policy and Employee Rights

During the tenure of your services, you are liable to be transferred or delegated from the unit at the address of the company where you are presently working to any other unit of the company, anywhere in India or abroad, solely at the discretion of the management of the company. For more details, read the model company laws.

On my offer letter, it is not written anywhere that they will send me anywhere. The HR department is pressuring me to submit a resignation; otherwise, they will issue me a termination letter. If they terminate me, will I receive my salary for the notice period or not?

Hi,

It all depends on what is exactly mentioned in your appointment letter. Let me tell you that I'm very surprised to see why people accept jobs without considering all the terms and conditions of services. Please do not mind, but I have read many such cases on this forum. I request experts to guide.

Thanks

As mentioned by other forum members, you have to read the terms and conditions of the appointment letter, Employee handbook, or Standing Orders, etc. It is better to resign than to be terminated (purely my view) with regards to the notice period. Again, for that, you have to refer to the clause mentioned in your appointment letter since most companies never give notice periods during probation periods.

Transfer Clause in Employment Contracts

If there is a clause of transfer in either the appointment order or the offer letter, the company has the right to transfer your services, as transfer becomes part and parcel of your service condition, and you cannot refuse the transfer. The only factor to be considered is whether the transfer is genuine or not.

Under such conditions, the management may contend that refusal to join at the transferred place is misconduct and can take action as per the law.

Regards

Since you do not seem to be covered under the ID Act and you are a private employee, the employer can even terminate your service as per the terms of appointment. In view of the Vaish Degree College decision of the Apex Court in 1976, you cannot seek specific performance or injunction against the employer. It is better to look for another job or comply with the directions of the employer. There are other decisions cited in the post on "Forced resignation during pregnancy" which you may refer to.

Agree with SHIVA786 because generally, companies include these statements in the appointment letter where it is referred to as a clause. Therefore, refer to your appointment letter as they might have mentioned, for example, "In case of breach of any of the terms or denial made by the incumbent of this letter of employment and company rules and regulations, which constitute misconduct on your part, your services are liable to immediate termination, etc."

Addressing Transfer and Termination Concerns

You have posted that:

"On my offer letter, it is not written anywhere that they will send me anywhere. They (HR Dept) are pressuring me to resign; otherwise, they will give me a termination letter. If they terminate me, will my salary for the notice period be paid?"

"After 2 months, they told me that we are transferring you to the Manipur location (near Sikkim). I was shocked by this notice."

You have a genuine issue at your hands. I shall try to help you, and your matter may get resolved.

1. If it is not stated in the appointment letter issued to you that the employer can transfer you (employee), then you cannot be transferred.

2. Does the management have its certified standing orders (CSO), and is your designation covered by CSO? Even if you are an Assistant Project Manager, you can be covered by these. If yes, go through these, and if the transfer is not stated in CSO, you cannot be transferred. Once standing orders are certified (CSO), it becomes an instrument of law. If standing orders apply to the establishment but are not certified, then Model Standing Orders shall apply. Model Standing Orders is a statute.

In case of conflict in service conditions stated in the appointment letter and standing orders, what will prevail: Standing Orders, being an instrument of law/statute, shall prevail upon any private agreement/rule/policy that the employer has drafted and signed with the employee, e.g., offer letter/appointment letter/HR policy/Employee handbook/contract of employment, etc.

3. If the company has employed 50 or more persons, then as per the Bombay Shops and Commercial Establishments Act (Sec38-B), standing orders shall apply. Your Labor Law Consultant/Service matters lawyer may ask you a set of structured questions and may opine that you shall be covered as both: as 'Employee' as in the Bombay Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, and as 'Workman' as in the ID Act. Designation alone does not decide whether the employee shall be covered or not.

4. If the company resorts to termination, it has to tender notice pay as stated in the appointment letter issued to you on the last day in the office.

5. What is the proof with you that:
- You have been asked to resign in the office (Audio/visual/witnesses/minutes of discussion). The onus to claim may fall upon you; hence generate evidence.
- You have been asked to accept the transfer to Manipal (any written order). Apparently, you have not even minuted the matter in writing under proper acknowledgment by letter/email addressed to the good offices of the appointing authority, MD, Chairman, or even BM.

6. If you want to claim damages, then you have to have irrefutable evidence on your side.

7. Has this company paid any relocation expenses to you (Mumbai to Pune + any other incidental expenses like readmission of children, etc.)? Do you have the bills of all expenses of relocation?

8. The transfer can be contested successfully if the employee can prove that it was malafide! Once again, you have to have irrefutable evidence. The transfer to Manipal may be a penultimate transfer; however, you need to establish to prove it as malafide, biased, zealous, etc.

9. Assuming that you have not so far built any evidence and you do not seem to be able to do so, you should seek help from local resources, e.g., Employee’s Unions/Trade Unions leaders, e.g., CITU/AITUC/INTUC/BMS, etc. You can be a manager but still, you can be a member of a union, and a union can embrace you. As a matter of right, you can take a Union leader or, for that matter, even your lawyer with you to the office for conciliation, and the union leader can be a witness (record the meetings).

10. Demand for resignation is an offense. Forced resignation can be termed deemed termination.

Having explained it, you should generate irrefutable evidence, as in that case, you can successfully contest the termination and transfer and claim damages. The management may yield to avoid litigation and grant some time to you.

At Pune, you can access Labor Law Consultants/Service Matters Lawyers/Law Firms par excellence and should show all documents on record and understand the merits before you proceed further.

Regards