Facing Pressure to Resign After Accident and Surgery – How Should I Respond?

Hi, I met with an accident on 31st Jan in the evening after office hours. I fractured my leg and had surgery. I have informed my office and told them that I will be joining after recovering. I have requested some more time, but they are asking me to resign. Please help.

What has happened to you is quite unfortunate. Every person has to pass through a bad patch in life, and this is your bad patch. "They" refers to exactly who is telling you to resign? I recommend you write a letter to your Managing Director (MD). Attach a medical certificate to the application. Let them keep you on Leave Without Pay (LWP) but keep you on the roll.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

HR is asking for my resignation, and they have changed the password of my official email as well.

Since you seem to be working as a software engineer at the grassroots level and are considered a technical person, you may be covered under the definition of a workman of the ID Act. Forced resignation is unlawful termination. You need not resign; instead, send a registered protest letter to the MD enclosing an application for the grant of leave on medical grounds along with the original medical certificate from a doctor, preferably from a civil hospital, advising bed rest. State that you are being unlawfully pressured by HR to resign solely due to an accident you had on a specific date. Such unfortunate accidents can happen to anyone, and you expected assistance from the company. Await a response. Read the thread titled "Forced to resign due to my hip fracture."

Thanks,

Sushil

Forced Resignation and Work-Related Accidents

Forced resignation would be unlawful. Additionally, the company should acknowledge that the accident occurred while you were returning from work and is related to your work in some way. Simply communicate with the higher management, explaining the issue with documentation, and request them to retain your employment if necessary, even if it means without pay.

HR Cannot Ask You to Resign Without a Valid Reason

HR cannot ask you to resign without a valid reason. You can even fight it in court. Keep the documents safely and approach a labor lawyer.

Regards.

I agree with all of them, and I disagree with all of them. Currently, your health is important, so please take care of yourself. If your company has decided not to continue with your services, they will likely not change their decision. If you file a case, they may hire you, but you may not receive the same respect or position within the company. It is advisable to resign and look for another option; don't burn bridges.

All the best. Hope it helps.

Resignation is Not the Only Option

When a person is down and out due to injury, it is unjust to terminate them without care for the employee. Injury is an outcome of your duty. You got injured while returning from office duty, and this cannot be treated by the company so casually.

You must take a strong stance with the company to withdraw the termination by writing to higher management, who may have a broader perspective of the whole issue. After all, a negative image of the company will emerge if the facts become public.

Looking for another job is a different thing and can always be done, but first, it is important to get humane and just treatment from the employer.

Hi Abhishek, I hope you are doing well now. I don't know which company you work for; I just wanted to know if the Offer Letter provided to you by the company mentions that "the company can ask the employee to resign at any point during your tenure in the company"?

The reason I'm asking you this is that in my experience, I had a similar case where an employee who was asked to resign for some reason went to "The Court of Law." There, it was highlighted by the company officials that the employee had signed the Offer Letter, which mentioned that the company could ask him/her to resign at any point.

So, please double-check the above. If you don't find anything like that, you don't have to resign from the services. You can go to "The Court of Law" and demand your rights.

Thank you.