Is It Fair for My Former Employer to Deduct Professional Tax After I Left? Seeking Advice on Next Steps

Dear Seniors, I need suggestions in the following regards:

I was working with one of the educational institutes where I was the admin head. It was a newly started college in the year 2014 and had not registered under PF & Professional Tax statutory compliances. The company had never deducted any single rupee for PF & PT. They were providing a fixed salary only. However, when I left and after around 20 days, I received the full and final amount cheque after a deduction of Rs. 800/- for professional tax for 4 months.

Steps to Take Against the Company

What steps can I take against them, and is it really feasible for the company to take such action? Can they do this even if they have now registered for PF & PT? Please guide me on further actions.

Thanks in advance.

They may not have deducted PF, as it cannot be registered overnight. However, Professional Tax is mandatory for all organizations to deduct and pay to local corporations or panchayats. If they have deducted but not paid to the authorities, you can send a letter through registered post asking for proof of challan or payment details to the authorities.

I believe that they would have paid that Professional Tax, which is deducted every 6 months (April to September will be deducted in September, and October to March will be deducted in March) by most organizations.

Regards

Let me understand this. You worked for a college for a year. Twenty days after you left, they provided you with a full and final settlement. They deducted ₹800 from that for professional tax, which you had not paid during the one year you worked there.

Now you want to take some legal action to recover that ₹800. Does it even matter? It is an amount that, by law, you should have paid monthly for the last year. The company is liable to pay it, and they have deducted it rightly.

If you want, you can always ask for proof of payment from your previous employer. If they do nothing to provide it, you can complain to the labor officer (I think your salary is above ₹18,000 per month, so actually, you are not covered under the Payment of Wages Act) or file a case in the small causes court. You can also file a complaint with the professional tax department.

However, any of this will cost more than the ₹800. Additionally, your previous employer may ensure you receive a negative review every time someone conducts a background check on you.