Navigating Contractual Employee Issues: Can We Backdate Contracts and Set Notice Periods?

Hi,

Please suggest. We are having a few contractual employees in our organization. Before my joining, HR was not fully functional; i.e., the Manager of Accounts used to take care of HR functions. Because of this, employees whose contracts expired a year ago have not been given any contract letters, but they are still working for us. My question is:

1. Employees are asking for contract letters for the period they have already worked. Can we provide backdated contract letters?

2. In our contract letters, the initial notice period is 15 days for those who have not completed 6 months in the organization and one month for those who have completed one year. In the case of renewing the contract for an employee who has already completed 6 months or one year in the organization, what should be the notice period: 15 days or 1 year?

I wanted to add here that after the completion of the contract, the remaining leaves in the person's account become zero.

3. In the event an employee leaves after the contract ends and does not have a fresh contract letter, can we ask for a notice period?

Regards,

Shipra

1. A backdated letter would not be advisable, but a letter that states the contract commences from a specific date would be more suitable.

2. Once a contract is renewed, the notice period will depend on whether you have changed the terms and conditions or just stated that they will remain the same. The other party always has the choice of accepting or rejecting your offer.

3. Once the contract period finishes, the contractor is not bound by any law to continue work unless their contract is renewed; hence, the notice period bears no significance.

Regards,
Vidya

Hi,

As advised by Vidya, backdated letters are not advisable. Secondly, once the contract is renewed, you can change the notice period if required as it's a new contract in the first place. Accepting it or rejecting it is in their hands.

With warm regards, Karuuna

Hi Radhika,

I hope you are doing well. I would be happy to share a contract letter format with you as your company is planning to hire some engineers on a contractual basis.

Warm Regards

Dear,

Can you please tell whether your standing orders allow for such types of contract labor? Have your contractors obtained a license to supply you with contract labor? If not, it is merely eyewash, and they are considered your employees.

I feel this is not contract labor but a fixed-term appointment, which the Delhi government does not permit. In this scenario, they are deemed your permanent employees and are entitled to all facilities provided to permanent employees.

Regards,
J. S. Malik

There are two types of employment: fixed-term and indefinite. Management shouldn't mix and match provisions to display compliance with labor laws. For example, let's consider a 3-month contractual role. If one person occupies this role for 4 quarters, then this amounts to a permanent role.