Notice Period Confusion in Job Offer: Is It Fair to Have Different Terms for Employer and Employee?

Notice Period Discrepancies in Offer Letter

I am going to join a small IT firm where I noted a strange notice period option. It is 30 days from the employer and 60 days from the employee. Also, it's not clarified in the offer letter what the employee's side notice period and employer's side notice period are during the probation period of 6 months, except that it has been mentioned that it can be terminated at any time during probation by the employer, which means 0 days notice. However, I was verbally informed that it would be 30 days from the employee and 15 days from the employer as the notice period from the employer.

My Questions

1. Is it common to have such different notice periods for the employer/employee? Is it legally valid, and how often are such cases noticed? Usually, as I understand, the notice period is the same for the employer as well as the employee.

2. Should I ask the employer to match the notice period as the same, i.e., either 30 days or 60 days for both the employer and employee, or does it give the wrong impression and message to the prospective employer?

3. Should I ask the employer to correct the offer letter with probation period notice details?

Please clarify as soon as possible as I need to send the acceptance of the offer and start the next steps from my end.

Regards

Clarification on Offer Letter and Appointment Letter

First, we need clarification about "Offer Letter" and "Appointment Letter." The former is issued to the job candidate when the employer feels that the candidate deserves to be taken on board. The latter is issued once the candidate joins the employment. Clauses of the probation period, notice period for separation, etc., are included in this letter.

Now, my question is how the company has disclosed so openly the conditions of employment in general and conditions of separation in particular well before taking the job candidate on board. This is something strange.

Concerns Regarding the Letter of Appointment

Coming to your query, the Letter of Appointment is a contract between the employer and employee. In your case, the company has included certain clauses that favor them. Therefore, the contract is one-sided. Secondly, the clause on separation during the probation is incomplete and, therefore, left to interpretation by either side. Further, you have written that "But I was verbally informed that it would be 30 days from the employee and 15 days from the employer as the notice period from the employer." Who gave this assurance? Why is it not included in the letter of appointment? Verbal assurances carry no meaning.

Company's Professionalism and Future Implications

The conditions of employment speak to the psychology of the company as a whole. The company is not at all professional. The conditions mentioned in the appointment letter are a precursor to what may be stored in the future.

I do not know whether you have put up a resignation to the current employer. However, asking for corrections in the clauses in the appointment letter may not correct their quixotism. As stated earlier, uneven conditions of employment show that the employer does not respect the principle of equality. Therefore, if you join, you might have to face more unprofessional decisions of the management. Be cautious while joining. Think ten or even a hundred times to avoid regret in the future.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

Notice period has to be the same either way (employer/employee). It can never be different. If an employee is terminated, then he has to be compensated with notice period salary, which would enable him to sustain financially. The appointment letter should clearly state the notice period. It cannot be vague as it is in your case.

Conditions cannot be different and unfavorable for employees as compared to the conditions set by the employer for himself. This renders the employment agreement void under the Contract Act.

Dear All, Thank you for the updates, and I certainly understand and appreciate your views, which pinpoint that the agreement is biased towards the benefit of the employer. I am yet to resign from my current organization, and just to clarify, I haven't joined or confirmed acceptance of the offer from the new company. I was issued a letter of intent which mentioned salary breakup details for review; however, the same didn't have any information regarding other employment terms. So, I asked queries on this issue, and they issued an offer letter which does have these notice period details mentioned apart from compensation details. As they have mentioned, I will get an appointment letter on the first day once I join the company.

Notice Period Customization

I am not sure if companies customize the notice period based on each individual, or it's just kind of the same for everyone in the organization. Probably someone who has experience in HR can shed light on this. Though I understand that the notice period can be different at different hierarchy levels (like junior staff, senior staff, managers, etc.).