Is Delaying Appointment Letters by Three Months After Joining a Good Practice? Seeking Advice

Dear Sir/Madam,

Greetings of the day!

I am working in a Pvt. Ltd Company where we issue offer letters on time. However, we issue the Appointment letter after three months of joining, or it may be even later.

I believe this is not the right process. It would be more appropriate to release the appointment letter after completion of all the necessary documentation from the employee's side.

I seek your advice on this matter and would appreciate your suggestions regarding the ideal timing for issuing an appointment letter.

Regards,
HR

Procedure for Issuing Appointment Letters

Your organization needs to follow the correct procedure once the employee joins your company. Issuing an appointment letter after three months is a gross neglect of either the Shops & Establishment Act or Factory Act. Employers have a vested interest in delaying appointment letters. Generally, in such companies, newly joined employees are classified as casual workers. This classification helps them evade PF contributions. If the employee is found to be suitable and amenable to the company's culture, an appointment letter is then issued.

I recommend not handling this matter on your own. Instruct employees to request the issuance of an appointment letter within a fortnight of joining. Encourage them to express any grievances directly. I suggest this approach because your employer should not hold you responsible for instigating the employees.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

The Issue of Job Hopping and Appointment Letters

Job hopping has become very common these days. It is often seen that employees negotiate with their current employer on salary using an appointment letter from a future employer. This is not a good practice, and both the current and future employers lose in this bargain. One would agree that the interview process incurs a cost, and an employer loses money if a candidate absconds shortly after joining. This ill practice must stop, and thus the delayed issuance of the Letter of Appointment is adopted.

Furthermore, an HR professional runs the risk of losing their job by being provocative and vocal on this issue. The chances of a victimized employee taking legal action against the employer for disobedience also seem remote. HR can make the management aware of the legalities involved, albeit not directly.

Regards,

I have a different opinion on this. If your organization has set up a probation period for the new joiners, then you can wait until that time and then issue an appointment letter.