Promotion due to a System Glitch - Indian Labour Law which states that once a designation is given to an employee it cannot be taken back

There are policies in our company for promotions that depend on certain criteria. For example, if an employee is a Senior Associate and wants to move up a level to Lead Associate in my company, the criteria is a tenure of 1 year as a Senior Associate. Unfortunately, there has been a promotion for an employee who has not fulfilled the 1-year criterion. I have raised a complaint about this with HR, and HR has stated that it was a system glitch and the mistake cannot be corrected. I have also been informed that, according to Indian Labour Law, once a designation is mistakenly given to an employee, it cannot be revoked. The promoted employee is close to influential individuals within the organization.

Is there a policy in Indian Labour Law that states a designation given to an employee cannot be retracted, even if it was a mistake?

Thank you for your time.

Dear Aniket,

This is a clear case of partisanship or favoritism. When HR says that once a promotion is given, even if inadvertently, then it cannot be taken back as per HR laws, it is nothing but they are taking you for a ride. Now you have two options. One is to just let go, and another is to bring this favoritism to the notice of the MD/CEO. The latter option is obviously fraught with risk.

By the way, did your HR conduct workplace games to improve employee engagement? It is important to know this as real employee engagement lies in creating an environment of fairness. If the environment is vitiated by such partisanship, then those conducting those games are superfluous.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

Thank you.

Could you please tell me if there is a law in Indian labor law that states a designation provided to an employee cannot be revoked, even if it was a mistake? If not, but the management still favors the employee and does not correct their error, can I sue the company for violating their own policies?

Dear Colleague,

To the best of my knowledge, there is no labor law in India that prohibits changing an employee's designation for valid reasons unless there is an existing agreement between the Union and Management to that effect. Even in such cases, it would only be applicable to the 'Workman' category.

The reasons cited by your HR for its inability to change the designation due to a system glitch and under the incorrect interpretation of Indian labor laws seem to be motivated to favor the individual concerned. This seems like a deserving case that should be brought to the attention of the higher-ups to rectify this error.

Regards,
Vinayak Nagarkar
HR Consultant

Hi,

Thank you all for your valuable time and response towards my query. I have implemented your advice and presented it to the CEO of my company. There is a reply from the CEO and his team who have asked for time to look into the matter. As this issue has been highlighted, several of the higher management employees reporting to the CEO have approached me personally.

Their conversations revolve around the fact that the promotion does not have any impact on my career or growth opportunities. Secondly, if I ask them to correct the mistake, I am told that it doesn't affect them as an organization. Thirdly, when asked about how the system glitch occurred, I receive different explanations from multiple people such as software glitch, exception given to the employee (without necessary approvals), and the employee's exceptional performance (even though the annual performance rating for the employee was average).

I will be having a formal meeting with the vice president of the organization in a few days, and I am seeking advice on how to approach the conversation. So far, everyone from the management has tried to steer the discussion away from the mistake towards my career goals. I have informed them that if I need career advice, I will approach them, but they keep repeating the same points.

I would greatly appreciate your help and advice on how to handle this meeting. Thank you once again for your guidance and time.

Dear Colleague,

In the forthcoming meeting with your VP, stick to your stand that what management has done is wrong, and they have to correct it. No legal hurdle or anything else can stop them from making corrections except their willingness to do it. Remember that you are not directly affected by the decision of the management, but you are taking this up for the larger interest. You have no locus standi to pursue this on the legal front.

Regards,
Vinayak Nagarkar
HR Consultant