Terminated Employee after domestic enquiry not Accepted the gratuity and full and final settlement

Dear Seniors,

Kindly note, one of our permanent workers was terminated due to long absenteeism after conducting the proper disciplinary procedure. However, he is denying accepting gratuity and other benefits such as the Company Welfare Fund, etc.

We informed him via letter communication to come and accept, but he has not responded. Should I submit the gratuity payment to the controlling authority on this ground? It has been one year since he was removed from our master role.

Is it possible for him to file a complaint against the company regarding his termination after one year? Should I pay the interest for the gratuity?

Please advise.

Dear Mohandas,

1) Since almost one year is over from the date of termination, the interest liability on gratuity arises even though the employee failed to collect it from the employer even after intimation. Therefore, deposit the amount with the C.A together with simple interest @ 10% p.a from the date it became payable.

2) The time limit for raising an industrial dispute u/s 2-A is 3 years from the date of termination. Therefore, within that period, he can raise a dispute.

Thank you, Umakanthi Sir, for your valuable feedback. Let me clarify one thing: when we submit the Gratuity payment to the C.A., should we inform the concerned employee in writing that we have deposited their payment with the C.A.?

Regards

It is up to your company/management to inform the terminated employee. But statutorily speaking, once the company has decided to deposit the amount to the C.A., the concerned employee need not be informed. You have already informed him to collect the gratuity dues, but have not received any reply.

Dear Radhakrishnan Sir,

Thank you so much for your feedback.

Can an employee be terminated after 5 years of inquiry, that too without any payment of wages in between or any interim relief? The company does not have any Certificate of Standing Orders and is not complying with Model Standing Orders.

Please let me know if you have any further questions or need clarification.

Terminating an employee after 5 years of enquiry, that too without any payment of wages and benefits in between, and labor court decision on adjudication matter that the Workman is not entitled to any consequential benefits, and the transfer order served by employers is correct. The company does not have any Certified Standing Orders and is not complying with Model Standing Orders. The lower court did not favor the employee. The matter is now in the high court.

Can miscellaneous labor court cases under 33C2 be transferred from one court to another, as State DLC gives in writing that they can intervene only in adjudication matters filed through them? How to overcome?

Dear V.G,

The case you've narrated most probably pertains to that of a Sales Promotion Employee (Medical Rep) employed in a Pharma Co., if I presume correctly. I think that you have omitted the crucial part of the episode. The efflux of 5 years without pay might be due to the reason of the employee's refusal to join in the transferred place as he would have been fighting his transfer in any Labour Court as illegal and against the model standing orders and lost the case. Despite the later amendment to the term workman under the ID Act, 1947, lower Courts as well as the Supreme Court uphold the ratio decidendi of the earlier Adhyantaya case. It's better for your trade union to move the Legislature to take further suitable action in this regard.

Dear Sir,

I have worked in a private limited company for around 9 years and 5 months, and now the business is very slow in our Chennai office. They are not providing my salary on time. Instead, they are crediting my salary in the following month. Should I be eligible to receive gratuity?

Thank you.

Of course, the temporary inability of the employer to disburse salary can be tolerated for some time by the employees. But when it becomes a routine affair, there is no purpose in continuing one's employment under such an employer. The employee can choose to resign and thereby claim his gratuity if the entire service rendered so far is not less than 5 years of continuous service.