Will a One-Day Service Gap Affect Gratuity After Promotion in the Same Company?

Hi all,

A person has worked continuously in an organization for 4 years. One day, he is promoted, and management asked him to write a resignation letter stating the last date of work. Later, he got an appointment letter. Now, the thing is there is a one-day service gap between the date of resignation and the date of joining the new designation in the same organization. Now, his total work experience in the organization is 7 years. Will he get gratuity in this case?

Legal Perspective on Resignation and Employment Contracts

Legally speaking, a resignation, when accepted by the employer and acted upon by both parties, ends the contract of employment. Any subsequent appointment in the same organization in the same or higher post, regardless of any gap, creates a new contract. Therefore, terminal benefits, including gratuity, are based on the service rendered during the earlier contract and cannot be combined with the new contract of employment.

Moral Perspective on HR Practices

Morally speaking, this is not a fair HR practice on the part of the employer. By and large, if this is a real incident, it shows how gullible the concerned employee was.

Exactly. If he stakes any such claim, in my opinion, he cannot be successful. My inference is that he might have been compelled to barter the previous service for the higher position offered as a fresh appointee. This position with sufficient experience might have procured him better offers from elsewhere so as to leave after three years. This might have kindled the claim for gratuity for the entire service of 7 years sans the break of one day in between.