Facing a Surprise 60-Day Notice Period: How Should I Handle This Without Prior Documentation?

I joined a private company based in Gurgaon in February 2020. I was informed of a 30-day notice period during the training period for confirmed employees and 15 days for unconfirmed employees. However, no documentation or policy was shared with me during my tenure. Later, I decided to move forward and tendered my resignation with a notice period of 17 days, assuming a 30-day notice period. Now, the company is asking me to serve a 60-day notice period as per company policy (which was never communicated to me) or a recovery letter will be issued accordingly. I need your help on how to handle this situation if any legal letter is issued to me.

Understanding Notice Period Obligations

The poster should check their appointment letter as well as the establishment's standing orders or service regulations. In the absence of any mention of a notice clause in the appointment letter, whatever is mentioned in the service regulations will apply. If both do not specify notice requirements in the event of separation by either party, the employer cannot compel the employee according to their whims and fancies.

Steps for a Peaceful Exit

If the poster wants a peaceful exit, first, they should try for a negotiated settlement. Secondly, to avoid undesirable consequences like the present employer refusing to accept their resignation, declaring them an absconder, or providing negative feedback during background verification, they should simply buy out whatever notice period is insisted upon by the present employer. Unfortunately, the employer always remains a superior party to the contract of employment.

Thank you for the clarity; however, I have not received any appointment or offer letter from the company that describes any of the company policies or the notice period policy. HR has only stated that if the 60-day notice period is not served, a recovery letter will be issued.

Regards,
Kunal

Hi Kunal,

Continuing the post of a learned member,

It's presumed you have already submitted your resignation and are now on notice period (NP). Counting from the joining date, i.e., Feb. 20, until now, you have been on the rolls for almost 6 months. Is it a 'training period'? If yes, will there be a demand from the office to pay back a certain cost of training?

Probably this tenure is interspersed with spells of lockdown/lockout due to COVID stipulations. Did you receive a salary for all these months? If there were instances of non-payment of salary, will there be a chance of quoting it as a "reason for quitting"? There is an option to precipitate the issue, definitely, but your career cannot wait for the time involved.

Since there is nothing on record 'as terms & conditions', a smooth and clear relieving only will help you shape your future career as suggested above.