Feeling Stuck in a Two-Year Employment Bond: What Happens If I Leave Early?

I have signed an employment bond with my company stating that training will be provided to me for one year with a stipend of 17,500, and after the training period, I have to work for an additional year. Essentially, it is a two-year bond. If I disobey the contract, I have to pay a sum of 2 lakhs. I have worked in the company for just one month and 20 days, and I am really unsatisfied with the company. If I leave, will I face any problems such as paying a huge sum of 2 lakhs? Can anyone please help me? Also, what is a one-sided bond?

Understanding Employment Bonds

You have executed an employment bond with your company, thereby giving an undertaking to the company that after training, you shall serve the company for a minimum stipulated period of one year. If you intend to leave the company after only 2 months of joining, you are not adhering to the employment conditions and are violating the bond agreement. This breach will lead to a disagreement between you and the company. Consequently, you shall be liable to pay Rs. 2 lakhs as per the bond executed between you and the company.

Dear friend, Your inputs give the impression that the employment bond is strictly enforceable in a Court of Law if there is a breach on your part to serve the Company for a period of one year after completion of the training. The amount of the liquidated damages certainly corresponds to the amount, time, and efforts invested by the Company in your training, and the bond period is also very reasonable by all standards.

Therefore, it is advisable that you serve the entire bond period sincerely. If you are unsatisfied with the Company, that's a different thing about which outsiders cannot comment. If your dissatisfaction is genuine and costlier than the bond amount, it is better to remit it and resign simultaneously. On the contrary, if you indulge in tactics like absconding, the repercussions can be very serious to the extent of affecting your employability apart from the recovery of the bond amount through the Court process.

In case you are in the middle of the training, you may pay back the stipend received so far and resign.