Maternity Leave and Notice Period - Can they deny giving me maternity pay if I don't rejoin?

Hello, I am a teacher and currently on my Maternity Leave. My daughter was born on 8th Dec 2021, and I was supposed to resume my work on June 8, 2022. I am currently not paid my maternity pay, and according to my school, I will be paid my maternity pay in March 2023 as per their school contract.

Recently, during my maternity leave, I have received a good job offer with the 7th pay commission from another school. So, I have put in my resignation through email to my principal on 28th Feb, requesting her to relieve me from the service, considering my last three months of maternity leave as my notice period. As I will not be available during the notice period, I am proposing to deduct my last three months of maternity pay in lieu of my absence.

According to my school contract, it's clearly stated that "After confirmation, the services of the employee are liable to be terminated upon three months of written notice on either side or payment in lieu thereof. No salary will be paid for leave taken during the notice period." "If the employee desires to resign from the school during the service period, then he/she shall be entitled to resign at the end of the academic year or if 3 working months advance notice of the intention to resign is given to the school, whichever occurs later."

However, my Principal is insisting that I serve a three months' working notice period after my Maternity Leave, which means I won't be able to join the new job profile. I am also asked to pay Rs 30,000 as training fees conducted in the year 2019 because we signed a contract stating that if I resign prior to May 2022, I will have to refund the money for the training. But the company agreement signed during my joining says that "The employee shall also commit to staying with the school for a minimum of one year after completing sponsored training with the school. In the event that the employee leaves the school before the completion of the year, she shall be responsible for refunding the training fees to the school."

Kindly guide me:

1. What options do I have to be relieved from the services?
2. Do I have to pay this training fee? If yes, can I ask the school to deduct it from my full and final settlement of gratuity and the first three months of maternity pay?
3. Can they deny giving my relieving letter?
4. Can my last three months of maternity leave be considered as my notice period without pay?
5. Can they deny giving me maternity pay if I don't rejoin?

Please help.

You have raised a complicated point. Out of the lot, I can definitely answer one point:

5. Can they deny giving my maternity pay if I don't rejoin?
No, they cannot deny the payment. In fact, the payment should have been made each month and not at the end of the maternity period. This act is wrong, and the school may face a penalty for the same.

The rest is concerning the notice period. There is no clear law, so you need the advice of a labor lawyer who can give the reply after considering all aspects. Or you may be able to take the help and advice of the labor commissioner. Many of them are helpful to employees but not all, so I am not sure of that.

If you are getting relieved, don't bother with the training fees. Pay it even if you feel it is not due back to them because it may help you solve the other problems.

They can deny you the relieving letter if they feel you did not complete the notice period. Most companies will deny the adjustment of the notice period against leave. But it depends mostly on whether there is something they need you to finish. Considering that they would need to pay you even though you were not in the school, they should actually be happy. But then each organization has a different approach, so I am guessing.

The school cannot adjust your dues to the company against gratuity. That is illegal. So you will have to pay it separately before they do your F&F.

As for the training cost. The agreement signed by you in 2019 of not leaving till May 2022 would override the joining letter terms. So I think you need to pay that to them.

As I said, in view of the complex circumstances, this needs to be reviewed by a lawyer or a consultant who has the ability to review everything, including data and information we don't have with us, the full details of your terms, agreement you signed, etc.

1. What options do I have to be relieved from the services?
2. Do I have to pay this training fee, if yes, then can I ask the school to deduct it from my full and final settlement of gratuity and the first three months of maternity pay?
3. Can they deny giving my relieving letter?
4. Can my last three months of maternity leave be considered as my notice period without pay?

Please help.

Dear Madam,

As a responsible employee as well as a law-abiding person, one should have a thorough understanding of his/her employment rules and exercise utmost caution when making any significant employment decisions in accordance with the current rules.

You are well aware of your maternity leave of 26 weeks commencing probably from 08-12-2021, and it appears that you intend to utilize the entire leave period. However, how do you plan to join a new job in the meantime? Additionally, considering there is a specific rule prohibiting resignations in the middle of the academic year, with resignations requiring due notice linked explicitly to the end of the academic year with a "Whichever Later" clause, how can you submit a resignation before the current academic year concludes? Since your scheduled date of rejoining after the 26-week maternity leave falls in June 2022, based on the aforementioned exit clause, your resignation would only be effective after the end of the academic year 2022-2023. It would have been prudent to consider these factors before accepting the new offer and submitting your resignation. Consequently, your school management, as the employer, reserves the right to reject your resignation, require you to rejoin after the statutory maternity leave ends, and, if necessary, take appropriate disciplinary action that could impact your future employability.

To the best of my knowledge, there are no statutory rules governing notice periods for resignations; this is typically a matter addressed within the employment contract.

According to section 6(5) of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, wages/salary for the period of absence due to maternity must be paid in advance.

In relation to your post-training obligations, it is imperative that you fulfill the terms of the agreement.

Thank you.