Served a complete three-month notice period. Can the company withhold my PLI payout?

As part of my CTC, I have a PLI component which is pegged at 15% of my gross salary.

I work for a French company in India. We follow the French financial calendar that is Sep-Aug, and our PLI for the financial year Sep-Aug is usually paid out in the month of Oct post our performance reviews.

I am currently in the last leg of my notice period and was under the impression that I would be getting my PLI on a pro-rata basis. However, I now understand from HR that I will not be receiving this PLI. They have said that since you will not be with the organization at the time of payout, you will have to forfeit the same. I have read through all the HR policies in detail and also validated my appraisal letter, and nowhere has it been mentioned that if you are not with the organization at the time of payout, your PLI will be forfeited.

As per the policy, I have also served a complete three-month notice period. Can the company withhold my PLI payout? I can accept the fact that it may not be paid out to me in my FNF; however, is the company not liable to give me the same at the time of payout in the month of October? I have already spent 10 months of the current financial year with the organization. I am seeking expert advice on the same.

PLI, if I am not wrong, stands for Profit Linked Incentive. Most organizations pay it after the completion of the financial year (possibly after 3 months) to the employees on the payroll at that time.

There are a few exceptional organizations that pay it on a pro-rata basis even if the employee has left the organization. This will depend solely on the organization's policy. It is an extra legal benefit.

S K Bandyopadhyay (WB, Howrah)

Here, PLI is Performance Linked Incentive, which is a combination of employees' performance (80%) and the company's annual performance (20%).

PLI is a bonus, and in most cases, it would be at the discretion of the management. In some cases, it would be on a fixed formula. It depends on the terms, which we don't know. So we can't really comment on whether it is a part of the contracted benefits and therefore payable or if it is extra and optional.

There is very little you can do, other than perhaps take the matter up with the MD/CEO or the HR Head/Grievance Cell in France.