Stuck Without My Certificates: How Can I Resolve This Ongoing Issue with My Former Employer?

Hi Afrin,

I joined a small firm in Bangalore in 2017. At the time of joining, the company took my original certificates and didn't provide any proof of that. At that time, I was not aware of anything about proofs. Even after that, I informed management, but they didn't consider it. Due to some health issues, I left the company, and I was without work. They promised me that they would provide clients in Bangalore itself but continuously asked me to visit Noida whenever the project was there. Before joining, I clearly told them that my family wouldn't accept going to Noida. They said okay while joining, but later on, they pressured me to visit there. I wasted so much time simply sitting in the office. I know that they won't provide any work. In May 2019, I came to my hometown due to health issues, and my family didn't accept me rejoining that company.

I tried to discuss this with the company through phone calls, but I didn't get an appointment. Later, in February 2020, I visited the office to discuss certificates. They asked me to submit a laptop and pay rent. We have visited several times, but there has been no response from management regarding certificates. If I submit the laptop, I don't have any proof for certificates, which is the reason why I held the laptop. It's been almost three years now, and the issue is ongoing. Recently, I contacted a lawyer. He said he would talk to them and solve the issue, but he has created a nuisance without going legally. He took almost 60,000 from us, citing different reasons that he would file a case. He showed us some wrong documents in which my company logo and seal were there, stating that the company would return my certificates on or before the 6th of this month. After that, the lawyer's phone is switched off when we try to call him regarding certificates, and we came to know that he is a fraud. How can I proceed further? Please help me with that.

Hi, sitting at your native place will not help you resolve the issue. Three to four years is a pretty long time. You should visit your employer's place, explain the situation, and resolve it.

Thank you, V.M. Lakshminarayanan. We have visited several times, and they are demanding up to 3 lakhs. I am not in a situation to pay that much money.

Demanding money for the return of your original certificates amounts to extortion, a criminal offense. However, the post suggests that your approach to resolving the issue has been too confused and disjointed.

Hello, if your reason is valid, you can send them a mail request first a couple of times and check your offer letter if you have already joined them. Is there any clause mentioning that if you do not serve the notice period, you have to pay a certain amount? If not, you can approach the court with your medical documents and send a notice to the company regarding your documents. Find a good advocate in your location and update them as well.

From reading the question of the problem and the further reply given, the subject is not clear. The person questioning should amend it in the original question for help by editing with additional information. That will help anyone reading the thread understand the latest situation from your question.

Chronological Order of Events

1. Details of the offer: How did you come to know about the job offer?
2. Your application and documents submitted first.
3. Offer letter for employment and the conditions mentioned therein.
4. Does the offer letter mention submitting original documents to the employer?
5. Date of filing the joining report in the company.
6. Date of submission of original documents - list of documents submitted with full details: Certificate Number, Degree, year of passing, issued by University.
7. Name of the HR Executive or Manager who collected the originals.
8. Reason for leaving the company - provide clear details, no vague information.
9. Copy of your ID Card.
10. Company's property in your possession with full details - collected from the Office Authority Name.
11. List all the people's names and positions with dates.

Now, find out which industry you are in, and submit your complaint to the authority with a copy to the Labour Department.

Just visit the respective labor office of the jurisdiction area of the company if required to file an official complaint. This is the only solution to resolve all your grievances with the company (returning of laptop, etc.).

We have had experience with these types of issues, filed a complaint with the labor department, and the issues were resolved within one week recently.

I am surprised you have waited for 5 years for this matter. You should have filed a police complaint long ago. Do you have any proof that they have your documents? Holding back a laptop as proof that they have your documents makes no sense; please clarify that point. In any case, I don't think the company values a laptop that is now 5 years old. They can, in fact, file a theft case against you for holding on to their laptop.

Incidentally, have you tried getting duplicates of the certificates from the institutions you studied in?