Is It Legal to Withhold Pay During My Notice Period Until After I Leave?

I submitted my resignation last Friday. Unfortunately, there's a clause in the offer letter that specifies there would be no pay for the entire period, and the whole amount would be paid after my exit. I just wanted to know if it's legal to do that, and if not, what actions I could take.

P.S. My notice period is three months.

Hi, it is illegal to withhold the salary during the notice period. You can request at least partial salary from your employer. Explain to them that you have monthly commitments such as rent, food, and day-to-day expenses.

Thank you.

Legality of Withholding Salary and Notice Periods

It is illegal to withhold salary. Furthermore, it is illegal to impose a notice period on an employee who does not have any managerial responsibilities. This is because an employee without managerial duties would be classified as a workman under the ID Act, even if their salary exceeds lakhs. The ID Act does not contain any provision requiring an employee to provide notice when leaving employment. Additionally, a three-month notice period is excessive, and withholding salary for three months goes beyond industry norms.

This is illegal, but a practice followed by many companies. There is little you can actually do about this. Complaining to the authorities is unlikely to get you any relief in time. Besides, it will be a problem when the next company refers to your existing employer for background verification.

You need to arrange for cash flow from somewhere and manage in the meanwhile...