Hello,
One of my friends has received an offer from a company in the month of February 2020 and accordingly, he resigned from the company. He was supposed to join the new company on March 19, 2020, but the new company postponed his joining due to the Corona pandemic. They sent him a revised offer on March 19, 2020, stating he can join them on or before April 20, 2020. He replied that he would be joining on April 15, 2020. However, on April 9, 2020, he received an email from the new employer stating that his offer has been withdrawn due to the global scenario.
Is it legal? What should the candidate do now as he has already served the notice period in the previous organization and has no other offer in hand? What actions can the candidate take against this organization?
From Taiwan, Taipei
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1One of my friends has received an offer from a company in the month of February 2020 and accordingly, he resigned from the company. He was supposed to join the new company on March 19, 2020, but the new company postponed his joining due to the Corona pandemic. They sent him a revised offer on March 19, 2020, stating he can join them on or before April 20, 2020. He replied that he would be joining on April 15, 2020. However, on April 9, 2020, he received an email from the new employer stating that his offer has been withdrawn due to the global scenario.
Is it legal? What should the candidate do now as he has already served the notice period in the previous organization and has no other offer in hand? What actions can the candidate take against this organization?
From Taiwan, Taipei
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Dear Pallavi,
Misfortune has struck your friend in a real sense. The situation has left your friend in a lurch.
An appointment letter is a contract between the employer and the employee under the provisions of the Indian Contract Act, 1872.
However, the offer letter may not constitute a contract. It may not specify whether the offer of employment is revocable or not, as this detail may not be mentioned. It becomes a contract only if the conditions for revoking the offer of employment are explicitly stated.
Therefore, it is advisable to review the conditions outlined in the offer letter. If the conditions for cancellation are clearly mentioned, then nothing can be done per se.
Nevertheless, your friend may consider writing a letter to the Managing Director of the future company, pleading to proceed with the filling of the vacancy as planned. The outcome of your friend's request is yet to be determined.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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Misfortune has struck your friend in a real sense. The situation has left your friend in a lurch.
An appointment letter is a contract between the employer and the employee under the provisions of the Indian Contract Act, 1872.
However, the offer letter may not constitute a contract. It may not specify whether the offer of employment is revocable or not, as this detail may not be mentioned. It becomes a contract only if the conditions for revoking the offer of employment are explicitly stated.
Therefore, it is advisable to review the conditions outlined in the offer letter. If the conditions for cancellation are clearly mentioned, then nothing can be done per se.
Nevertheless, your friend may consider writing a letter to the Managing Director of the future company, pleading to proceed with the filling of the vacancy as planned. The outcome of your friend's request is yet to be determined.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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A contract is complete when there is an offer and acceptance. Here, there is an offer and acceptance which makes a contract complete. But going beyond the basics of a contract - offer and acceptance - as rightly mentioned above by a learned member, you will have to read the offer letter in full. What are the conditions in the offer letter? Where is the company based? Your post appears to be from Taiwan. Is the company based in Taiwan, and is the offer in Taiwan? Then Taiwanese laws will come into play. Regardless of the legalities of the matter, the candidate can ask them to reconsider the cancellation and ask for a longer date, by which time Covid would be conquered (It will be). Meantime, look around, add to skills by online courses, etc. A legal battle would be of no major consequence, presently. All the best.
From India, Pune
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From India, Pune
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PLEASE SHOW THE CONTENT OF OFFER LETTER AT attrilegalservices@gmail.com I WILL GUIDE YOU. REGARDS PARDEEP SHARMA ATTRI
From India, Mumbai
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From India, Mumbai
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Dear Pallavi Prasade,
This is the situation which is common nowadays, especially in the Software Industry. This time, it may be due to the lockdown situation, but we have seen companies doing this very often due to different reasons. Sometimes companies release extra offers to prevent and deal with last-minute drop-out cases; as a backup resource, sometimes it is due to slow business/ramp-down, and many times due to budget constraints.
Companies always keep only favorable terms and conditions in any contract; hence there are very few legal options left with your friend for now. You may need to go through the details of the offer letter first.
Solutions, other than legal (as we don't know the offer contents yet), may be:
- He can write an email to the company's Head-HR & MD/CEO - informing them of his current jobless situation in this pandemic (it should be polite but give a strong message informing his current situation) - writing such an email is an art - please take someone's advice and draft a strong email - feel free to reach out to me for any guidance if you need suggestions while preparing the draft email.
- Social media is one platform where your friend can connect with the company's MD/senior management people (as your friend may not have their personal email IDs right now).
As mentioned by Nathroa above, I do second him on the following points. These are the best-suited options for him right now:
- He can ask for a future date of joining if there is no position right now (it gives a positive message to an employer)
- Your friend may opt for various online courses during this lockdown period.
In my point of view, if a company is not stable due to a 1 or 2 months lockdown, it may not be the company one should target for their future job. This is a strong message to your friend, telling him to look for a stable company for better future prospects.
From Ghana, Kumasi
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This is the situation which is common nowadays, especially in the Software Industry. This time, it may be due to the lockdown situation, but we have seen companies doing this very often due to different reasons. Sometimes companies release extra offers to prevent and deal with last-minute drop-out cases; as a backup resource, sometimes it is due to slow business/ramp-down, and many times due to budget constraints.
Companies always keep only favorable terms and conditions in any contract; hence there are very few legal options left with your friend for now. You may need to go through the details of the offer letter first.
Solutions, other than legal (as we don't know the offer contents yet), may be:
- He can write an email to the company's Head-HR & MD/CEO - informing them of his current jobless situation in this pandemic (it should be polite but give a strong message informing his current situation) - writing such an email is an art - please take someone's advice and draft a strong email - feel free to reach out to me for any guidance if you need suggestions while preparing the draft email.
- Social media is one platform where your friend can connect with the company's MD/senior management people (as your friend may not have their personal email IDs right now).
As mentioned by Nathroa above, I do second him on the following points. These are the best-suited options for him right now:
- He can ask for a future date of joining if there is no position right now (it gives a positive message to an employer)
- Your friend may opt for various online courses during this lockdown period.
In my point of view, if a company is not stable due to a 1 or 2 months lockdown, it may not be the company one should target for their future job. This is a strong message to your friend, telling him to look for a stable company for better future prospects.
From Ghana, Kumasi
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