Dear Sir,
My name is Deepak Kumar, a Senior Executive in Operations at xxxxxx Pvt Ltd, a Chennai-based facility management company. I joined the company in March 2010. Unfortunately, after working here for 10 years and 5 months, my employer terminated me on the 14th of August 2020 without any prior notice. The reason cited was that I had allegedly shared confidential business information, including strategies, techniques, and secrets, with a former employee. This was seen as a violation of our code of conduct, non-disclosure policy, and organizational rules and regulations, resulting in financial and reputational loss for the company.
The company has withheld my salary for June, July, and August 2020, as well as other benefits such as conveyances, bonus, gratuity, and leave wages. They claim that since I have been terminated, I am not entitled to a full and final settlement.
I seek your advice on this matter.
Thank you.
From India, Ranchi
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My name is Deepak Kumar, a Senior Executive in Operations at xxxxxx Pvt Ltd, a Chennai-based facility management company. I joined the company in March 2010. Unfortunately, after working here for 10 years and 5 months, my employer terminated me on the 14th of August 2020 without any prior notice. The reason cited was that I had allegedly shared confidential business information, including strategies, techniques, and secrets, with a former employee. This was seen as a violation of our code of conduct, non-disclosure policy, and organizational rules and regulations, resulting in financial and reputational loss for the company.
The company has withheld my salary for June, July, and August 2020, as well as other benefits such as conveyances, bonus, gratuity, and leave wages. They claim that since I have been terminated, I am not entitled to a full and final settlement.
I seek your advice on this matter.
Thank you.
From India, Ranchi
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Dear Deepak Kumar,
What has happened with you is unfortunate. Nevertheless, while uploading the post on this forum, you could have edited the Termination Letter by way of removing your company's logo, name, address etc. By disclosing the details of your company on the public forum, you could not have achieved anything. You have approached this forum to seek a solution. Anyway, I have converted the PDF document into PNG and edited further.
It appears that there must be compelling reasons for the company to terminate you. It is not just an ordinary termination but the company is taking revenge against you by withholding your salary for the last couple of months. However, what exactly happened that you would know better.
Does the company have material evidence of your collusion with their competitor? Why your company has taken such a drastic action against a long-serving employee like you?
The last line of the first paragraph says that "you have admitted the aforesaid misconduct of yours". Does it mean that you were issued with the "Show Cause Notice"? In response, did you admit your misconduct?
Solution: - Your company should have conducted a domestic enquiry to prove your misconduct. Secondly, whatever may be misconduct, they cannot withhold your salary for the last couple of months. Therefore, I recommend you put up the application for the pending dues. Address the letter to the MD of the company. Write in sequence all the dues pending to you. Send the letter by speed post with acknowledgement due. Preserve a record of the receipt of the letter.
If the company pays your dues then well and good otherwise the only remedy left with you is to file a civil suit. This recommendation is under the assumption that being a Senior Executive - Operations, a few employees were reporting to you. As you had subordinates, the provisions of the Industrial Dispute Act, 1947 do not apply to you and as these provisions do not apply, you cannot file a complaint to the labour office. Since you were employed in Chennai, you will have to file a suit in that city only.
If the company had conducted the domestic enquiry and it was conducted properly then there is no point in filing a suit also.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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8220What has happened with you is unfortunate. Nevertheless, while uploading the post on this forum, you could have edited the Termination Letter by way of removing your company's logo, name, address etc. By disclosing the details of your company on the public forum, you could not have achieved anything. You have approached this forum to seek a solution. Anyway, I have converted the PDF document into PNG and edited further.
It appears that there must be compelling reasons for the company to terminate you. It is not just an ordinary termination but the company is taking revenge against you by withholding your salary for the last couple of months. However, what exactly happened that you would know better.
Does the company have material evidence of your collusion with their competitor? Why your company has taken such a drastic action against a long-serving employee like you?
The last line of the first paragraph says that "you have admitted the aforesaid misconduct of yours". Does it mean that you were issued with the "Show Cause Notice"? In response, did you admit your misconduct?
Solution: - Your company should have conducted a domestic enquiry to prove your misconduct. Secondly, whatever may be misconduct, they cannot withhold your salary for the last couple of months. Therefore, I recommend you put up the application for the pending dues. Address the letter to the MD of the company. Write in sequence all the dues pending to you. Send the letter by speed post with acknowledgement due. Preserve a record of the receipt of the letter.
If the company pays your dues then well and good otherwise the only remedy left with you is to file a civil suit. This recommendation is under the assumption that being a Senior Executive - Operations, a few employees were reporting to you. As you had subordinates, the provisions of the Industrial Dispute Act, 1947 do not apply to you and as these provisions do not apply, you cannot file a complaint to the labour office. Since you were employed in Chennai, you will have to file a suit in that city only.
If the company had conducted the domestic enquiry and it was conducted properly then there is no point in filing a suit also.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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Dear Deepak Kumar,
This is in addition to what I have suggested above. While sending the letter to the MD, attach Form 1 of the Employee Gratuity Act, 1972, duly filled with your application. You are eligible for the gratuity.
Before sending the letter, scan it along with all the attachments. After sending it via Speed Post, also scan the receipt from the post office and send the complete documentation by email to the MD. Remember to take a printout of the email and keep a copy for your records.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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This is in addition to what I have suggested above. While sending the letter to the MD, attach Form 1 of the Employee Gratuity Act, 1972, duly filled with your application. You are eligible for the gratuity.
Before sending the letter, scan it along with all the attachments. After sending it via Speed Post, also scan the receipt from the post office and send the complete documentation by email to the MD. Remember to take a printout of the email and keep a copy for your records.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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Thank you sir for your prompt response. I have some more quiery , we will discuss / email shortly. Regards, Deepak
From India, Ranchi
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From India, Ranchi
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In case you have admitted the charges, then the admission will be a strong factor against you. If you choose to challenge it, the actual words used in admission have to be seen. It would be better to consult a lawyer specialized in service law with all the documents.
But as regards gratuity, you can go to the Controlling Authority under the PGA (normally the Assistant Labour Commissioner) and submit an application after a month of termination of service, stating that gratuity has not been paid so far. Similarly, you can file an application for annual leave with wages before the Labour Inspector and use his good offices. You may also mention non-payment of salary.
From India, Mumbai
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But as regards gratuity, you can go to the Controlling Authority under the PGA (normally the Assistant Labour Commissioner) and submit an application after a month of termination of service, stating that gratuity has not been paid so far. Similarly, you can file an application for annual leave with wages before the Labour Inspector and use his good offices. You may also mention non-payment of salary.
From India, Mumbai
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Greetings, Sir,
Regarding the above subject matter, I would like to clarify some doubts:
1. Since the date of joining until my last working day, I worked in Ranchi (Jharkhand) reporting to the Kolkata branch of the organization for the East Zone. (Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Assam, and West Bengal states fall under the Kolkata branch - East Zone).
2. I asked our HR to share the name of the person to whom I have disclosed what kind of confidential information of the organization I shared, on the basis of which action has been taken against me. However, we have not received a reply to the email to date.
3. On Sunday, 21st June 2020, our reporting manager called me and inquired about the allegation (I was unaware if it was a domestic inquiry against me). During the phone call, I admitted that I had shared some unofficial information with that person, but it was not related to our company. After about 10 minutes of discussion, he requested me to send an email. He called me again and asked me to rewrite the email changing "Unofficial to Official Information." Subsequently, our salary was withheld. Despite sending several emails regarding my salary, I have not received a response from our seniors. Finally, I received an email from HR stating a termination letter after 2 months without any prior notice.
Please advise on how I can proceed to claim my dues. If the dues are not cleared even after addressing the MD in writing, where can I file a complaint?
Regards,
Deepak
From India, Ranchi
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Regarding the above subject matter, I would like to clarify some doubts:
1. Since the date of joining until my last working day, I worked in Ranchi (Jharkhand) reporting to the Kolkata branch of the organization for the East Zone. (Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Assam, and West Bengal states fall under the Kolkata branch - East Zone).
2. I asked our HR to share the name of the person to whom I have disclosed what kind of confidential information of the organization I shared, on the basis of which action has been taken against me. However, we have not received a reply to the email to date.
3. On Sunday, 21st June 2020, our reporting manager called me and inquired about the allegation (I was unaware if it was a domestic inquiry against me). During the phone call, I admitted that I had shared some unofficial information with that person, but it was not related to our company. After about 10 minutes of discussion, he requested me to send an email. He called me again and asked me to rewrite the email changing "Unofficial to Official Information." Subsequently, our salary was withheld. Despite sending several emails regarding my salary, I have not received a response from our seniors. Finally, I received an email from HR stating a termination letter after 2 months without any prior notice.
Please advise on how I can proceed to claim my dues. If the dues are not cleared even after addressing the MD in writing, where can I file a complaint?
Regards,
Deepak
From India, Ranchi
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Dear Deepak,
From your latest reply, it appears that neither a show cause was served to you nor was the enquiry conducted. Therefore, the decision of the management is challengeable in the court of law.
Nevertheless, as stated in my previous post, the first step is sending a proper letter to the MD of the company asking for all the dues. If you do not receive any reply or if the reply is not satisfactory, then you can go ahead with the lawsuit.
For KK!HR: Sir, you have recommended him to approach the labour office of the city where he worked; however, with the designation of "Senior Executive - Operations" and that too with 10.5 years of service, I doubt he can be classified as a workman under the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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From your latest reply, it appears that neither a show cause was served to you nor was the enquiry conducted. Therefore, the decision of the management is challengeable in the court of law.
Nevertheless, as stated in my previous post, the first step is sending a proper letter to the MD of the company asking for all the dues. If you do not receive any reply or if the reply is not satisfactory, then you can go ahead with the lawsuit.
For KK!HR: Sir, you have recommended him to approach the labour office of the city where he worked; however, with the designation of "Senior Executive - Operations" and that too with 10.5 years of service, I doubt he can be classified as a workman under the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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Dear Deepak Kumar,
You need to defend yourself, and for that, you need to approach a good advocate as suggested by our learned member and super moderator. Tell him everything without hiding any details. Provide all the correspondence between you and the company promptly.
Let the advocate decide on the best course of action in your case.
Thank you.
From India, Mumbai
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You need to defend yourself, and for that, you need to approach a good advocate as suggested by our learned member and super moderator. Tell him everything without hiding any details. Provide all the correspondence between you and the company promptly.
Let the advocate decide on the best course of action in your case.
Thank you.
From India, Mumbai
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Dear Deepak Kumar,
I have gone through the email sent by you to me. You have accepted your fault, which is very grave in nature. Still, you can make a strong case against your company. You fall under the Payment of Wages Act. The PF deduction made by your company is based on a wrong assumption. What is your nature of work? To whom do you report? How many subordinates do you have?
Give a legal notice to your company through your advocate immediately.
From India, Mumbai
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I have gone through the email sent by you to me. You have accepted your fault, which is very grave in nature. Still, you can make a strong case against your company. You fall under the Payment of Wages Act. The PF deduction made by your company is based on a wrong assumption. What is your nature of work? To whom do you report? How many subordinates do you have?
Give a legal notice to your company through your advocate immediately.
From India, Mumbai
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Notice for termination of Contract Sample.doc
06b-Form VI-B (Notice of Commencement of Contract Work).pdf