Anupam Sharma (Server Engg.) 11 September 2014

Urgent guidence requireding claim statement

Dear Sir/ Madam,

Ineed your guidance regarding the below mentioned points :-

My case is pending in the labour court. My counsel is not raising points which lead to my forced resignation. Statement of claim submitted by him simply states ‘workman tendered resignation under compelling circumstances’. Should not all the points be well explained i.e. the sequence of events which lead me to tender resignation be explained along-with date of occurrence. Some of the points, I wish to specify are:

I had joined a part time technical course with the verbal consents of my manager. However, when I had deposited fee and taken admission my manager backed out and started making working conditions intolerable.
On 19-02-2013, when I applied leave for 23-02-2013, the day on which my class was to commence, my manager refused to sanction leave in any form i.e. C.L., P.L. or L.W.P. (classes were to be held on Saturday and Sunday only. Course would have been completed in about six months).
When the matter was reported to H.R. department, I was advised “either study or continue in service”. Acting under utter confusion and element of compulsion for I had become a victim of a situation brought about by my manager, submitted a letter of resignation with one month notice period. No opportunity was given to me to pause and ponder and to consider the consequences.
I was not allowed to serve my notice period.
Acceptance of resignation not communicated till date.
My due salary and leave encashment amount has not been paid to me. However, a FNF statement was sent to me on 12-02-2013 which showed 20-02-2013 as my last working day. Entire amount due to me was adjusted on the pretext of not serving notice period, although I was prevented from serving my notice period. A further demand of Rs.849/- was raised on me.
On 13-03-2013, I had refused to accept the said FNF statement stating it to be not proper, etc, etc.

Should not all these points and other sequences of events be well explained in the statement of claim. Please advice.

Thanks in advance.

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2 Replies

Kumar Doab (FIN) 11 September 2014

Hope you will take it positively.

Apparently you have erred.

1. Probably you did not seek any approval to attend classes on Saturday and Sunday and complete the course and no approval was granted too by the competent personnel. Is your manager competent person to grant approval? He might have backtracked after discussing with his authority. You alone would know you wanted to seek proper approval or just wanted to take your boss in confidence and complete the course without obtaining proper approval in writing.

2. The HR conveyed its decision ‘ Either work or study’ .

3. Does the company have its education policy and encourage employees to do some courses?

4. Is it stated in appointment letter issued to you that you can not undertake any activity ………………..course without advance application and explicit approval ? Usually it is stated so!

5. Did you state reason of resignation in notice of resignation?

6. Did you minute that you have not been allowed to serve the notice period? How would you prove that you were prohibited from entering/attend office……………………………..i.e. by audi/visual/written record? If you can prove then you are eligible for wages during this period. If company had asked you to remain out of office during notice period in writing then it would have affirmed that you would be paid wages. If this communication has been issued to you then produce it on record……………………..or make the person that stated so agree to it!

7. Acceptance of resignation might have noted in your personnel file and that it was sent by post, ……………………….informed in office!!! Did you ever minute it in writing on record under acknowledgment?

8. How does FnF statement dated 12.02.2013 show last date as 20.02.2013?

9. If resignation was not accepted you could have easily responded that your resignation has not been accepted, then how come FnF statement has been issued and sent to you? You could have withdrawn the resignation before acceptance.

10. If it is wrong then if you have pointed out errors it is OK.

11. Leave encashment as per enactments applicable to the establishment and wages for days worked has to be computed in FnF statement.

12. You were not forced to resign hence it is not forced resignation.

13. You had no option but to resign that is what has been cultivated by your lawyer.

14. If you disagree discuss with your lawyer.

15. You could have approached lawyer before submitting resignation and could have proceeded under expert guidance of your lawyer and he could built enough favorable record.

16. The company may reconcile during reconciliation or you shall have to contest the matter.

Anupam Sharma (Server Engg.) 13 September 2014

Dear Mr. Kumar Deob

Thanks for taking pain in my case and providing your valued advice.

I am well aware that online discussions have their own limitations, still I would like to submit some clarifications/my views. I hope you won’t mind and provide your valued opinion. The points have been numbered as per your reply.

The approval was not obtained in writing. I had conveyed my willingness of joining the said part time technical course to my manager. He assured me of full cooperation. Leave was required for one day (Saturday) every week, for about six months, Sunday was weekly off. One of my colleague was also persuading a course and he was granted leaves liberally.
At least this advice reflects provocation, if not force.
The company has no such policy. The appointment letter is silent on this subject.
No such condition in appointment letter.
The resignation letter submitted by me on 19-02-2013 read “I have decided to continue my studies further and it shall not be possible for me to remain in service with this esteemed organization. I therefore tender my resignation from the post of I.T. Executive. Kindly arrange to relieve me immediately after one month i.e. notice period from today’, Study was mentioned as a reason because I wished to leave gracefully without blaming any body and without deteriorating relations.
I had attended my duty on 20-02-2013 (first day of my notice period) although I had viral fever. At about 08.30 P.M. I received a call from my manager that I was assigned night shift for Thursday and Friday. (night shift was discarded way back on 25-11-2012). I agreed to work on Thursday night and requested my manager to make other arrangement for Friday since effects of medicines and remaining awake at night would have left me drowsy during class/day. He rudely replied that I need not attend any duty and that I should come to the office in the morning and collect my relieving letter.

Since I was not feeling well and since my manager had instructed me to collect my relieving, I thought it appropriate to take rest and proper treatment and hence applied for three days leave via email.

I attended office on 25-02-2013 but was not taken on duty and was directed to obtain clearance from all departments. This process was completed on 26-02-2013. I was not provided any acknowledgement, rather I was threatened of termination.

All these facts were mentioned in my email dated 26-02-2013, addressed to the G.M. and again retreated in my reply dated 19-03-2013, to management’s legal notice dated 14-03-2013
I have not been informed/communicated about acceptance of my resignation till date. Even if it has been accepted on 20-02-2013, the management was liable to pay me my dues along-with one month notice pay, which had not been done. Instead my salary and leave encashment has been adjusted for not serving my notice period.
This is a typographic mistake. FNF statement was sent to me on 12-03-2013.
Sorry, I am unable to comment on this point.
The FNF statement was rejected stating that it was not in line with the norms laid down in the I.D. Act/S.E. Act.
Leave encashment and wages were worked out, but adjusted for not serving notice period. Even the method of calculation was wrong.
If not force, provocation was there.
My lawyer will be in a better position to explain his line of action.
He is not willing to discuss. He says that I should leave the subject to him. Evidence is to be placed on 17-09-2014 and he says he will prepare it only on 16-09-2014.
This is your valued advice, which I will keep in mind and fallow if any need arises in future.
The matter is already in Labour Court, after conciliatory proceedings had failed.

Infact, what is haunting me is that he has not raised the sequence of events for which I have documentary evidence i.e. starting night shift within hours after I had tendered my resignation, compelling me for night duty during my illness, not disclosing to the management that I had applied for 3 days sick leave, refusal to accept medical certificate, asking me not to report for duty and to collect my relieving letter, handing over of blank clearance forms and instructing me to obtain clearance and threats of termination. All these instances have been communicated to the management via email dated 26-02-2013 and reply to legal notice on 19-03-2013, but the management has failed to respond.

Secondly, according to me, the FNF statement sent to me was not actually the result of acceptance of my resignation but was a counter offer, which required my acceptance before being acted upon.

Thanking you once again.

With regards.