FORCED RESIGNATION OF EMPLOYEES

FORCED RESIGNATION OF EMPLOYEES

Dr.G.P Naik

At least ten employees per week call me to seek guidance on the “Forced Resignation” which he or she has submitted to the employer. Most of these employees are from IT/ITES sector who have not formed Employees Union. But good number of them are from elite hospitals and schools also. I ask them to describe what really happened. Each of them tell their own stories, all of which can be summarized as under.

Three days ago, I got a call from our HR Manager and he asked me to go to his cabin immediately to discuss some important matter. I went there. By then my Business Manager (reporting officer) had also come there. The HR Manager told me that (the callers generally narrate one of these reasons).  Here the reasons differ all of which can be summarized under few categories.  

POSSIBLE REASONS

1)     Your performance is not good and therefore we request you to resign from the service. or

2)     The company has abolished the post which you are occupying now and hence your services are not required any more. or

3)     The company is not getting enough orders for business and therefore we do not have work for you. or

4)     The company is incurring losses and hence we cannot afford to have you. or

5)     You have committed mistakes and hence we cannot continue you in service.

THE THREAT OR FORCE IS COMMON

“If you resign, we will give you three months salary in lieu of notice period, gratuity, relieving order and a positive report when your next employer approaches us for reference checking”.

“If you refuse to resign, we are left with no option than to terminate you from service for causing loses to the company. In such a case you will not be paid gratuity, you will not be paid three months salary in lieu of notice period and we will give negative report when your future employer approaches us for reference checking”.

CLARIFICATIONS (After listening to their case I ask few details).

Q.1. Have you mentioned in your resignation that you are forced to resign from service against your will.

Ans: No.

Q.2. If you were forced to resign, what prevented you from approaching the police or human rights commission, immediately or at least on the next day.

Ans: I was so depressed; I did not know what to do.

Q.3. Did you atleast send a letter by registered post or by email to the company management immediately or at least on the next day,  by stating that you were forced by HR manager to resign?

 Q.4. No.

Q.5. Do you have any email correspondence between you and your company in which they have forced you to resign or they have threatened you to resign.

Ans: No they told orally.

Q.6. Did you atleast record that oral conversation?

Ans: No.

Q.7. Do you have any other evidence to prove that you were forced to resign?

Ans: No.

MY ADVICE

In that case you may not be able to prove in the court of law that you were forced to resign. If you don’t want to search for another job then face it legally, come what may. Otherwise start searching for next job. If you confront the present employer, he will give negative reference report to the new employer. You may still consult an advocate in this matter. (Most of the callers by now, decide not to confront the employer and thank me for my valuable time).  

REASONS

These employees in distress have shared the reasons (which they call as “the real reasons”) behind the ‘forced resignation” all of which can be clubbed as under.

1) To deny statutory benefits (like say--)

I have to go on maternity leave from next month. In order to deny the maternity benefit, my manager has forced me to resign. (or By next month I will become eligible for gratuity and in order to deny the gratuity they have forced me to resign and so on---).   

2) Interpersonal reasons (like say--)

I did not reciprocate to the sexual advances of my manager and hence he has given negative report against me. (or my manager wants to hire his previous company employee into my place). My manager doesn’t like minority community ( or non vegetarians, or OBC people or people from other states)

3) Integrity- Nexus (like say--)

I have come to know, how much of company’s money my boss has swindled. Hence He wants to get rid of me.

4) Fear of competition (like say--)

Most of the people don’t like my boss. They all approach me directly for any work. Hence my boss considers me as his competitor. Therefore he has forced me to resign.

I have no mechanism to verify the authenticity of “real reasons” described by the distress callers. But I believe that at least half of them are telling the truth.  

REQUEST TO HR MANAGERS

My advice to the respectful HR Managers is – don’t force any employee to resign, because your standing order or service rules does not provide for it. Please follow the rule book.

GUIDANCE FOR THE EMPLOYEES IN DISTRESS

If you are forced to resign against your will, without any other motive or reasons known to you, you should on the same day or the next day (1) send an email or letter by registered post to the company that you were forced to resign and hence it should not be considered/ you want to withdraw it; Additionally (2) You may approach the local police station and lodge a complaint and seek protection; (3) You may approach the national or state human rights commission; (4) If you are a female employee consider approaching national or state women’s commission (5) If you are a SC/ST member you may approach the National or State SC/ST commission and the Civil rights enforcement cell. (6) If you are a disabled person, approach the national commission for disabled persons. (7) If the resignation was due to sexual harassment, approach the Harassment Prevention Committee within your company or Harassment Prevention Committee at district magistrate’s office. (8) If it is for denying your statutory benefits like gratuity or maternity benefit, approach the labour department. (9) If you are a sanitary worker, approach the National Commission for Safai Karmacharis.

 PROCEDURE TO TAKE ACTION

1) If an employee is accused of committing misconduct, he cannot be forced to resign. Only after conducting domestic enquiry he can be removed if the misconduct is proved.

2) If performance of an employee is not up to the mark, he should be given proper training and guidance, if still not improved he should be warned, the quality or productivity issue should be documented and shown to the employee and then only he can be removed.

3) In case of sexual harassment the harasser can be punished after the allegations are proved in the enquiry. Victim cannot be punished.

Any termination on baseless grounds / forced resignation is bad in the eyes of law and the court of law will provide relief to the affected employee sooner or later based on merits.  

The author is Principal Consultant on employee relations. He may be reached via Email [email protected] followed by call 9243470110.