Complain to labour commissioner 

- As per law, no employer can refused to return the original certificates or to issue Experience certificate or relieving letter .If they are doing so, their act is illegal, unjustified and against the fundamental rights of the employee.

- The said company is under obligation to issue an experience & relieving letter. 

- If HR is not responding then you can send a legal notice for getting the same. 

Dear Client,

1. Obtain All Documents: Get all your documents including your appointment letter, termination letter, F&F statement and any other issue with employment.
2. Clarify Gratuity and PF:

Confirm whether gratuity was one element which was already included in F&F clearing which took place without any dispute. It has to be given explicitly. Otherwise, insist on it in writing referencing the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 on the grounds that you have served 15 years with the company.

Make sure that your PF is settled or transferred adequately.

1. Assess "Workman" Status with a Lawyer: This is important. Visit a specialist Labour Law advocate in India. Tell me what job you specifically have, what are your job duties, to whom you are reporting and what is your compensation. They will be able to give definite information as to whether you will fall under the category of a workman under the Industrial Disputes Act or not.
2. If a "Workman":

• Your lawyer can help you calculate the precise retrenchment compensation due.
• They can advise on the best course of action: either sending a legal notice demanding this compensation or initiating a dispute before the Labour Commissioner/Industrial Tribunal.

1. Even if not a "Workman":

• The 2 months' advance salary is usually considered pay in lieu of notice. If your contract states 3 months' basic salary in lieu, and you only received 2 months' advance salary, there might be a difference to clarify. "Basic salary" is often just one component of "advance salary" which might include other allowances. Ensure you received the full contractual notice pay equivalent.
• Your primary entitlements would then be gratuity, PF, and leave encashment, which you should rigorously pursue if not fully paid.

I hope this answer helps. In case of future queries, please feel free to contact us. Thank you.

It is suggested that you serve a legal notice to the company for your demands. 

Here are the following steps which can be undertaken:

1. Firstly, send a written/mail notice/representation to the HR of your company to provide your experience letter.

2. If the request is not adhered to, then you can issue a legal notice to the company. The notice should be well drafted, which should include the fact that the employer will have to face civil and criminal repercussions if the notice is not complied with within 15- 30 days.

3. If the notice is not complied with, you can avail either of the following options below:

              A. You can file a complaint at the Local Police Station for criminal breach of trust under Section 316 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Experience letter is your RIGHTFUL property, which is entrusted to the company and is being misappropriated against your professional interests. This is an aggravated step, wherein the employer will feel the impending need to expeditiously resolve the issue.

               B. You can also approach the civil court for violating Section 27 of the Indian Contract Act, wherein one cannot be restrained from exercising a lawful profession, trade or business of any kind. The employer is restraining you from exercising your profession by possessing the experience certificate illegally. There are several precedents (Surendra Kumar Sharma Vs. M/s.Aparna Arora and others, S.B. Civil Contempt Petition No. 615 of 2013 in S.B. Civil Writ Petition No.7363 of 2013),  where the court has ordered that the employer is bound to issue a relieving order and an experience certificate. You can also claim appropriate compensation for causing mental agony & unfair trade practice

Conclusion: Generally, the employer provides an experience certificate as soon as a legal notice is issued. Please contact me for drafting a well-structured legal notice or any other query. 

if your company has terminated your services citing the terms of the employment offer letter and had issued a reliving letter and also had settled your F&F then you are very much eligible for the experience certificate too.

If the company has not provided the same, you can make a representation in writing to the top management of the company.

If you do not get proper response and they still harass you by not furnishing the experience certificate then you can send a legal notice demanding the same as a s first step before escalating the matter legally.

Please remember that the HR is also one of the employees, he cannot deny the experience certificate though he only signs the same on behalf of the company.

You may write to the company's top management and send it by registered post, wait for a reasonable time for their reply after which you can plan to escalate the same through legal sources.

You can send a legal notice to the company and later file a complaint to labour court

What You Should Do:

1. Send a formal email to the HR department and reporting manager:

   • Clearly mention your employee ID, dates of service, and that all dues are cleared.

   • Politely request issuance of the experience/relieving letter within 7 working days.

2. If no response, send a legal notice via a lawyer to the company demanding your service certificate.

3. You may also:

   • File a complaint with the Labour Commissioner Office in your area.

   • Approach the District Labour Officer in Guwahati, Assam under the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act or the Shops & Establishment Act, depending on your company’s registration.

Hello, 

1. You must get a Legal Notice issued to the company demanding issuance of experience letter stating all compliance being done so far.
2. As far as termination is concerned the company has followed procedure and cannot be contested.

Not aware of any such judgment 

you may have to contact your own advocate for finding a suitable judgment or you may find it yourself through internet search

Send a formal email to HR requesting your experience letter within 7 days. If no response, send a legal notice. You can also file a complaint with the Labour Commissioner or approach the High Court under Article 226.

Yes, there are judgments on the same. One of them is The Secretary vs C.V.Kavitha Abirami W.P.(MD)No.15902 of 2018

"this Court is of the considered opinion that when an employee has submitted an application either seeking to relieve from the job or seeking any experience certificate from the employee which indicates that the employee would take up another job, then the employer is bound to issue relieving order and experience certificate. The employer has no power to decline to issue relieving order or experience certificate. In other words, in such circumstances the employer is not having any power to forfeit the past service, and the employer has no other option, the employer can only issue the relieving order."

Another judgment is Dr N.M. Mujeeb Rahman vs Kerala University Of Health Sciences WP(C) No.19434 of 2023. 

I can look into more Supreme Court and High Court judgments pertaining to your facts and circumstances to strengthen your case for issuing a legal notice or filing a civil suit. Please contact me to proceed further in this case.

- You can contact any lawyer of this website. 

There are many judgements but for legal notice you don’t require it

Dear Sir, 

The process of case starts from sending your legal notice and it's compliance. Rest of the things can be seen later. It is suggested that even if there is no previous case law, then also court may proceed with your case according to its merits.