Decoding Job Offers in India: A Checklist for Freshers and Young Professionals

From paid birthday leaves to vacation homes, companies nowadays have come a long way in ensuring a healthy work-life balance for their employees. Not just that, they are going out of their way to make the workplace more entertaining and inclusive, trying their best to keep their employees happy.

But, these come under luxury because when we talk about India, there are very few corporations that offer these benefits. Many of the small/mid-sized companies in India still take advantage of their employees through many ways like unpaid probation, no provident fund, a pay cycle based on only working days, CTC vs in-hand salary, notice periods, fixed contract jobs and many more.

Multiple companies mention all these details in their contracts and policy documents. Still, small and mid-sized companies in India don¡¯t mention these things upfront in the contract, and as a newbie, you don't ask it because either you have no knowledge about it or you are too scared to lose the job because of the ¡®stupid¡¯ question. But, when it comes to your employment, these questions are not stupid.

Mr Varun K Dixit, Assistant General Manager - Human Resources at UNIVO Education, clarifies this and says, ¡°This is a myth, if any selected candidate is asking any question about their employment, in-hand salary, etc then generally it is never a problem. But, sometimes this is also based on the ideology and mood of the concerned person and they might react adversely but most often it doesn¡¯t happen. It is the HRs responsibility to address all these queries in a proper manner. Also, there are company policy documents where most of the details are mentioned. So, it should be provided to the candidate too or you can ask for it.¡±

Now, let's discuss the things that you should ask an HR before joining any company. We will discuss them in detail and will see whether it is a green flag or a red flag in terms of joining a company.

Decoding Job Offers In India

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Unpaid Probation Leaves

The probation period refers to the trial period for freshly recruited candidates. The period can vary from company to company. Generally, companies fix the notice period and might increase or decrease it based on the performance of the employee. It can be 15 days, a month, three months, six months or even a year. It depends on how much you have to learn new things in the new company.

But, it can easily happen that as a human being, you might want to take leaves during your probation period, right?

So, as a person who is about to join a job, ask HR or your immediate contact person (before accepting the offer) whether probation period leaves are paid or not. If they are paid, you are on the right track. But, if the company deducts money for your leaves taken during the probation period, then it's a red flag.

An employee-friendly company usually allows for paid probation leaves. But, a company (small/mid-sized) might not allow the same.

How can it affect you as an employee? So, if you want a leave during the probation period, then your per day salary will be deducted for each day that you miss your work. For example, if your salary is Rs. 30,000 and you miss two days during a particular month, then you will get paid Rs. 28,000.

Here, you are being deprived of your rights as an employee, and the company is just exploiting you. So, it is a red flag.

Also Read: From CTC To Gratuity-Understanding The Common Terms Used In Salary Structure

No Employees¡¯ Provident Fund

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An Employees¡¯ Provident Fund (EPF) is a retirement benefits scheme that ensures you have enough money to last after retirement. The provident fund is a joint payment from you and your employer that is withdrawn from your paycheck each month and saved in a PF account, where it builds into a substantial sum that you may access after retirement. Currently, all corporations with 20 or more workers are required to enrol in the Employees¡¯ Provident Fund.

The government has established several standards to determine how much money would be distributed to each employee's PF account. The provident fund of each employee in a firm consists of two contributions: the employee's personal contribution and the employer's contribution. We will not discuss the procedures for computing the EPF contribution amount in this article.

But, despite having 20+ employees, some companies don't offer EPF, and it's a big red flag. So, reconsider your offer if there's no EPF. Now, one might argue that if EPF is not being deducted, then we will get the whole salary credited into our accounts, and nothing will be deducted. This can be good for the short term as a fresher. But you must know that when you switch jobs, there is a high chance your new employer will start your PF account. So, you can¡¯t escape it. Plus, it is a form of investment, and any investment starting at an early age is better.

30-Day Payment Cycle Vs Working Days Payment Cycle

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This one is a bit tricky.

So, when you draw a salary from your workplace, then you get your monthly salary either towards the end of the working month or towards the first week of next month. Now, generally, companies follow a 30-day payment cycle, which means if you're earning Rs. 30,000 a month, then as per this, your per day salary is Rs. 1,000, meaning that you are even getting paid for Saturdays and Sundays (the days where you have weekly off).

However, some companies follow a cycle of payment where they pay only for working days. For example, a company gives weekly off on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays and all Sundays, which means that they are working 24 days a month. Hence, they would pay as per a 24-day pay cycle or the payment cycle based on the number of working days.

Applying the same example here, a person who is earning Rs. 30,000 per day earns Rs. 1,250 per day (as per a 24-day payment cycle). Now, you might think that this is a good thing as my per day amount is higher. But here¡¯s the trick.

Imagine if you've taken three unpaid leaves in a month. Now, unpaid leaves simply mean that your per day¡¯s salary will be deducted for every leave you take. So, if you're being paid under a 30-day payment cycle (salary being Rs. 30,000), then your unpaid leave amount deduction will be Rs. 3,000. But, in the event that your company offers only a working day's payment cycle and you have missed three days of work (unpaid) with a Rs. 30,000 salary based on 24 working days. Then, Rs. 3,750 will be deducted from your salary for the three days you've missed.

Hence, a 30-day payment cycle is the best deal here. Before accepting an offer, clarify this with HR, or you can't really do anything about it later on.

Dixit explains that this is an illegal and unfair practice. He says, ¡°This happens mostly with small scale companies. But, as per the Labour Law, a company cannot stop an employees¡¯ pay on any kind of weekly/weekend off or holidays. So, any kind of weekly/weekend off or holidays should be paid with the salary as per the pay policies and regulations. Interestingly, any company with more than three employees can¡¯t follow this and if they¡¯re doing it, then it is illegal and you can sue them too and they have to pay you the money with penalty.¡±

Now, most of the bigger players don't do this. But, some small and mid-sized companies do have this payment mechanism to pay only for working days. So, if you're to join a job and you come to know that it is a working day payment cycle, then this is a red flag. You can reconsider your offer.

CTC vs in-hand salary

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The phrase "cost to company" (CTC) refers to the entire employee remuneration package. It represents the entire amount of money a firm (organisation) spends on one employee in one year.

In contrast, in-hand salary is the amount of money an employee receives after all deductions have been made.

There are a lot of companies that will show a very high CTC. As a fresher or early career professional, you will be happy to get a higher ¡®package¡¯ only to disappoint yourself when your first month¡¯s salary gets credited.

So, make it a habit to ask HR about the deductions from the CTC. Also, ask them what your in-hand salary figure is going to look like if it is not clearly mentioned in the appointment letter or if you can¡¯t decode it.

Notice Period

Simply put, the notice period is the time between when an employee resigns or is fired and their last day of work. This can vary from company to company and depends on the industry that you¡¯re working in. For case, some IT companies have a six-month notice period because people work as software engineers who handle whole projects, too. So, before the end of your notice period, you are generally asked to complete what you¡¯ve started and help hand over your duties to the person who is going to replace you.

For this, read the terms and conditions of the Notice Period carefully before signing the contract because sometimes it might surprise you.

I remember I was working with a company and wanted to leave the job for another job; as a media professional, I assumed that since almost all media organisations have one month's notice period, it would be the same with this company too and never bothered to read the terms and conditions. Later on, it was brought to my notice that there¡¯s a 2-month notice period. This caused me embarrassment in front of my new employer, whom I had already said that I had to serve a month¡¯s notice period. Later on, I had to correct my mistake, and since the company wasn¡¯t in a hurry to hire, they considered my request.

So, please read every document carefully and save yourself from falling into a similar situation. Oh, and also, you can even negotiate your notice period if the new company wants you to join early. It is a possibility, but only sometimes.

Fixed Contract Jobs

Fixed contract jobs are those where companies hire employees for a fixed term. It can be any number of months or years. Here, an employee gives their consent to work for the company for this fixed term only. But, some companies take advantage of this and fix a contract of 3-5 years, and if you try to break the contract, you will have to pay some percentage of your salary to the company as compensation for breaking the contract, or it can have legal repercussions, too.

So, while joining a job, always ask whether the job is a fixed contract job or not. If they say no, then you are sorted, but if they say yes, ask them these three questions:

What is the span of the contract?

Does the company allow employees to leave the job in between the contract?

What is the provision to renew the contract?

If the answer to the second question is yes, you have nothing to worry about. But, if they say no, you must think multiple times before joining as you will have to dedicate yourself here until the end of the contract because paying money to end the contract would be just a loss-making deal.

Under the third question, the answer can have three possibilities.

First, it will not renew, and your employment will end with the end of the contract. Second, the renewal will be based on your performance, the company¡¯s requirements and if your manager wants to keep you. Third, it is based on the agreement of both the employer and the employee.

This is a subjective situation, and everyone has different aims and goals. So, based on the answer from HR and your situation, analyse and make your decision.

Apart from these intricacies, there are other things that you must know before joining a job, like potential legal proceedings that can be conducted against you by the company if any terms and conditions are not met.

For everything, the answer is the contract paper that you sign. Following are the usual contents of an employment agreement:

Name of the parties involved; Starting date of employment; Title and description of the job; Location of work; Hours of work; Probationary period; Salary; Restrictive terms; Holidays and Other information like deductions, permissible expenses, notice period etc.

You must read and understand these carefully, and if something is bothering you or is beyond your understanding or isn¡¯t mentioned in the agreement, bring it up with HR, and they will answer without any problems.

When we start a job as a fresher, then out of desperation, we accept any package and don¡¯t even care to look at the terms and conditions of probation or notice period, payment cycle details, and to be very frank, we gradually learn this when we land in trouble. But, if you¡¯re a fresher or an early career professional, follow the above checklist before saying ¡®yes¡¯ to a job.

Remember, you have every right to ask all the questions.

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