TCS layoffs gives jitters to staff

India’s largest software services company Tata Consultancy Services’ (TCS) plans to lay off employees is further boiling into a labour issue across India as employees plan to step up street protests and file cases against the company.

Already Bengaluru, Kochi and Chennai witnessed protests and an employee got an injunction against her termination by the Madras High Court in a case she filed against the company. The actions by TCS are seen tilting the entire issue into the unionisation of the sector with labour unions owing allegiance to mainstream political parties and other non-governmental organisations extending their support.

Last week, while releasing its financial results for the third quarter, TCS Chief Executive Officer N Chandrasekaran had refuted allegations that the company has laid off employees on a large scale recently. “There is no truth in reports of layoffs or any numbers thereof,” he had said. The CEO said that the company expects what he terms as “involuntary attrition”, an euphemism for layoffs, to remain at around the same levels as last year. “Involuntary attrition has been around 1 per cent every year and this year it is going to be the same,” he had said.

But an employee who participated in a masked protest on Saturday in Bengaluru said that TCS started issuing termination notices to employees from December 8, 2014, which is unprecedented in its history. As per a report, TCS has asked 2,574 employees to leave in the first nine months of FY 2014-15, while the total layoffs in the full year may exceed 3,000.

“I have been working with the company for the past nine years and have performed well. Now I am not involved in any projects and the HR informed me that I will be sacked. I have the proof of my performance and the comments of my seniors. The HR did not mention any valid reason for their action,” alleges an employee who did not want to be identified.

IT and ITeS Employees Centre (ITEC), a non-profit organisation working for tech employees, which organised a masked protest in Bengaluru on Saturday, allege that there was no rationale behind this decision. The Forum for IT Employees (FITE) and The Association of IT Employees, an IT trade union associated with the CITU, are also campaigning for the cause of employees.

Another employee, who did not want to be quoted, said that TCS is coming up with flimsy reasons to throw out workers.  “Normally, once a project is over employees will have to contact the lead head of RMG (Resource Management Group) for the next project. There will be some interviews and tests to get involved in the next project, and the process is easy. Two months ago, TCS started a new mechanism whereby employees will have to get clearance from the lead head of ISU (Industry Service Unit). For around 3 lakh employees, there are only 23 ISU lead heads,” said an employee.

He also said that these lead heads will often be travelling and it is very difficult to get access to them. “Their intention is to delay permissions for new projects. In such a scenario, the HR department will pitch in and hint to employees that they will be terminated,” he said.

When contacted, the TCS spokesperson denied these practices and said that the company constituted the ISU in 2009 as part of strengthening the industry verticals. The Association of IT Employees has announced a massive protest on January 22. Also, Kerala Labour Minister Shibu Baby John has sought a report on the issue. According to a CITU leader from Karnataka, the organisation will also extend its support to this ongoing unethical practice of TCS. “We are co-ordinating with other state units in this regard,”said the leader.