Nasscom, the apex body of the Indian IT industry, has completely defied fears of mass layoffs in the sector, and claims that the industry is a net hirer in the country with over 1.5 lakh people being employed on a net basis every year.
In a statement, Nasscom said that the reports of mass layoffs were incorrect and workforce realignment, linked to performance appraisal processes, is a regular feature every year.
“Skilling and workforce realignment are essential to remain competitive in international markets. It needs to be appreciated that such workforce realignment is a normal part of the internal process of companies based on their own operational imperatives,” Nasscom said in a statement.
Nasscom is under tremendous pressure as reports of layoffs across the sector have been making headlines. According to some independent assessment, thousands of employees in the sector could be shown the door over the next few weeks.
IT majors like Wipro, Infosys, Cognizant and Tech Mahindra have initiated annual performance reviews, a process to weed out non-performers.
“Such reports are incorrect. In fact, the industry continues to be a net hirer with over 1.5 lakh people being employed on a net basis each year, though the focus is shifting from scale to skill,” counters Nasscom.
The employee retrenchment comes at a time when Indian IT firms are facing challenges in the business environment and stricter work permit regime in countries like the US, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand.
Even though the companies have termed these layoffs as part of normal business decisions, industry believes that they are compelled to control costs and technology changes will hamper them in long run.