Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has reported another steep decline in its employee headcount during the latest quarter, deepening concerns about large-scale workforce restructuring and alleged forced exits in India’s IT sector. In its Q3 FY26 results, the company disclosed a net reduction of 11,151 employees in just one quarter, following a 19,000-plus drop in the previous quarter, marking one of the most significant sequential workforce contractions in the industry in recent years.
Company Narrative vs Ground Reality
While TCS describes the reduction as routine attrition and operational optimisation, the National Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) argues that the situation is far more severe. According to NITES, a substantial number of employees — particularly mid-career and long-tenured workers with 10 to 20 years of experience — were pushed out through methods such as forced resignations, prolonged benching, withdrawal of roles, performance pressure mechanisms and indirect coercion.
These exits are then categorised as “voluntary”, avoiding statutory obligations associated with layoffs, including retrenchment compensation, notice pay and due legal process under labour laws.
Harpreet Singh Saluja, President, Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate NITES said, “NITES firmly believes that the IT sector cannot be treated as a law-free zone. White-collar employees are workers under the law, and their rights cannot be diluted in the name of ease of doing business. Economic transition must be lawful, transparent, and humane.
NITES has already approached the Labour Commissioner and other statutory authorities and will continue to pursue all available legal remedies. We demand an independent audit of all workforce exits at TCS including resignations induced through coercion, and full public disclosure of verified numbers. We also call upon the Maharashtra Government to stop relying solely on company submissions and to enforce labour laws without fear or favour.”
Government Disclosures Raise Questions
Following widespread complaints, NITES submitted a detailed memorandum to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra highlighting alleged mass layoffs at TCS, especially in Pune and other Maharashtra centres. During the Winter Session of the Maharashtra Legislature, the state Labour Minister stated that only 376 employees were affected by layoffs at TCS in Pune during the relevant period.
This official figure stands in stark contrast to TCS’s own quarterly headcount disclosures showing over 11,000 net reductions in a single quarter, raising concerns over how exits are classified and reported. Forced resignations and silent exits do not reflect in official layoff statistics, leading to what NITES argues is a gross underestimation of the true employment impact.
Regulatory Oversight Under Scrutiny
Critics say the government relied solely on company-submitted data without conducting independent audits or labour inspections, effectively weakening worker protections. NITES has urged authorities to recognise that white-collar tech employees are workers under the law, and that the IT sector cannot operate as an unregulated exception zone.
Demand For Independent Audit
NITES has approached statutory bodies including the Labour Commissioner seeking an independent audit of all exits at TCS, including resignations made under pressure. The organisation argues that workforce restructuring driven by automation or efficiency cannot override legal rights, due process or human dignity.
