As per the data shared by All India IT & ITeS Employees’ Union (AIITEU), there has been “silent layoff” of around 20,000 techies during the calendar year 2023 in the Indian IT sector.
Additionally, as per the sources, these numbers are actually higher and are reported across IT services companies of all sizes with AIITEU.
As per the article, there are many big names which include the likes of TCS, Infosys, LTI-Mindtree, Tech Mahindra and Wipro; with the exception of only HCLTech adding employees.
What is “Silent Layoff”?
It refers to a situation wherein the employees are asked to leave their jobs in a discreet or unannounced manner.
There are many ways deployed for silent layoffs which include not renewing contracts, reducing work hours, offering early retirement options, or simply not filling vacant positions.
As per the IT employee union Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES), as many as 2k-3k professionals lost their jobs in the year 2024.
Job Insecurity in Tech: Layoffs, Non-Disclosure Agreements, and Longer Hours
Harpreet Singh Saluja, president of NITES said that “There are multiple ways in which companies are removing employees, and those who resist will be terminated (immediately). Once your relieving letter marks you as “terminated”, then it becomes very difficult for that person to find another job.”
Saubhik Bhattacharya, General Secretary of AIITEU that the employees are also being asked to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), in some cases, to get their full payout.
The same situation has been reciprocated in the global tech space, with Apple, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, IBM, Intel, SAP and others announcing job cuts in the last 12-18 months.
Companies, in order to downsize and improve profit margins, are also increasing the number of hours each employee works.
