Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India’s largest IT services firm, has introduced a new policy requiring employees to be billable for at least 225 days annually and limiting bench time to just 35 days. The decision, announced by the company’s Resource Management Group (RMG), has stirred controversy and drawn strong criticism from employee unions.
AIITEU Calls It an “Anti-Worker” Move
The All India IT and ITeS Employees’ Union (AIITEU) has condemned the move, calling it an “anti-worker policy.” The union claims the policy is an attempt to justify performance improvement plans (PIPs), which are often seen as a pretext for eventual termination during workforce rationalisation.
AIITEU General Secretary Saubhik Bhattacharya argued that the onus of ensuring project allocation lies with the employer, not the employee. “TCS is shifting responsibility for billability from its RMG to the individual employee, which is unfair and unreasonable,” he said in a public statement.
Potential Impact on Employees
TCS has warned that extended periods of being unallocated will negatively impact compensation, promotions, international opportunities, and may even lead to termination. Employees on the bench are expected to report to office daily and spend 4 to 6 hours upskilling on TCS’ internal learning platform, iEvolve, for faster redeployment.
The union has raised concerns that the 35-day limit could be further reduced in future, increasing pressure on employees and making job security more uncertain.
Why This Matters Now
The move comes at a time when utilisation rates across the IT sector have reached a record high of nearly 85%, meaning most experienced staff are actively engaged on client projects. Keeping a sizable number of employees on the bench can hurt profitability for IT firms, prompting tighter resource management.
However, employee advocates argue that companies must maintain a buffer bench and shoulder the responsibility of redeployment, rather than passing the burden onto workers.
The Bigger Picture
TCS’ new policy signals growing cost pressures within the IT industry and a shift towards stricter performance metrics. But as AIITEU points out, such policies could erode employee trust, especially in a sector already grappling with job insecurity and rising performance-related stress. The battle over billability may just be beginning.
