Report by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) correspondent
IT workers organised a protest outside the Whitefield, Bangalore campus of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on 5th September. Anger against the large ongoing lay-offs and recently implemented anti-worker workplace policies were the two major reason behind the protest. The protest was organised under the banner of IT and ITES Democratic Employees Association (IIDEA).
More than 12000 employees have been laid off in the recent months. The employees are most times fired on a very short notice, leaving many of them jobless for months before they manage to get another job. Protesting workers pointed out that the hiring of new employees is also delayed. More than 500 professionals who have received offer letters have not been onboarded. Many among them have already quit previous jobs and are waiting for confirmation from TCS.
Besides the massive layoffs, TCS has recently implemented a new policy which requires each employee to log 225 billable days in an year. The policy came into effect from June 2025, implemented by their Resource Management Group (RMG). The new policy limits the bench duration to 35 days annually. According to the policy the workers have to be allocated for at least 225 business days in a year, failing which shall adversely impact their compensation, career growth, overseas deployment opportunities, and continuity with the company. If a worker is on bench, then it is expected that the employee has to be proactive and take initiative in approaching RMG to be allocated to the next project.
All India IT and ITES Employees Union (AIITEU) has also been opposing this policy since it was announced. They have pointed out that this policy is aimed towards downsizing the existing workforce, while blaming it on the inactivity of workers. Latest developments with Artificial Intelligence (AI) have tremendously changed the field of IT. In the existing situation, workers are forced to find time to upskill themselves, apart from completing their assigned work, to continue being a part of the race. Unions have pointed out that the role of AI should be to ease the work and not replace workers. Companies should facilitate skill development programs for employees and create opportunities to implement it to reduce the work load. On the contrary, IT companies are using it as a tool to justify lay-offs and increased burden on employees.
Protesting workers in Bangalore have demanded that TCS should immediately stop the lay-offs and provide adequate severance and other benefits to workers who are already affected. The fight of IT employees is entirely just and must be supported by all sections of workers and people.