Labour office in Pune issues notice to Tech Mahindra over pay cuts

Amid lockdown, many companies had declared pay cuts or even lessened the employees from the company. Pune's Labour Office has issued a notice to Tech Mahindra on a complaint that the IT services firm had reduced salaries of its employees to maintain “profitability" amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

A similar notice was issued earlier this month to Wipro on a complaint that said the firm was benching its employees. National Information Technology Employees Senate, an organisation working for the welfare and benefits of employees in the IT industry, had approached the Labour Commissioner’s Office claiming they have received complaints from employees of Tech Mahindra in Pune regarding salary cuts.

"The company had also notified its employees through an email on May 6 that the shift allowance, which is between Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 per employee, will be stopped from May 1," according to NITES' complaint letter. The application further claimed that because of this decision, salaries of more than 13,000 Tech Mahindra employees stands reduced.

NITES has sought appropriate legal action against Tech Mahindra, stating that the firm has violated the Maharashtra government's directions, rules and regulations.

In a notice issued on the same date, officials in the Labour Commissioner's Office directed the firm to go through the state government's resolution dated March 31, 2020, and take appropriate steps and release the salaries for March and April and to inform the labour commissioner's office.

A Tech Mahindra spokesperson said, “The shift allowance paid for hardship due to travel to work at odd hours and other out-of-pocket expenses, continues to be paid to all Tech Mahindra associates, who are coming to the office or are at client locations as per policy. Our focus remains to ensure the well-being of our associates, customers and partner ecosystem while maintaining business continuity.”