TCS Layoffs: Karnataka Labour Minister To Meet Top IT Companies Over ‘Unethical’ Pink Slips

Last Updated:August 02, 2025, 17:11 IST

TCS’s layoff decision is being seen as one of the biggest job reductions in the company’s history, with even junior employees who have been 'benched' for a long time seeing cuts

Karnataka minister Santosh Lad. (PTI)

Karnataka labour minister Santosh Lad will begin an outreach programme with the heads of top IT companies such as Infosys and Wipro among others in the wake of the recent “alarming" mass job cuts at India’s largest IT firm, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which is laying off over 12,000 employees.

Lad told News18, “Just look at the last 2–3 years. Retrenchment is going on at a big scale. This is a grave concern."

TCS recently announced that it will cut two per cent of its global workforce in the financial year 2025–26, impacting nearly 12,000 jobs.

“As the labour minister, I’m going to evaluate this very seriously. I have asked my people to go and just check on them (TCS). I will be calling the main heads of all top IT companies and will discuss one-on-one. I will address these layoffs and discourage them from taking such decisions on mass retrenchment," said the minister to News18.

Calling mass layoffs “unreasonable", Lad said companies should be made accountable and should not indulge in such “unethical practices".

“People talk about international business, expansions, but when it comes to their workforce, they cannot take actions that are unwarranted and unethical. I’m taking this very personally and very seriously. My government and I will definitely look into the matter. At the end of the day, what matters is the employee — for them, and for us," Lad said.

TCS’s recent layoff decision is being seen as one of the biggest job reductions in the company’s history. While many of those impacted are from mid- to senior-level management, even junior employees who have been “benched" for a long time are now seeing job cuts.

“Surprising," added Lad. “All of a sudden, 12,000 people—that too from TCS—this is a very huge number. This move is very alarming. We are in talks with them."

This comes as multiple employees who received pink slips reached out to the helpline of the Karnataka State IT/ITeS Employees Union (KITU), alleging that they were being forced to resign. It is now learnt that a conciliation meeting will be held on August 6 between KITU representatives and TCS management in the presence of labour department officials.

Lad also criticised the practice of not informing the authorities. “Retrenching people in such large numbers, without giving any information to the government or the department concerned is very unreasonable. They should not do that."

“If an employee who was hired at the age of 25 or 30 has put in 15 years of service, they call it something like ‘benching’. The moment they use the term ‘benching’, it’s like saying this horse is no longer winning races for them.

For example, if I’ve worked for 15 to 20 years and I’m now 45 or nearing 50, I suddenly become of no use to them. Because unless I bring in new projects or think out of the box, I’m out. And if my ideas aren’t running or aren’t benefiting the company, they’ll make it appear as though the project I’m handling is the problem…"

He also addressed the long working hours — ranging between 9 and 20 hours — stating that he would encourage companies to adopt flexible work hours and better employment practices, without stretching employees beyond reasonable limits. “The employee who has rented his life — when he’s working those hours, he’s renting his life to them. Morality stands first, then the balance sheets," he said.

Rohini Swamy

Rohini Swamy, Associate Editor at News18, has been a journalist for nearly two decades in the television and digital space. She covers south India for News18’s digital platform. She has previously worked with t...Read More

Rohini Swamy, Associate Editor at News18, has been a journalist for nearly two decades in the television and digital space. She covers south India for News18’s digital platform. She has previously worked with t...

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August 02, 2025, 17:11 IST

News india TCS Layoffs: Karnataka Labour Minister To Meet Top IT Companies Over ‘Unethical’ Pink Slips

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