Pune: Pune District is the nation's well-known Information Technology (IT) hub. With the festive season ongoing, there is currently a bit of peace in the bustling IT hubs of Pune. However, employees have complained for years about the lack of Diwali bonuses. Employees complain that many of the well-known companies don't recognise their values and need for more compensation during the times of Diwali.
Diwali, the festival of lights, is celebrated across India on a huge scale. Many people buy new things for Diwali, and a lot of times, major financial transactions are done during this time. As businesses themselves profit from the festival traditions of buying new things, their employees are often given Diwali bonuses, that is, extra money in addition to their salary, so everyone's Diwali is celebrated happily.
However, IT employees have been deprived of this tradition for a long time. They don't get Diwali bonuses, nor any special treatment, despite Diwali being the biggest festival celebrated in India. The reason they don't get it is not widely known, and what the employees feel about it is widely available on all social media platforms.
Recently, in Sonipat, Haryana, factory workers protested after receiving boxes of soan papdi instead of the promised Diwali cash bonuses. It was shot on a video, and it went viral on social media, as the video showed employees throwing the sweets outside the factory gate. The gesture sparked national debate on social media over employee dignity and disrespecting food. So after this, private sector employees across the country have started expressing their disappointment over the lack of Diwali bonuses.
Why No Diwali Bonuses For IT Employees?
Neeraj Chandra, a senior employee working in the accounts department of a prominent Hinjawadi-based IT company, explained, "Unlike other private sectors, it's not necessary that IT field companies will make profits during Indian festivals like Diwali. The IT sector has clients of all sorts, from website management to coding to even research, and they need their companies to provide them whenever they need it. It's not based on any festival or auspicious occasion."
"Also, many Indian-based IT companies have clients based in the United States of America, Europe, or other foreign countries. They don't care about the Indian festivals in any way. So whenever the company makes a profit, its employees might get bonuses, but most of the time, it doesn't happen during Diwali. Some Indian companies, however, include festive bonuses as part of the Cost to Company (CTC) package, so people get some extra compensation during Diwali," Chandra told The Free Press Journal.
What Do Employees Feel About It?
The Forum of IT Employees (FITE) recently posted on X (formerly Twitter), saying, "Most IT companies don’t really give extra bonuses. The Diwali bonus is a part of the CTC itself, and it's often dependent on company performance. So basically, no extra cost to the company." This post went viral on social media, and employees shared their distress regarding this.
Pavanjit Mane, chairman of FITE, told The FPJ, "Many of the IT companies don't give Diwali bonuses; they don't have the concept of it. The bonuses, which are actually incentives or increments, are part of the yearly performance review. In older times, it was given, but now it's not. Sometimes it's a part of CTC, but still it's uncommon. When companies don't make profits, they blame it on employees and reduce the headcounts with things like layoffs. However, when the same employees make them profit, they don't give them huge bonuses but instead give dividends to the shareholders. A company values its shareholders more than its employees."
Akhilesh Koli, who works in a Baner-based IT company, said, "I have never received a Diwali bonus in my eight years of working for multiple IT firms. They sometimes give a packet of sonpapdi or some Amazon gift voucher as a pity, but they don't give bonuses. However, our expenditure is higher during Diwali. We might get bonuses at the end of quarters or financial years (it depends on the company), but it's during Diwali that we truly need it."
'Festive Bonuses Are Necessary'
Pranjali Narvekar, who works in a Kharadi-based IT company, said, "All the people working at my home, including my maids, car cleaners, housekeeping, and security guards, expect Diwali bonuses from me. I give them as it's a festival and they need it. But what about us? We work hard all year and don't get anything more than a salary. On occasions like Diwali, we need to do shopping and buy new things for our home and family, and we need the extra money, which the companies never really give. This culture should change."
Prasad Bhagat, who lives in Pune and works remotely, said, "I started saving from my own salary to manage expenditure during Diwali. It's the only way to manage finances in festivals. My company gives away incentives at the end of the financial year. I think that if my bonus doesn't come during April, it's okay. They can just pay me in Diwali."
Yashraj Mote, who works for a Hinjawadi-based IT company, said, "Sometimes the clients give away bonuses during Diwali. This year, I got the bonus, as the clients decided to give our whole team a special gift. It was a watch. It happens in multinational companies a lot. Some teams get bonuses; others don't."
Is There A Middle Ground?
When asked about the solutions, these people said that even if companies don't want to pay extra festive bonuses during festivals like Diwali, they can just time the yearly bonuses during the festive period. Big festivals like Diwali, Eid, Christmas, and others mean a lot to people from different religions. "According to our preference, the company can adjust its giving of Diwali bonuses. Until then, many IT workers will keep celebrating with sonpapdi, not bonuses," noted an employee on condition of anonymity.
