Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's largest IT services company, is facing significant backlash following its announcement to lay off approximately 12,000 employees last month. The decision has sparked protests across multiple cities, led by the Union of IT and ITES Employees (UNITE), which is supported by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU).
UNITE has accused TCS of targeting experienced mid-level and senior professionals, claiming the layoffs are driven by profit motives rather than necessity. The union took to X, stating, "TCS is retrenching workers not out of necessity, but for profit. Targeting senior employees and pushing illegal layoffs is an attack on job security across IT. Workers are not numbers on a balance sheet- we demand justice!" Protests were held outside TCS offices, with a notable demonstration in Chennai, where UNITE demanded government intervention to halt the layoffs.
In response, TCS issued an official statement to TOI, "TCS is on a journey to become a future-ready organisation… As part of this journey, we will also be releasing associates from the organisation whose deployment may not be feasible. This will impact about 2 percent of our global workforce, primarily in the middle and the senior grades, over the course of the year. This transition is being planned with due care to ensure there is no impact on service delivery to our clients… We understand that this is a challenging time for our colleagues likely to be affected. We thank them for their service and we will be making all efforts to provide appropriate benefits, outplacement, counselling, and support as they transition to new opportunities."
TCS further assured that affected employees would receive notice period compensation, severance benefits, outplacement services, and counseling to support their transition. UNITE, however, remains unsatisfied and has threatened to escalate its campaign globally if the layoffs proceed.
The protests highlight growing tensions in the IT sector over job security, particularly for experienced professionals. UNITE’s allegations that TCS is targeting high-performing employees with strong leadership credentials have intensified calls for accountability.
