Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTS) is back in the news once again. After the American multinational firm was accused of laying off about 6,000 workers in India to ramp up hiring in its home country, it is now being said that CTS has deferred the promotion and salary hikes of its employees by three months. The main cause of the move is said to be higher business costs, visa curbs, and slow growth.
While the employees often get promotion and hikes around June each year, the IT giant informed its employees through an email that promotion and salary hikes would be effective only from October 1 this time, reported Business Standard.
Cognizant's chief people officer Jim Lennox told the employees that they would get a percentage hike on their basic pay up to the managerial level and employees at a senior level would receive a "lump sum" amount. Additionally, they will also get a bonus based on their performance.
Cognizant has of late been garnering a lot of attention for the reported layoffs. While Cognizant president Rajiv Mehta told the Economic Times that the company had no layoff plans, he had earlier revealed that it does intend to ramp up hiring in the US. "We are shifting our workforce rapidly in the US with more US jobs and US delivery centres," he told PTI. Additionally, he attributed the shift to "clients' need for co-innovation and co-location."
It was also reported that Cognizant might also let go of its senior employees through a voluntary retirement scheme. The firm has reportedly given its senior employees an option to accept a six or nine months' severance package, whichever is applicable.
"We are offering a voluntary separation incentive to some eligible leaders, representing a very small percentage of our total workforce. It is related to our overall company strategy to accelerate our shift to digital and to deliver high-quality, sustainable growth," a Cognizant spokesperson told ET.
Meanwhile, IT giant Infosys also revealed in May that employees may have to wait for a bit longer to see a hike in their paychecks. The salary hike for lower and mid-level employees has been deferred until July, while the senior level employees will see a further delay.
Infosys' chief operating officer UB Pravin Rao had then told the Economic Times that the firm had adopted a few cost reduction measures, but they were done only after consulting the employees. However, the employees were clearly not pleased with the idea and said: "They have delayed the salary hike. They are also raising the cost of parking in the campus and facilities fees. So even if you get a hike, you will end up giving most of it back to the company."
