Bringing cheer to thousands of its employees, India's largest telecom player by market share, Vodafone-Idea, is planning to give salary increments in the month of June this year. People close to the development told the Economic Times that the rate of promotion is going to be rare.
It is to be noted that the employees of Idea Cellular and Vodafone have not been given salary corrections since 2017 amid deliberations taking place for the merger of the two companies. Now, with the merger processs streamlined, the company is likely to give salary hikes to its 14,000-strong workforce.
"Hikes will be 5-7% on average and will happen across levels. When a large-scale merger takes place, there is always a sense of apprehension among employees. The masses are sticking around because they are yet to get the right break. A raise now, after a gap of a year, will send the right signals," said the person aware of the development.
Price war
Industry experts believe that the timing of this development is important with the fact that the newer entrant in the market, Reliance Jio, has given salary hikes to its employees, although marginal. In a recent interaction with the company employees Vodafone Idea chief executive Balesh Sharma has hinted that the company is mooting the idea of a salary increment in June. Another person close to talks said: "The company has just given new roles and responsibilities, created new hierarchies and it will be too early to give designation changes."
The entry of Reliance Jio in the Indian Telecom sector had triggered a wave of consolidation with smaller players either exiting or going bankrupt. With deep pockets, Reliance Jio offered deep discounts on data and voice plans, triggering a price war.
