Infosys is under scrutiny after 100+ sacked employees petitioned PMO for reinstatement and precautions against similar dismissals. The central labour ministry has acted, a second notice has been issued to Karnataka’s labour commissioner to look into the mass termination at the Mysuru campus.
The controversy started when around 700 trainees were terminated by Infosys on February 7, 2024, for failing an internal assessment. The IT giant said that its evaluation policy was explained to all the candidates and that the exams had multiple choice questions with negative marking for all the three attempts. However, the affected employees complained that the assessments were much harder than those of the previous batches.
Of the terminated employees, 700, Infosys said that about 350 had ‘resigned.’ It defended its process, pointing out that all the training costs were covered by the company and that the separated employees had received relieving letters, severance pay, and outplacement services.
In a letter dated February 25, 2025, the Centre said that the Karnataka government was the proper authority to act under the relevant labour laws. In the meantime, the notice was also passed on to Harpreet Singh Saluja, the president of Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES), an IT employee welfare body.
The dispute has further escalated, and Infosys has argued that its assessments are in line with the company’s policies, although the employees remain unconvinced. This case, therefore, demonstrates the existing worries on job security in India’s IT sector and regulatory intervention is expected in the matter.
