Tech Mahindra, an Indian IT company, has reportedly received a notice issued by the Pune labour commissioner over complaints on salary cuts during the coronavirus lockdown in India. The NITES (National Information Technology Employees Senate) reportedly claimed that the Tech Mahindra staff complained to the organization regarding cuts to their allowances.
Sources familiar with the matter have reported that the company was planning to discontinue the shift allowances between ?5,000 to ?10,000 per employee from 1st May. The move will adversely impact 13,000 employees of the company. The notice issued by Nikhil Walke, Assistant Labour Commissioner, reportedly asked the company not to reduce the salaries of the employees and violate the rules of the government.
The NITES has reportedly demanded strict action against this IT services provider in Pune alleging that the company has neglected the basic human rights policies and violated the regulations in Maharashtra state. Sources further added that the complaint issued by the labor commissioner alleged that the salary cuts were aimed at maintaining the profitability of the company. The state government has already instructed the employers not to deduct salaries or lay off employees during the nationwide lockdown.
A Tech Mahindra spokesperson stated that the company will continue to pay the shift allowances to all its associates who are at client locations or attending the office as per the policy. The shift allowances were offered as an additional payment to employees due to travel to office at varying work hours and other out of pocket expenses. In addition to Tech Mahindra, the IT company Wipro also received a similar pay cuts-related notice issued by the Pune Labour Commissioner.
The country is currently under a nationwide lockdown, which began on 25th March, to curb the spread of the coronavirus and contain the pandemic. Several private offices have been closed and their operations have been affected as employees continue to work from home to ensure social distancing.
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