TCS, Employees' Union Hold Talks After Protests Over 20,000 Job Cuts

A conciliation meeting between the Karnataka State IT/ITeS Employees Union (KITU) and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) management was held on Wednesday in Bengaluru, following allegations of mass layoffs at the IT major.

KITU submitted affidavits from employees who were allegedly victimised and demanded action against the TCS management for violations of Section 33 of the Industrial Disputes Act, which prohibits changes in service conditions during ongoing proceedings.

The meeting was chaired by Additional Labour Commissioner G Manjunath, who acted as the conciliation officer. TCS was represented by general manager (human resources) Boban Varghese Thomas, while KITU was represented by general secretary Suhas Adiga, president VJK Nair, and secretary Sooraj Nidiyanga.

The Labour Department has scheduled the next round of talks for November 5.

On Monday, the IT & ITES Democratic Employees Association (IIDEA) staged a protest outside TCS's Whitefield campus in Bengaluru, condemning the layoffs of nearly 20,000 employees, most of them mid- and senior-level professionals.

Protesters accused TCS of enforcing an "exploitative deployment policy" requiring employees to log 225 billable days annually, and of neglecting work-life balance and job security. They also raised concerns over delayed onboarding of over 500 professionals, who received offer letters months ago but have not yet joined.

IIDEA described TCS's actions as a "devaluation of its workforce", claiming the company is prioritising profits and investor appeal over employee welfare.

Both KITU and IIDEA have urged the government to intervene and enforce labour laws in the IT/ITeS sector, halt illegal retrenchments, and ensure fair treatment, severance benefits and reskilling opportunities for affected workers.