Silent layoffs hit India's IT sector; 20,000 jobs lost in 2023: Report

Amid rising layoffs, IT sector employees have been one of the worst hit.

Around 20,000 tech employees lost their jobs in silent layoffs in 2023, as per data from All India IT & ITeS Employees' Union or AIITEU, quoted by Moneycontrol. The union suggests that the actual number could be even higher due to unreported cases.

Silent layoffs is reportedly a common practice in the industry. It involves giving employees 30 days to find a new role within the company, failing which, the employees are asked to leave discreetly.

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In some cases employees are also asked to sign an NDA to get their full payout, AIITEU general secretary told Money Control, adding that with teams being downsized, existing employees are being made to work 14-16 hours a day as opposed to 10-12 hours a day earlier.

The Moneycontrol report also quoted data from the Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate or NITES, which reported that 2,000-3,000 professionals lost their jobs at top Indian IT services companies in 2024 alone.