Did TCS ask its employees to return to 'deputed location by November 15?

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's largest IT services provider by revenue, has requested employees to return to their "deputed location (base branch)" by November 15, indicating that the company is preparing employees across the nation to begin working from offices. In a statement to ET, the business said that the return to work would be a calculated decision to take staff health and safety into account.

The firm employs 528,748 people in India and throughout the world. Milind Lakkad, TCS's executive vice president and global head of human resources, sent an official message earlier this week in which he asked his employees to return to their base branches. TCS stated that around 5% of its colleagues currently work from offices.

The firm's statement said toward the conclusion of fiscal year '21; they would urge colleagues to return to offices, at least initially, before transitioning to the 25/25 model. It added that this would be done gradually and flexibly, depending on different team leaders and the needs of each team/project. The statement further stated that they are dedicated to the 25/25 model, but before they move to it, they need to start by bringing people back to work and gradually transition to 25/25.

Also Read | Only 25% TCS employees to go back to office? Here's everything about 25-by-25 model

TCS said last year that it will transition to a hybrid workplace model known as 25/25, in which it expects just 25% of its employees to work from the company's premises by 2025. The remaining staff are expected to work from home.

According to the Deloitte Workforce and Increment Trends Survey 2021, 92 per cent of firms increased pay by an average of 8.0 per cent in 2021, up from 4.4 per cent in 2020, when just 60% of employers increased pay. According to the estimate, "early projections show that the average rise for 2022 is expected to expand to 8.6 per cent with a healing economy and increased confidence."  If this is accurate, increases in 2022 will be comparable to pre-pandemic levels in 2019. A quarter of the companies questioned anticipate double-digit growth in 2022.

Also Read | IT sector may witness salary hike next year with average increment of 8.6%: Report