WFH is no longer a benefit, but a level of employment in the Indian technology sector

Most organizations are turning to flexible work schedules so that at least half of their employees are working from home. File photo: AFP via Straits Times/Asia News Network

NEW DELHI – Software expert Harish Kulkarni, when asked in a June survey by his employer whether he wanted to return to work in the office or work from home (WFH), chose the latter.

So do all his colleagues at the Bangalore-based company, which wants to bring its employees to the office at least twice a week.

“Some people have accepted it for two days (in office), but everyone likes the WFH option,” Kulkarni said.

As India eases Covid-19 restrictions and life returns to pre-pandemic conditions, information technology firms are finding that workers are reluctant to return to the office full-time.

A recent survey conducted by India-based staffing agency CIEL HR in May of 40 IT organizations and 900,000 employees for an economic survey found that three out of four employees in the IT sector refuse to sit in the office for even one day a week. Times

According to the survey, 10 percent of new hires in the corporate sector are in permanent remote roles.

Employers reported that their employees were more used to WFH and were reluctant to return to longer trips.

No for transportation, traffic

“I don’t want to waste half my life commuting in Bangalore traffic,” says Krithika Sandhu, a 32-year-old senior data analyst who recently quit to take up another full-time remote role.

“The pandemic has taught me the value of time. I want to be able to take care of my elderly parents. I wanted to work full-time, but I want to be more responsive to their needs,” she added.

Discussions on job sites and professional websites LinkedIn, Naukri.com and Glassdoor showed that many professionals who had returned to their hometowns or remote locations or set up home offices, had a greater preference for WFH.

Local media reported in May that 800 employees of edutech startup Whitehat Jr. walked off the job for two months after being asked to work in the office.

“Strict orders to return to the office are ineffective. Unlike two years ago, not having WFH is a deal-breaker today. It’s not a benefit, it’s a new standard,” said an HR manager at a large IT company, who did not want to be named.

In a sector hampered by talent shortages, companies are also pushing hard and fearing losing workers – allowing workers to dominate their bargaining terms.

In the year India’s US$200 billion software industry, which is expected to grow by 15.5 percent from 2021 to 2022, is on a hiring spree, even as companies take steps to counter the slump recorded earlier this year.

Demand has increased.

IT major Infosys, for instance, rose to 28.4 percent in the quarter ended June, up from 27.6 percent in the previous quarter.

Ms. Rituparna Chakraborty, Co-Founder of Teamlease, a Bangalore-based staffing company said that across all sectors, most of the layoffs are employees in big data, blockchain, cloud computing, cyber security, blockchain and artificial intelligence services. Services.

“With many more companies making rapid technology investments after the pandemic, the demand for IT skills outstrips the supply. So the IT sector is giving hikes and increments as well as people not going to another job (the WFH option),” she added.

In the year According to a November 2021 survey by trade association Nasscom and job portal, 70 percent of IT companies in India were opting for a hybrid working model.

Tata Consulting Services, India’s largest technology employer, said 20 percent of its 600,000 employees had returned to work by mid-July. Tata CEO Rajesh Gopinathan said the company will push for at least 80 percent of its return to office before moving to a hybrid model.

According to a company spokesperson, the company requires no more than 25 percent of our associates to work from the office at any given time, and they do not need to spend more than 25 percent of their time in the office.

Part of the sustainability goal

Since April, tech company Cognizant has allowed workers to voluntarily return to the office, and will gradually move to a hybrid model.

Infosys is encouraging its employees to return to their offices in a phased manner, starting two days a week.

“Fully vaccinated employees will voluntarily return to work from Indian campuses three times a week from April 4,” a spokesperson told The Straits Times.

HCL Technologies said half of its employees have been identified for permanent WFH.

Some organizations have folded WFH into their sustainability goals.

Shantanu Jha, senior vice president of human resources at Cognizant, said the company has set “measurable net zero goals” as it moves to a hybrid operating model.

“Reducing emissions in our operations, including business travel, is part of this commitment,” he said.

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