Around 30,000 to 40,000 mid-level employees of information technology companies are likely to lose their jobs this year as growth slows down, said IT industry veteran T V Mohandas Pai said on Monday.
The former Chief Financial Officer of IT major Infosys termed these losses in jobs as a normal phenomenon with maturing of the industry.
“As in all sectors in the West, in India too when a sector matures so many people will be there in the middle level who will not be adding value to the salary they get,” Pai was quoted as saying to PTI.
Promotions are fine when companies are growing fast but when it slows down, people getting fat salaries will aggregate at the higher level, prompting companies to periodically reset their pyramids, and shedding people, he said.
“It’s going to happen again and again and again every five years,” said Pai, Chairman of Aarin Capital and Manipal Global Education Services.
“Nobody is entitled to a fat salary and high-paying job unless you perform, right? You have to deliver value”.
“All across the industry, maybe 30,000 to 40,000 in a year…,” he said when asked about the number of middle-level staff who would lose their jobs.
But Pai said about 80 per cent of those who lose jobs would have employment opportunities in industries in general if they are specialists.
(With input from agencies)