TCS Layoffs Protest: IT Union Alleges 30,000 Job Cuts, Company Denies Calls It 2% Restructuring

The Union of IT & ITES Employees (UNITE) staged demonstrations across major Indian cities on Tuesday, alleging that Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is executing mass layoffs affecting nearly 30000 employees. The protests, backed by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), demanded government intervention and warned that the actual scale of layoffs could be higher than what the company has disclosed.

TCS Denies Large Scale Job Cuts

In response, TCS issued a statement dismissing the allegations as “incorrect and misleading”. The IT giant clarified that workforce changes would affect only 2% of its global headcount, which translates to around 12,000 employees, given its total workforce of over 600,000 worldwide. The company emphasised that this restructuring aims to build a “future-ready organisation” with a sharper focus on cloud, AI, and digital transformation, and promised severance and transition support for those affected.

Union’s Concerns

UNITE leaders expressed deep concern over what they termed as “unfair removals.”

Chandra Shekar Azad, Joint Secretary of UNITE, claimed that employees with strong performance records and leadership roles were being let go, creating fear within project teams.

Alangunambi Welkin, UNITE’s General Secretary, revealed that the union, which has around 300 members (including 50–60 from TCS), may expand its protests globally by collaborating with international labour organisations if the government does not step in.

Additionally, union members highlighted alleged shortcomings at TCS’s Siruseri campus, claiming employees lacked proper access to mandated upskilling tools. These claims, however, remain unverified.

Government & Labour Authority Intervention

The issue has drawn the attention of Karnataka’s labour department after receiving complaints from IT unions. A conciliation meeting chaired by Additional Labour Commissioner G Manjunath is scheduled under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.

TCS executives who attended earlier discussions with the labour authorities said that:

The planned 2% layoffs are not yet underway.

No clear decision has been made regarding city-wise or country-wise employee impact.

They do not recognise KITU (Karnataka State IT/ITeS Employees Union) as a formal union body.

Meanwhile the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology confirmed that the government is closely monitoring the situation.

Industry Context

The protests come at a time when India’s IT services industry is witnessing a shift towards product-aligned delivery models and AI-driven restructuring. According to Nasscom, such transformations may lead to reorganisation of roles and increased workforce realignment across the sector.