Maharashtra Labour Department issues notice to TCS over ‘forced’ transfers

The State Government has issued a notice to (TCS) over a complaint related to the alleged forced transfer of employees. The labour department has requested stakeholders to explain their stand on the matter during a formal meeting on January 18. The Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate ( ) had filed a formal complaint with the Ministry of Labour and Employment against for alleging forceful transfer of over 2000 employees, .

TCS did not have an immediate comment on the issue. NITES claims that it has received more than 300 complaints where TCS has been systematically forcing more than 2,000 employees to transfer to different cities without proper notice or consultation. This is causing hardship for employees and their families, they claimed.

“The company had threatened the employees that failure to comply with the transfer directions would result in disciplinary actions. The company now has unethically stopped the salary of employees who are opposing these ,” said NITES president Harpreet Saluja. TCS has been sending emails to employees, informing them about their transfer to Mumbai among other locations, NITES wrote in a complaint to the labor ministry.

The emails state that the transfer is necessary due to business requirements but no specific details are provided, it claimed. Employees are required to report to the new location within two weeks and will be reimbursed later, according to the emails seen by ET. NITES has also received complaints where employees claim that their access rights to their current locations have been revoked in case they fail to comply.

NITES also stated that these requirements have put employees under financial and emotional stress. It has urged the ministry to investigate TCS's transfer practices to determine if they are in violation of labor laws and take requisite actions. According to company sources that ET has spoken to, this was a “routine” activity.

TCS has adopted a five day return to office and has been asking employees to return to work after almost three years of remote work during the pandemic years. Most IT companies including TCS however, have been struggling to get employees back in office completely. Stay on top of and that matters. to our daily newsletter for the latest and must read tech news, delivered straight to your inbox..