Tech firms delaying onboarding, claim freshers

In an indication of a possible slowdown in the IT services sector, several candidates who had been offered jobs— after applying to those companies and some being recruited from the campus — are complaining on social media that three to five months after a job offer, some major tech companies are yet to formally process them. 

Abhishek (name changed at his request), an engineering graduate from Sambhram Institute of Technology, Bangalore was offered a job for the position of Systems Engineer in March 22 by IT major Infosys. However, since then he claims, he hasn’t received any communication from the company regarding his offer letter and the onboarding process. He has publicly complained about the same on social media site Linkedin.

“I have been waiting for months. I have even reached out to them on social media. Even though they replied asking for my candidate ID and email address, they haven’t written back to me or given any clear communication on the status of the offer,” he said. 

Abhishek said he received offers via email from HCL and Wipro as well. While HCL, he says, has been responsive to his queries, he added that he hasn’t received any update from Wipro. While Abhishek is one such candidate, BusinessLine also spoke to four other candidates who have been facing similar problems from top tech companies. Two of the four candidates were campus recruits and two were off-campus recruits. 

Similarly, Pavitra (name changed), an engineering graduate from Sagar Institute of Research and Technology, Bhopal was offered a job on the mail through her college placement drive, after a virtual interview with Infosys (due to the pandemic) says she has also not had a response. “I have not received any communication from the company. My college placement officer also has not gotten any update,” she said.

A collective called — placement drive on Instagram which has more than 1,47,000 followers mostly students — which helps students to get placed by sharing job openings and prepping material through its social media platforms told BusinessLine that it has heard from various students about long delays in receiving offer letters and starting the onboarding process. In the last week, several candidates took to LinkedIn to voice their grievances. 

Offers will be honoured 

Companies, however said that all offers would be honoured and they are continuously engaging with the prospective recruits. Wipro in a statement said, “Wipro can confirm that it will honour all offer letters that have been made to deserving candidates.” 

An HCL spokesperson said there is no change in the onboarding plans and it is happening after getting due clearances from colleges.

Infosys in its statement said, “Hiring at Infosys is always aligned to client requirements through the year and consequently, we spread the joining dates of various batches to align with changes in project schedules and to also ensure employees have access to the right training. In the interim, teams continuously engage with these prospective employees.” 

Rethinking talent strategies

BusinessLine had earlier reported that IT companies are rethinking talent strategies to keep cost in check after Wipro and Infosys either reduced or deferred the variable pay to employees. Human resource consultants have in the recent past said, that the attrition has peaked, and increasingly cost is a concern and hiring numbers going forward will see moderation. 

The operating margins and deal wins of IT firms are on a downward trend on a quarter-on-quarter basis. The margins are under pressure due to wage hikes and supply-side pressure. Concerns about a possible slowdown in the western economies affecting the revenue growth momentum and deal wins of the IT companies have surfaced off late. 

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