Edtech unicorn Byju’s has failed to pay the Provident Fund (PF) amount to its employees, yet again. Data from the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) shows that Think and Learn Pvt Ltd, the parent company of Byju’s, last paid any PF due to its employees on August 16, 2023. 

The last payment made was for the month of July 2023. EPFO rules mandate that a company should deposit the PF money for a month by the 15th of the next. Any delay could attract penal charges of 5-100 per cent of the amount. Going by this, the company has missed the payments for three months — August, September and October, which had to be deposited in September, October and November respectively. 

According to the EPFO portal, on August 16, the company deposited ₹4.46 crore cumulatively in the PF accounts of 23,533 employees, as their PF contribution for the month of July. On the same day, it cleared pending dues for 92 employees for the month of June and for one, for November 2022. Currently, Universal Account Numbers of 28,943 Byju’s employees are linked to the EPFO portal. 

Unicorn’s woes

At the same time, many former employees of the unicorn have alleged on social media that they are yet to receive their pending PF dues, along with their full and final settlement amount. On Tuesday, businessline reported that Byju’s has again delayed the full and final settlement of its laid-off employees, after shifting its payment timeline from September to November. 

Earlier in June this year, businessline reported on the company’s delays in paying its PF dues. Following that, Byju’s paid EPFO dues worth ₹39.05 crore between June 26 and June 29. 

An email sent to Byju’s seeking comment on this matter hasn’t elicited a response.

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