New Delhi: The employee headcount at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) fell by 5,680 on a net basis in the three-month period that ended on December 31, 2023. For the IT firm, it is the second quarter of decline consecutively.

Similarly, the headcount of another IT giant, Infosys, was reduced by 6,101 in the same period. For Infosys, it is the fourth quarter of decline consecutively.

Together, TCS and Infosys reported a substantial dip of over 11,000 employees in their headcount base during the third quarter (October–December) of the current financial year, even as their attrition rates dropped, Business Standard reported.

While Infosys ended the December quarter with 322,663 employees, TCS ended the third quarter with a 603,305 employee base. On the other hand, the attrition rate of Infosys stood at 12.9% in Q3FY24, from the earlier quarter when it reported 14.6%. As for TCS, the attrition rate for this quarter stood at 13.3% compared to 14.9% in the previous quarter.

The trend of reduction in workforce by the Indian IT majors does not bode well for the sector as well as for the engineering graduates, as these firms hire largely from college campuses. While TCS has said it will continue with campus recruitment, Infosys has made it clear that it has no plans for immediate campus requirements for FY24.

Chief human resource officer of TCS, Milind Lakkad, said, "Attrition is trending down and at 13.3%, is now in our range of comfort. We are committed to hiring from college campuses and growing talent organically. We have commenced our campus hiring process for the next year and see tremendous excitement among freshers to join TCS."

As The Wire reported earlier, the economic slowdown being witnessed across the world has also come to affect the IT sector. Even recruitment from the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) has also been impacted.

The gloomy scenario is attributable to the slowdown being witnessed across multiple sectors, including tech, consulting, and other services sectors. Economic shifts, geopolitical economic worries, and recession fears have resulted in the slowdown globally. The current slowdown, which is being witnessed specifically in the information technology (IT) sector, is expected to drag on for the next two to three quarters, Sekhar Garisa, CEO of job portal Foundit (formerly Monster), had told Financial Express.  

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