Govt to probe spate of resignations at Amazon

THE LABOUR MINISTRY HAD SENT A NOTICE TO AMAZON INDIA LAST WEEK AFTER RECEIVING A COMPLAINT OF MASS LAYOFFS

The labour ministry will set up an inquiry to find out whether the recent spate of resignations at Amazon India constituted layoffs that violate labour laws or terms of service, according to people aware of the development.

The ministry had sent a notice to Amazon India last week after the Nascent Information Technology Employees’ Senate (NITES), a collective of IT professionals that has over 18,000 members complained to Union labour minister Bhupender Yadav of mass layoffs in violation of laws.

In its reply, Amazon India had said no employee had been fired and some staff had resigned after accepting the firm’s “voluntary separation programme”.

The company, in its internal communication to employees, had stated that those who do not opt for the voluntary separation programme will be retrenched without any benefits under a “workforce optimisation programme”, according to Harpreet Singh Saluja, president of NITES.

Amazon has planned to lay off approximately 10,000 people in corporate and technology jobs globally, starting last week, in what would be the largest job cuts in the company’s history, according to reports. The resignations at Amazon India are being seen as a part of the e-commerce giant’s global retrenchments.

Amazon India has said it planned to shutdown its food delivery service in Bengaluru by the end of 2022, and also wind up its ed-tech ventures in the country. On Thursday, the company said it would shutter Amazon Academy, an online learning platform in India for high school students.

HT has reached out to Amazon India for comments, but has not received a response.

“In its response (to the labour ministry), the company said that they had expected to make more money through their business, but owing to financial expedience, they floated a voluntary exit programme. They said there were no forced layoffs. However, we will be examining whether the exits were voluntary and if the terms of services, which includes severance and notice period, were adhered to,” a ministry official said, requesting anonymity.

The ministry will also reach out to the employees who opted for the exit scheme.

On whether the government could intervene in the working of a private entity, the official said the ministry has the mandate to ensure that labour laws were not violated.