Indian firm cuts cost with forced leaves
By siliconindia   |   Monday, 22 December 2008, 18:55 IST   |    6 Comments
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Bangalore: Forced leave has gained momentum as a new retrenchment method, with companies resorting to mandatory unpaid leaves for the employees to beat the slowdown. Agilent, a measurement and testing software company, has made a two-day leave mandatory every month in India for its 1,800 employees. The company plans to reduce annual operating expenses by about $65 million with the global restructuring, while in its global pay cut move (effective on January 1), it plans to save another $100 million. The software firm resorted to retrenchment of 800 jobs globally while its Indian arm senior management executives are being asked to take a two-day 'vacation' every month. Junior employees have been asked to take a day's off in lieu of their earned leave. "Those who don't have paid leave left will have to take a leave without pay for those particular days," Agilent India country manager Venkatesh Valluri said, reports Economic Times. The employees would encash their entitled annual 15-day leave, which sometimes added up to a large sum due to accruals over the years. Meanwhile, during the two-week hiatus, the first time in its history, only a few sales and support staff will be required to come. Agilent India has also cut down on international travel and is holding virtual meetings instead. Stay in five-star hotels during official travel is also being curbed.

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