State Bank of India (SBI) has reiterated that the safety, dignity and well-being of its employees are its highest priority after a branch manager was allegedly assaulted at one of its Chennai branches. The incident took place on 20 July at the bank’s NRI branch in Adyar, where Kayalvizhi, daughter of former Union minister M.K. Alagiri and granddaughter of M Karunanidhi, former chief minister of Tamil Nadu , allegedly slapped the branch manager during an altercation. The incident was captured on the branch’s CCTV cameras, and a video of the alleged assault later surfaced on social media. According to police,…
Author: HRK News Bureau
Taj Hotels has appointed Jagadeswar Rao Palla as director-human resources for a pre-opening property in Yelahanka, Bengaluru. In his new role, he will lead the hotel’s people strategy, overseeing talent acquisition, organisational culture, employee engagement, leadership development, and HR operations to support the successful launch and long-term growth of the property. Palla brings over 14 years of experience in hospitality human resources, with expertise spanning hotel pre-openings, talent management, employee relations, organisational development, and people operations. Prior to joining this role, he served as cluster human resources manager for Vivanta Goa Panaji and Vivanta Goa Miramar, where he led HR…
Porsche is reportedly planning to cut around 8,900 jobs in Germany by the end of 2035, as the luxury carmaker steps up efforts to improve its financial performance. According to Automotive News, the latest plan adds 5,000 positions to the 3,900 redundancies already announced, reducing Porsche’s German workforce from around 23,000 employees. The proposal has reportedly been approved by the company’s supervisory board after being put forward by CEO Michael Leiters as part of a broader restructuring strategy. The additional reductions are expected to be achieved through natural attrition, early retirement and voluntary severance, with administrative and research and development…
Centrica, the owner of British Gas, plans to eliminate around 1,300 jobs over the next two years as it restructures its workforce in response to changing customer behaviour and growing use of digital services. The reductions include around 500 customer operations roles, along with cuts to outsourced offshore positions and certain group-support functions. The company said some of the workforce reductions have already taken place and will reduce its customer operations headcount by about 14 per cent. Centrica said the move reflects a sharp shift in customer preferences, with more than 90 per cent of customers now using digital channels…
HCLTech is set to build its first AI-optimised data centre in India in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, with an investment of Rs 142.57 billion. The project, approved by the Odisha State Level Single Window Clearance Authority, is expected to generate 6,000 high-skilled jobs and become a hub for upskilling and workforce transformation in the region. The IT major will partner with a homegrown AI startup to develop the facility. Alongside the data centre, HCLTech will also establish a Global Delivery Centre in Bhubaneswar. The combined infrastructure aims to anchor Odisha’s shift from a resource-based economy to a technology and AI-led ecosystem. Company…
Private-sector employers in the UAE will now be required to purchase worker insurance for every new employee before obtaining a work permit, as part of the country’s efforts to strengthen employee protections and improve labour market compliance. Under the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s (MoHRE) Worker Protection Insurance scheme, employers must secure insurance that covers unpaid wages of up to Dh20,000 over a 30-month period if they fail to meet their legal obligations. The policies also cover repatriation costs in the event of an employee’s death. MoHRE has introduced four insurance packages for different categories of employees and businesses,…
PepsiCo will eliminate 184 warehouse positions at its Tulsa, Oklahoma, facility, with employee separations scheduled to begin on or around 15 November, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filing submitted to the state. The company said the layoffs are permanent and will affect nearly all warehouse employees at the site. However, production operations at the Tulsa facility will continue, and the restructuring does not involve the closure of the manufacturing plant. All affected employees have been notified of the planned workforce reduction. None of the employees are represented by a union, and there are no bumping rights…
The Delhi Police has temporarily suspended routine leave for its personnel to ensure adequate manpower amid heightened security and law and order requirements in the national capital. According to reports, the directive issued by Police Headquarters puts regular leave, including casual and earned leave, on hold. Exceptions are expected to be considered only in genuine emergencies and with approval from the competent authority. Personnel have also reportedly been advised not to attend training programmes without prior clearance, enabling the force to maintain greater operational flexibility as deployment needs evolve. The decision comes amid ongoing protests and enhanced security arrangements across…
The Meghalaya government has signed a revised Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the State Bank of India (SBI), introducing enhanced banking, insurance and loan benefits for more than 43,000 state government employees. The revised agreement replaces an earlier arrangement signed in 2012 and extends the upgraded benefits to both existing and newly recruited employees. Under the new package, employees will receive access to SBI’s ‘Rhodium’ salary account, personal accident insurance of up to Rs 1 crore and air accident insurance of up to Rs 1.6 crore. The package also includes group term life insurance, concessional processing fees on personal, home,…
Visier has appointed Pramukh Jeyathilak as chief people officer, effective July 2026. Based in Greater Vancouver, Canada, he will lead the company’s global talent, culture, and workforce strategy as the leading people analytics and workforce intelligence platform expands its people analytics hub. Jeyathilak brings nearly three decades of HR leadership across technology, financial services, and consulting. His last role was as group head of human resources at London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) from 2021 to 2023, acting as chief people officer for the data & analytics division across America, EMEA and Asia. There, he led post-merger integration of Refinitiv and…
Infosys reported a marginal decline in its workforce during the first quarter of FY27, with its headcount falling by 532 employees even as the company reaffirmed its campus hiring plans and continued investments in AI-led capabilities. The IT services company ended the June quarter with a total headcount of 3,28,062, down from 328,594 in the previous quarter, signalling a shift towards productivity- and efficiency-led growth rather than workforce expansion. Despite the decline, CEO Salil Parekh said Infosys onboarded around 4,000 freshers during the quarter and remains on track to hire 20,000 campus graduates during FY27. The company’s annualised attrition rate…
Everpure has appointed Arpit Nigam as director, HR business partner, strengthening its people leadership team as the company continues to expand its global operations. Nigam brings over 15 years of professional experience, including more than a decade in human resources. Nigam announced the appointment on LinkedIn, sharing that his first few weeks at Everpure had given him an opportunity to experience the company’s customer-first mindset, collaborative culture, and focus on innovation. Throughout his career, he has partnered with senior business leaders across India and the US to drive people strategy, organisational effectiveness, talent management, and business growth. Before joining Everpure,…
IndiGo has deferred salary increments for its senior management employees after reporting a loss in the first quarter of FY27, citing continued pressure on profitability from rising fuel costs and an uncertain operating environment. Speaking during the airline’s post-earnings call, Gaurav Negi, chief financial officer (CFO) said the planned salary revisions for senior-level employees had been put on hold and would be reviewed again after six months. The decision follows parent company InterGlobe Aviation’s reporting of a consolidated net loss of Rs 238 crore for the quarter ended 30 June, compared with a profit of Rs 2,176 crore in the…
Winner | HRKatha Rising Star Leadership Award 2025 Every profession reaches a point when its role begins to change. For HR, that moment is now. As artificial intelligence, shifting workforce expectations and persistent skill shortages reshape organisations, HR is moving well beyond hiring, payroll and policy. Increasingly, the function is expected to build organisational capability, influence business decisions and create cultures that can adapt to constant change. Deepanjan Sinha belongs to a generation of HR professionals helping drive that transition. His work spans leadership development, competency frameworks, succession planning and organisation development, reflecting the broader shift taking place within the…
A Tech Mahindra software employee, Bhavana, staged a protest outside the company’s Dundigal campus after claiming she was terminated unfairly. She said the dismissal followed her taking leave to care for her 11 year old daughter, who was unwell. Bhavana had joined Tech Mahindra about four months earlier. During training, she reportedly fell sick, fainted at work, and was hospitalised. In June, she took 13 days of medical leave and received a warning letter despite informing management of her condition. She alleged that her husband also communicated her health issues to the company but the response was unsympathetic. She further…
After a successful tenure of over four years with Flipkart, Richa Verma Agrawal has accepted the role of chief human resources officer (CHRO) at Assetz Property Group. An alumna of Delhi University’s Jesus & Mary College, Agrawal went on to obtain an MCA from IGNOU. She served Dundee Bancorp India as systems and technology officer for over two years before taking up the role of technical support associate at Wipro Spectramind. A year later, she moved to Convergys as a team manager and was soon promoted to operations manager. Over two and a half years later she switched to Hewitt…
The RP Sanjiv Goenka Group has brought on board Puneet Shrivastava as head – talent acquisition for its renewables business. Based in Delhi, he will lead talent strategy for the group’s Purvah Green and Solvanta verticals amid aggressive expansion in clean energy. Srivastava’s focus areas include end-to-end talent acquisition, workforce planning, leadership hiring, and aligning people strategy with business goals. He emphasises a people-first culture, noting that organisational success is driven by capable people even as technology accelerates. In his new role, he will be tasked with building scalable hiring frameworks and a future-ready talent pool to support RPSG’s growing…
The Odisha government has approved a 5 per cent increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) for state- government employees covered under the pre-revised Odisha Revised Scales of Pay (ORSP) Rules, 2008. With the revision, DA has been increased from 257 to 262 per cent of the combined basic pay and grade pay, with retrospective effect from 1 January, 2026. The move aligns the state’s DA for employees under the pre-revised pay structure with the Centre’s revised DA for employees covered under the 6th Central Pay Commission. The enhanced DA will benefit state government employees drawing pay under the ORSP Rules, 2008,…
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has asked employees assigned to its central Delhi campus to temporarily work from its Noida or Gurugram offices, or seek a work-from-office (WFO) exception, following disruptions caused by student protests in the area. According to an internal advisory issued for 23 and 24 July, employees based at the PTI Building campus have been instructed to report to the company’s offices in Noida or Gurugram. Those unable to travel to either location have been asked to apply for a WFO exception under the “Calamity Exigency” category. The temporary arrangement comes in response to student protests in and…
Shashi Bhushan Singh, director – human resources and a member of the senior management at Jagatjit Industries, has resigned from his position, effective 21 July, 2026, to pursue opportunities outside the group. The company disclosed the development in a regulatory filing with the BSE under Regulation 30 of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015. Singh submitted his resignation on 20 July, and the company’s management accepted it the following day. Jagatjit Industries has not yet announced his successor. Singh joined Jagatjit Industries in March 2024 as director–HR (CHRO), where he led the company’s people strategy, talent management,…
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has voted to begin the process of eliminating the requirement for large employers to annually report workforce demographic data by race and sex through the EEO-1 report. The move marks a significant shift in workplace compliance and diversity reporting. If finalised, the proposal would also remove similar reporting obligations for labour unions, public schools and government agencies. However, employers would still be required to maintain workforce records for use in discrimination investigations and other compliance purposes. The EEOC estimates that scrapping the reporting requirement could save employers around US$275 million annually in compliance…
JPMorgan Chase is set to hire around 1,000 technology professionals for its global capability centres (GCCs) in India, even as the bank says artificial intelligence (AI) has reduced staffing needs by 30–40 per cent in some parts of its business. According to reports, the hiring will focus on technology roles in cloud architecture, cybersecurity and AI data pipelines. Candidates will undergo HackerRank-based assessments evaluating coding skills, algorithms, data structures and system architecture expertise. The recruitment drive is aimed at strengthening the bank’s global technology and digital- transformation initiatives while expanding its India GCC operations. JPMorgan currently employs around 55,000 people…
Work management software company Monday.com is laying off around 20 per cent of its global workforce, impacting nearly 620 employees, as it restructures its business to become an AI-first organisation. In a letter to employees, co-founders Roy Mann and Eran Zinman described the layoffs as the most difficult decision in the company’s history, saying the restructuring is aimed at preparing the organisation for the next phase of growth driven by artificial intelligence. The company, however, emphasised that the job cuts are not intended to reduce costs or replace employees with AI. Instead, it said the savings from the restructuring will…
The West Bengal government has constituted the 7th Pay Commission for state government employees and staff of state-aided institutions, fulfilling a key pre-election promise to set up the panel within six months of assuming office. The four-member Commission will be headed by retired IAS officer Atanu Chakraborty, former secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance. Other members include economist Partha Mukhopadhyay, professor Partha Pratim Pal of IIM Calcutta, and Finance Department Secretary Devi Prasad Karanam as member secretary. The Commission has been tasked with reviewing pay, allowances and other service benefits for government employees. It will also recommend measures…
Uber reduces roughly 10 per cent of its customer-service roles as it accelerates the use of artificial intelligence across operations. The ride-hailing firm stated the decision is part of building a “more connected, modern, operationally-excellent organisation.” In an internal note, Jill Hazelbaker, president and chief corporate affairs officer mentioned that some support teams had become too fragmented, with overlapping responsibilities that slowed decision-making. The restructuring aims to bring teams closer to riders, drivers and business partners. Uber has been expanding AI tools to handle routine customer queries, and Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO recently noted that about 10 per cent of company…
Amazon has cut jobs in its artificial general intelligence division, the company confirmed on 22 July, 2026, in the newest wave of targeted reductions aimed at tightening focus on key AI initiatives. The move follows a larger round of 16,000 companywide layoffs in January 2026. Amazon did not reveal how many employees in the AGI group were impacted but stated the changes were necessary to move faster on projects most critical to customers. An Amazon spokesman revealed that they have been concentrating on building large AI models for several years, and since it has remained one of their top priorities,…