The Supreme Court has ruled that retired government employees who are re-employed after retirement cannot claim additional leave encashment if they have already availed the statutory limit of 300 days. This decision overturns a Sikkim High Court ruling that allowed an employee to receive leave encashment for leave accrued during their post-retirement re-employment. The case was brought to the apex court by the State of Sikkim, which argued that the Sikkim Government Services (Leave) Rules, 1982, clearly limit leave encashment to a one-time benefit, capped at 300 days, and applicable only at the time of retirement. The employee in question…
Author: HRK News Bureau
BNY Mellon has shifted its hybrid work policy, increasing the in-office requirement to four days per week starting 2 September 2025. The adjustment impacts the bank’s 51,000 employees worldwide, replacing the three-day schedule introduced in early 2023. The decision aligns with a broader trend on Wall Street, where several large banks are pushing for increased in-person work. While the company maintains that flexibility remains a priority, it has stated that remote work will be limited to one day per week. There are no immediate plans to mandate a full five-day in-office schedule unless business circumstances demand it. The bank’s leadership…
American Express Saudi Arabia has appointed Nora AlMansour as its new head of human resources and administration. In this role, AlMansour will spearhead the development of the company’s human capital strategy, aligning it with long-term business objectives. Her key focus areas will include workforce planning, capability building, and fostering a positive organisational culture. AlMansour brings over a decade of expertise in human capital management within the financial services sector. Prior to joining American Express Saudi Arabia, she served as the senior director of human capital business partnership at Saudi Payments. There, she led talent strategy initiatives and leadership development programmes,…
The Madhya Pradesh Cabinet has approved the long-awaited Transfer Policy 2025. The policy introduces a new four-tier slab system for transfers, replacing the earlier three-tier model. The transfer process will begin on 1 May and continue for 30 days. The permissible quota for transfers has also increased from two to three per cent, providing greater flexibility to departments. Each department can frame its own policy and conduct transfers accordingly. The Cabinet also cleared proposals related to employee benefits. These include a five per cent hike in Dearness Allowance (DA), to be paid in five instalments, and the formation of a…
Google is making key changes to its performance review and compensation system. The aim is to reward top-performing employees more generously. In an internal email titled “Strengthening our performance culture,” John Casey, VP-global compensation and benefits, Google, outlined the new approach that will take effect in the 2026 compensation cycle. The revised structure allows managers to assign the sought after “Outstanding Impact” rating to more employees than before. This rating, part of Google’s annual GRAD, short for Googler Reviews and Development system, determines how bonuses and equity are distributed. By widening access to this top tier, Google hopes to motivate…
Tech Mahindra has promoted Arnav Sharma to the position of chief of staff to the MD and CEO. In his new role, Sharma will oversee the CEO’s office and drive key strategic initiatives aligned with the organisation’s priorities. Previously, Sharma served as global head of Global Strategic Marketing Programmes (GSMP) and CEO Communications at Tech Mahindra. In that capacity, he was instrumental in enhancing customer engagement, fostering thought leadership, and strengthening the company’s brand presence on a global scale. His responsibilities also included managing global brand investments, partnerships, and marketing programmes. Sharma joined Tech Mahindra in 2020 as global head…
Soma Pandey has joined Infogain as its new chief people officer (CPO). In this role, she will lead efforts to enhance the company’s overall employee experience and play a key role in nurturing STEM talent, ensuring Infogain remains at the forefront of technological innovation. Prior to this, Pandey was associated with Tredence, a data science and AI solutions company, as its chief human resources officer (CHRO). In this role, Pandey collaborated with key stakeholders to preserve the company’s high-achievement culture during its ambitious growth phase. She joined the company in the year 2023. Pandey is a seasoned HR professional, backed…
In a landmark judgment, the Bombay High Court in Nagpur has clarified that a company undergoing insolvency cannot shirk its statutory obligations towards employees. The Court directed Dalmia Cement (Bharat) to settle over Rs 25 crore in outstanding Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) dues owed to workers of Murli Industries, a company it had acquired through an approved resolution plan. Murli Industries, which entered insolvency in April 2017 after proceedings initiated by Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Company, saw its cement division revived under a resolution plan approved in 2019. The scheme, sanctioned by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), explicitly stipulated that…
Global shipping giant, UPS is undergoing a major restructuring as it plans to eliminate 20,000 jobs and close 73 facilities by June 2025. This is in response to a significant reduction in shipping volume from Amazon, which is UPS’ largest customer. Amazon is reportedly set to cut its shipping volume with UPS by more than 50 per cent by mid-2026. To adjust to this shift, UPS has announced a cost-saving plan aimed at reducing expenses by $3.5 billion. The company is focusing on efficiency and profitability across its remaining operations as it adjusts to a drop in volume of business…
Another round of layoffs has affected 195 trainees this time at Infosys’ Mysuru campus. This is the fourth batch of trainees being impacted. This year, a total of 800 trainees have been affected by the results of the internal assessments at Infosys. Of these, 250 have opted to embrace upskilling programmes being offered by the company and about 150 have registered to avail the outplacement support. Before this round, over two hundred trainees were dismissed for failing to clear the assessment that took place on 18 April. That third round had come close on the heels of the IT services…
Duolingo, the language app will slowly discontinue using contract employees and allow artificial intelligence or AI to take over whatever it can. This was conveyed to the employees by Luis von Ahn, co-foudner and CEO, Duolingo, in an e-mail. Luis von Ahn is endeavouring to make Duolingo an AI-first firm. Von Ahn intends to use AI in hiring and performance assessments. Only work that cannot be automated will be done manually. He clarifies that these changes are aimed at eliminating bottlenecks and the intention is not to replace the employees with AI. The idea is to allow employees to concentrate…
QualiZeal, a global quality engineering and AI-powered digital transformation services company, has roped in Venka Reddy for the role of chief people officer (CPO). Reddy moves from Coforge where he was vice president & head HR for over three years. Armed with a master’s degree in human resources management from Acharya Nagarjuna University, Reddy began his professional journey with Viceroy (Mariott Hyderabad), as human resources officer, back in 1997. He moved to StockHolding Corporation of India as assistant manager, HRD, in 1998. Six years later, he switched to Indian Register of Shipping, as manager and head HRD, based out of…
In a move sparking debate over work-life boundaries, the Punjab government has issued a serious directive. As per the new order, it is mandatory for all state government employees to remain available on their mobile phones at all times — including weekends and public holidays. The order, circulated by the state personnel department, applies to senior officials such as special chief secretaries, additional chief secretaries, financial commissioners, principal secretaries, as well as secretaries. These officers have been instructed to ensure that none of their subordinates switch off their mobile phones after work hours. The circular underlines that officers must be…
Axis Bank, the Indian private sector lender, has undergone routine employee performance evaluations as part of its annual appraisal cycle. The outcome has resulted in a mix of promotions and exits, with some employees falling short of performance expectations amidst sector-wide challenges. The bank emphasised that exits are part of its regular review process, particularly in areas where it continues to invest heavily. Performance-based decisions, including terminations, are not uncommon during appraisal periods. Industry-wide challenges over the past fiscal year have contributed to performance dips in several departments, making it necessary for the bank to realign roles and responsibilities. As…
A recent incident shared on Reddit has reignited the debate around work-from-home flexibility and the growing disconnect between global work policies and local management practices in India. An Indian employee working for a European multinational claimed that despite his manager’s approval for remote work, he was denied the option by the company’s Indian HR team. The employee, who has worked at the company for a year, praised the overall work culture, appreciative of its flexibility, no-overtime rule, and hybrid work schedule. However, he was disappointed that these benefits were not always respected by the Indian management. The issue arose when…
The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation has rolled out a new and updated Form 13 along with a feature for issuing Universal Account Numbers (UAN) in bulk. The objective is to smoothen, simplify and speed up the process of transferring provident funds (PF) even while making it more transparent. Backlogs will also be taken care of. With manual intervention minimised, there will be no delays and more than 1.25 crore EPFO members will benefit from faster processing of fund transfers. With this system in place, the amount will be instantly credited the moment approval is received from the source office. Members…
After spending nine months playing head of human resources, Indo National, Amit Kumar Sharda has been elevated to chief human resources officer (CHRO) at the Chennai-headquarter company that manufacturers and markets dry cell batteries under the brand ‘Nippo’. Sharda spent a successful tenure of over 12 and a half years with Cavinkare, as lead-HRBP. Among other responsibilities, Sharda headed HR for personal care and international business (Bangladesh, Srilanka and Nepal). In the initial years of his professional journey, Amit Kumar Sharda served as recruiter for Ma Foi, understanding IT & ITES sector requirements of clients, handling first-level screening and segregation…
Women in India are increasingly becoming an active part of the workforce. Their participation in the workforce has increased by 23 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2024. Out of the record-breaking 1.8 crore job applications received in Q1 of 2025 form, 62 lakh were from women reveals the ‘India at Work – Q1 2025’ report by the jobs platform, Apna. This is 30 per cent more than 2024. About 66 lakh applications were received from freshers, which is 46 per cent more than was seen during the same time last year. Interestingly, there was a 92 per…
With an aim to improving customer service and strengthening customer relationships across India, the Union Bank of India has recruited 1,500 local bank officers. These officers will help improve the customer service across various states in the country and engage more deeply with the local communities. The bank will take advantage of the officers’ proficiency in regional languages to enhance the experience of the customers. In addition to managing branch operations effectively, the local bank officers will be expected to promote the Bank’s products and services by putting to good use their knowledge of local languages and cultures. It is…
Adani Group has elevated Manoj Kumar Sharma to the position of group head-IR. He has moved from within the Group, that is, from Ambuja Cements, after a one and a half year-long stint as chief human resources officer. His association with the Adani Group has been a long one, having begun in 2008. Sharma comes with four decades of experience, having started his professional journey with Ranbaxy, in August 1985. Five years later, he moved to Aditya Birla Group, as general manager. He spent 12 years there, working out of Bhiwani/Renukoot. In 2004, Manoj Kumar Sharma joined HEG (LNJ Bhilwara…
The Tamil Nadu government has introduced a series of welfare measures for state employees, teachers and pensioners. These announcements were made by Chief Minister M K Stalin during a session in the state Assembly, focusing on improving financial support and benefits for government workers. One of the key changes is a significant revision in the ‘marriage advance’ scheme. Previously, women employees received Rs 10,000 while the men in the workforce got Rs 6,000 under this scheme. This amount will now be hiked to Rs 5 lakh for both male and female government employees and teachers. The move is expected to…
HDFC ERGO General Insurance has elevated Mukesh Kumar as its new joint vice president-human resources. In this role, Kumar will help the company strengthen its human capital growth along with strategic people planning. Previously, Kumar held the role of deputy vice president-HRBP & talent acquisition. He joined the company in the year October 2022. In this role, Kumar was responsible for managing human resources business partner (HRBP) and talent acquisition roles across Pan India for technology, marketing, underwriting, liability, product, digital business group, call centre, motor sales, and rural agri business. Acting as a strategic partner to functional heads, he…
Used car platform Cars24 has laid off over 200 employees as part of a major cost-cutting exercise. The job cuts have mainly impacted the product and technology teams. This move comes at a time when competition in the sector is heating up, with rival Spinny recently securing $131 million in fresh funding. The layoffs are part of a broader restructuring effort after the company post reassessment of business priorities. Several projects reportedly fell short of expectations, leading to a re-evaluation of roles and responsibilities. Some functions were added earlier than necessary, while others failed to perform as per expectations. As…
State government employees in Madhya Pradesh are set to receive a 5 per cent increase in dearness allowance (DA) over two phases. This increase will take the total DA for state employees to 55 per cent, bringing it in line with the rates offered to Central government employees. From 1 July, 2024, there will be a 3 per cent hike, followed by another 2 per cent from 1 January, 2025. The arrears from the revised DA will be paid out in five equal instalments between June and October. The announcement was made during a provincial conference of the Madhya Pradesh…
A viral social-media post has ignited widespread outrage after an employee shared their experience of being placed on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) just five months into a new job. The post that first appeared on Reddit, highlighted issues of toxic work culture, excessive expectations, and disregard for personal time. The employee, using the handle ‘iamsadsometimes1,’ described a workplace that operated on a six-day work week, offering only Sundays off. However, even on Sundays, managers allegedly expected staff to put in 5–6 hours of work to meet tight deadlines. This highly demanding schedule spilt over into approved leaves as well.…
After spending over 16 years with Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages, Mohan Prasad Mettu has joined Reliance Consumer Products, as human resource business partner and lead-employee relations. Mettu completed a PhD in human resources management from Andhra University, in 2012. He has also completed an LLB from Mahatma Gandhi Law College. His first professional assignment was as officer HRD, Shree Manufacturing way back in 1996. He then played labour welfare officer, at Andhra Cements for a year, before joining Extredge POS Systems, as assistant manager-HR, in 2000. His association with The Coca-Cola Company began in May 2001, as senior executive-HR, Secunderabad COBO…