Wipro is rolling out revised offer letters with lower salaries to thousands of freshers who have been waiting for the company to onboard them for the past 12 months. Some of these IT freshers had received job offers from Wipro back in December 2021. They were then categorised as ‘Elite’ candidates with a cost to the company (CTC) of Rs 3.5 lakh. The same candidates would be upgraded to ‘Turbo’ category with a higher package of Rs 6.5 lakhs if they completed what Wipro called the ‘Velocity’ training.
The company offers two hiring programmes for graduates: Elite and Turbo. Elite candidates are offered Rs 3.5 LPA, while Turbo candidates are offered Rs 6.5 LPA. It was these candidates who qualified for Turbo through the company’s Velocity programme that received the offer to be onboarded in March if they agreed to the lower salary. Elite candidates are questioning why they are still being made to wait while the jobs are being offered to Turbo candidates.
““Like others in our industry, we continue to assess global economies and customer needs, which factor into our hiring plans. Currently, we have project engineers’ roles available for recruitments with an annual compensation of Rs 3.5 lakh. If you choose to accept this offer, all previous offers will stand void,” the company said in an email sent to fresh candidates.
The decision to slash the salaries of new recruiters has been taken because of the changing macro environment and business requirement. In simpler terms, the move is to cut costs and preserve it for the plans the company has. While the decision has been regard as unethical by some industry experts, Wipro says that people who are starting their careers are getting “immediate opportunity” to build their expertise and learn more.
The move to offer Turbo candidates roles that Elite candidates are eligible for has not gone down well.