'More traffic jams, more attrition': Netizens react as TCS ends hybrid working policy today

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which is India's largest IT company, will end its hybrid working policy from the first week of October, according to multiple reports.

In an internal communication circulated earlier in September, TCS asked its employees come to office for five days in a week starting October 1. Till September, employees had to come to office three days a week.

"As communicated by CEO and chief human resources officer (CHRO) in various townhalls, it is mandatory for all associates to attend office on all the working days (5 days per week if there are no holidays) starting 1 October 2023," the company mail cited by CNBC-TV18 read.

TCS has been focusing on physical interactions among employees, more than half of whom joined the company after March 2020, when the first Covid-induced lockdown was declared. In it's FY23 annual report, TCS urged employees to learn from each other's behaviour and different ways of thinking through in-person interactions.

Chief Human Resources Officer Milind Lakkad, in the annual report quoted by Money Control, said, “Work from home is definitely more convenient for everybody, but there were drawbacks. Tenured employees who are well networked within the organization can work effectively and even collaborate virtually using the social capital built up over the years. That isn’t the case with more junior employees.”

"New employees get acculturated through physical interactions with senior colleagues and leaders, by observing and following their behaviors and ways of thinking. Without those interactions, employee engagement as well as acculturation got badly impacted. All these factors led us to gradually bring back people to our offices during the year."

Many social media users took to X platform to express their views on TCS's latest announcement. One post read, "Looks like TCS wants to time travel us all back to prehistoric times. Can we bring back dinosaurs too?" Another user said, "Haha this is how attrition gains momentum."

Another user said traffic snarls will increase with more commuters on roads, saying, "Get ready for 4 hour traffic jams".