Having laid off more than 1,000 employees back in May, food delivery platform, Swiggy, is now handing the pink slip to a further 350 workers. In a statement announcing the latest round of layoffs, the company said that it is part of its ‘final realignment exercise’ as the industry continues to struggle from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. According to the company, it was forced to take the decision as its business “has only recovered 50 percent of its peak” since the nationwide lockdown was lifted.
According to Swiggy: “In May, we began the exercise of realigning resources to create capacity in higher potential areas with the optimism of the business attaining pre-covid-19 levels in the near-term. However, with the industry still only having recovered to about 50 percent of its peak, we have to, unfortunately, go ahead with this final realignment exercise, which will result in the net loss of 350 jobs”.
As part of the severance package, Swiggy is offering affected employees three to eight months of salary (based on tenure) and accelerated ESOP vesting. The laid off employees will also remain eligible for accident, term and health insurance benefits until December. They will also get an extra month of ex-gratia for every year with the organization. The company will also offer learning support for skill development, job placement and counseling services to the affected employees.
A number of companies have downsized recently because of the pandemic and the resultant lockdowns. Ola laid off 1,400 workers back in May, while BookMyShow also laid off or furloughed 270 employees at around the same time. Meanwhile, MakeMyTrip let go of 350 employees a few weeks later. Uber, Curefit, Indigo and others have also been laying off employees as part of their restructuring efforts following the lockdown.
