A group of engineers resorted to a fast in Bangalore on Saturday to protest against the delay in getting their jobs.
Around 60 HCL recruits, whose jobs have been deferred by nearly a year, participated in the daylong fast at Freedom Park. They held placards imploring the government to make the company “comply with the law of the land”, and appealed to the tech major to follow recruitment ethics.
Freedom fighter H.S. Doreswamy addressed the young bunch of engineers in the morning. He said: “It is inconceivable that such reputed companies have resorted to this. I was surprised to hear that this has happened throughout the country. Companies that are declaring profits should cut into their profit margins and fulfil the promises made to these young students.” He implored the tech major to live up to its reputation.
One young recruit, who said his bank loan moratorium ends next month, said: “We have never done anything like this before. But, what option did the company leave us with? Where are we to go when the company just simply keeps us hanging?”
He said the “empty promise” that they would be on-boarded from August 2013 onwards was simply not acceptable.
“Who is to say they will not do the same to us, or worse, to the graduates who they have recruited from campuses even as the previous year’s recruits have been kept waiting?” another recruit said.
Recruits said that every time they planned a protest, the night before they would receive an email from HCL attempting to dissuade them and assure them things would be taken care of. “Around 3 a.m. on Saturday, we got another email. We decided to go ahead because we don’t want just assurances. We would like them to on-board us and put an end to our ordeal,” a protester said.
Wide support
The graduates, who largely organised themselves by coordination on social media, found several organisations in the city had turned up to express solidarity.
The IT/ITeS Employees Centre (ITEC), a support group for employees in the technology sector, joined the protest.
An ITEC member told The Hindu that the protest was unusual because it was the first time that employees in this sunshine sector were going for a fast.
Suresh Kodoor, ITEC member and CEO of Trizile Technologies, said: “HCL must give them their jobs. This is important not only for the purpose of safeguarding the career of the students in question but also for upholding the high standards of corporate ethics and business practices.”
