HR Articles: Dec-13 (Part-24)

For more article, Visit at : www.pmiralumni.co.in Mr. Varun Berry replaces Ms. Vinita Bali in Britannia rejig In a reshuffle at the top, leading biscuit maker Britannia Industries has named COO Mr. Varun Berry to lead the Indian operations, with current managing director Ms. Vinita Bali named to run the international business, Nutrition Foundation and new business development. It could not be ascertained whether Mr. Berry, who has 27 years of experience with leading companies such Hindustan Unilever and PepsiCo Foods, will be reporting to Ms. Bali or not. The company's statement claims that it intends to aggressively scale up its international operations and at the same time increase focus on its large and profitable India operations."With these changes we are preparing the company for high growth in Britannia's India operations by catering to the changing food habits of the evolving Indian consumer and pursuing opportunities for growth in the overall food domain, here and abroad," said Mr. Nusli Wadia, chairman, Britannia Industries. "The new structure will help Britannia grow faster in India while it also focuses on growth in the international markets and addresses new business opportunities for the company," said Ms. Bali. The organisational changes come just after the company on Friday posted 65.55% rise in its net profit to Rs. 87.8 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2013, as compared Rs. 53.03 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal. Source : 27-05-13   Hindustan times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Jobs boom ahead in cyber security The proliferation of information technology across sectors is generating demand for a new kind of specialist: the cyber security expert. The national cyber security policy sees India needing as many as 500,000 professionals in the field in five years. "Currently, there are only about 37,000 cyber security professionals and there is a big gap between demand and supply," said Mr. Gulshan Rai, Director General, Indian Computer Emergency Response Team. Information technology is already the lifeline of banking and telecom, and other sectors are becoming dependent on it as well. "With this increase, the threat of cyber attacks is also increasing. Hence, the need of cyber security experts is also increasing," Mr. Rai said. The catch is that at present, not enough institutes offer courses on cyber security. "We want private sector participation in training people in this field," said Mr. Rai. "We are closely working with the government to meet the requirement. We have also created some training programmes," said Mr. Kamlesh Bajaj, CEO, Data Security Council of India, an industry body. Source : 24-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan U.S. firms generated 3.5 lakh jobs in India during 2007-11 Painting a buoyant picture of the Indo-U.S. trade ties, Ms. Jennifer McIntyre, Consul-General of the U.S. Consulate General in Chennai, has said the bilateral trade in goods and services between the two countries has increased by four-and-a-half times in the last decade. Addressing members of the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) in Bangalore on Thursday as part of an initiative titled 'Doing business with the U.S.'; Ms. McIntyre pointed to statistics showing trade between the two countries is on an upward trajectory. "Trade between the two countries is expected to cross $100 billion and economic ties are at an all-time high. American firms generated 3.55 lakh jobs in India between 2007 and 2011, and India is the fourth fastest growing source of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the U.S." According to her figures, U.S. exports to India have gone up by four times and exports to the U.S. from India have gone up by 1.8 times. She said that despite these encouraging developments, India was still only the 13th largest trading partner for the U.S. "Given the size of our economies, we have enormous untapped potential before us," she said. Source : 24-05-13   Thehindu.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan 15-20% salary hike for middle, senior jobs in key sectors: Indian Salary Guide Recruits for mid- to senior-level positions in key sectors are likely to get 15-20 per cent hike in salary this year, staffing firm Kelly Services said today. According to Kelly Services' annual Indian Salary Guide 2013-14, mid to senior level recruits in key sectors will get good pay and double-digit hike even amidst challenging economic conditions."All progressive Corporates need to remain competitive in terms of their salary positioning as it is a key component of Employee Value Proposition," Kelly Services India MD Mr. Kamal Karanth said. Mr. Karanth further said "at one level you have to address critical roles which are emerging due to business situations and at another level you need to retain your top talent. Both need to be addressed partly by addressing compensation needs of role and talent". The survey noted that the relationship managers' salaries in the banking and financial sector will see year on year increase in double digits. Moreover, oil and gas engineers in the EPC experience would command 15-20 per cent hikes in compensation. Source : 22-05-13   Financialexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan RBS to focus on big cities in India, shut 23 branches Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) will close 23 of its 31 branches in India by the end of the year to focus only on big cities. "As part of the strategic business decision, it (RBS) has started the process of consolidating its retail and commercial banking business to maintain a presence in eight major business hubs," a statement released by the bank said on Sunday. The bank, which had unsuccessfully tried selling its network to its peer from the foreign lending space HSBC, will have presence only in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad and Vadodara. Its branches at Agra, Jodhpur, Jalandhar, Kolhapur, Mangalore, Shastri Park (New Delhi) and Udaipur will be the first ones to be closed. "We will ensure the smoothest possible transition for our customers as well as employees who may be affected by this consolidation," said Mr. Brijesh Mehra, managing director and country head, international banking, RBS. Source : 27-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan No exodus of Indians from Saudi Arabia Terming the 'Nitaqat' law as an "opportunity" for those who are stuck in Saudi Arabia for years, India today said that contrary to perceptions, the number of Indians coming to the Gulf Kingdom has increased "significantly" in the last few months. "There is no exodus of people. The number of Indians who have come to Saudi Arabia in the past three months have risen significantly according to Saudi authorities," said Mr. Sibi George, Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission at the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia. He stressed that the Nitaqat programme and the three months grace period given till July 3 is an opportunity for those who have been overstaying in Saudi and have not visited India since 1997. "Every Indian overstaying here has been given an opportunity to correct their legal status, to find a new job or to go back to India and return without any penalty," Mr. George told PTI. The 'Nitaqat' programme, which is meant to regularise foreign workers, makes it mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers. Those who fail to find another job or a sponsor has to go back. As a result of this law, a number of people who were working without valid work permits and runaways have come under the scanner. Once the grace period time till July 3 ends, all those expatriates who are found without valid papers will be jailed and heavily penalised. Source : 25-05-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan SAP to Work With Specialisterne to Employ People with Autism Enterprise solutions provider SAP said it will work globally with Specialisterne to employ people with autism as software testers, programmers and data quality assurance specialists. SAP sees a potential competitive advantage to leveraging the unique talents of people with autism, while also helping them to secure meaningful employment, SAP said in a statement. It is estimated that one per cent of the world's population is affected by autism (Autism Spectrum Disorder)."With Specialisterne, we share a common belief that innovation comes from the 'edges'. Only by employing people, who think differently and spark innovation will SAP be prepared to handle the challenges of the 21st century," Ms. Luisa Delgado, member of the Executive Board of SAP AG, Human Resources said. The global announcement follows successful pilot projects in India and Ireland that demonstrate the positive impact of empowering people with autism to excel in their areas of strength. Source : 23-05-13   Jobs.siliconindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan IT outsourcing after the new US immigration Bill An anxious debate is raging in India's $108 billion information technology (IT) industry about the "gang of eight" immigration Bill that aims to prohibit the model of sending engineers on temporary work permits to deliver short-term projects in the US, and at the same time allow American rivals such as International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) and Accenture Plc to deploy their temporary workers without any restrictions. Top executives at India's biggest IT firms are nervously crying foul, naming American rivals as being part of a conspiracy to gain an unwarranted competitive edge and even hoping that their country will wage a trade war against the US if such restrictive proposals are passed in the world's largest market for IT outsourcing. So far, most Indian software services firms have been grumbling in private to ensure that they do not upset the policymakers and some touchy customers in a market that accounts for more than half of their total revenue. Source : 27-05-13   Livemint.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Professionals rush to e-commerce biz despite huge layoffs The churn in India's Rs 47,000-crore e-commerce sector has led to a classic demand-supply mismatch between vacancies and job-seekers. With companies cutting down their employee-count to reduce costs and achieve profitability, the market is flooded with e-commerce professionals. But at their end, e-commerce companies are treading with caution. The initial model of hiring en masse proved to be costly and unviable over the long-term. These retailers are now in a consolidation mode. While some companies have trimmed their workforce by reportedly letting go of hundreds of employees, the days of jaw-dropping pay-packets are also over. Mr. Praveen Sinha, founder, Jabong.com adds, "E-commerce is built on the quality of the team and no e-commerce company is trying to take advantage of the situation. However, irrational hikes are not given and if that is considered as tough negotiation, I don't know."However, with e-commerce touted to be the "next big thing" in the Indian retail space, experts say that despite current challenges, the number of aspirants seeking to make it big in this sector will only grow. Source : 27-05-13   Moneycontrol.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan US banks sending sensitive mortgage, foreclosure jobs to India American consumers aren't too happy that US banks are now outsourcing mortgage and foreclosure processing work to India to pare down costs and keep up with the growing regulatory demands created since the 2008 financial Armageddon. As the US government rolls out tougher rules for home loans, banks have added new financial-verification hurdles, and many of them are outsourcing vetting to Indian outsourcing firms rather than hiring more people in the United States, reported The Wall Street Journal. This year, Indian outsourcing firms will bring in $316 million in mortgage work, double the revenue from such work in 2009, according to estimates from HfS Research, an outsourcing consulting firm. The Journal said the move is creating a new revenue stream for Indian outsourcing firms and Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro Ltd are getting a lion's share of the work. Source : 29-05-13   Firstpost.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Private banks rain goodies on staff as talent war hots up Private sector bank employees are been rewarded generously even as annual hikes in most companies in other sectors have been moderate due to the economic slowdown. With around 20,000 jobs likely to be added due to the entry of new players, private sector lenders such as ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank are looking at ways to compensate their employees monetarily and otherwise, in a bid to retain them. ICICI Bank, which has about 65,000 employees, has handed out employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) to a large number of its staff, besides announcing handsome increments. Jobs in the banking sector are likely to boom after remaining dull throughout 2012, once the Reserve Bank of India issues licences to new players. However, according to headhunters, the recruitment drive would gain momentum only if new banks decide to focus on retail business and not remain confined to corporate banking. "With new banks coming in, there would be a war to hunt talent and existing banks are aware of the situation," a senior executive at HDFC Bank told HT. Source : 28-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Government approves I-T department restructuring; creates 20,751 posts Government today approved the restructuring of Income Tax department, that includes creation of 20,751 additional posts in various cadres, saying it will help increase collections by Rs25,000 crore per annum. "Union Cabinet today approved the proposal for creation of 20,751 additional posts in the Income Tax Department in various cadres that is 1,349 additional posts in the IRS cadre and 19,402 additional posts in the non-IRS cadres," Finance Minister Mr. P Chidambaram said briefing the media after the Cabinet meeting. He said the recruitment for the additional posts would be done over a period of time and the decision will help the I-T department collect higher revenue and provide better services to tax payers. The move entails an additional expenditure of Rs 449.71 crore per annum on creation of additional posts and upgradation of some existing posts, the minister said. "This additional expenditure would be more than compensated by the increased revenue of more than Rs 25,000 crore per annum proposed to be generated as a result of this exercise," he added. Source : 23-05-13   Dnaindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan School staff not to lose jobs says Mr P. K. Abdu Rabb Education Minister Mr. P. K. Abdu Rabb said here on Tuesday that no jobs would be lost because of the new staff fixation norms for schools. The government has specified that the number of teaching and non-teaching posts in schools should be fixed this year based on the number of students having the Aadhaar unique identification number instead of head counts in each class. The Minister told presspersons that enrolment of pupils for unique identification was almost complete. The government had adopted a favourable attitude towards staff whose appointments had not been approved and implemented a package for them. Mr. Rabb said the proposed academic city, to be developed on the lines of the academic city in Dubai, was aimed at attracting universities of international standard to offer courses in Kerala. A global education meet was proposed to be organised for promoting the academic city. An official team, which had visited Dubai, had submitted a report to the government. The government wanted to develop Kerala as an educational hub. Source : 29-05-13   Thehindu.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Infosys to restructure wages in June Infosys Ltd will introduce a revised wage structure for all its employees in India on Saturday, with an aim of reducing the variable component in compensation. "Our employees have given consistent feedback about reducing this. In response to this feedback, we have enhanced the guaranteed part of their compensation, reduced the variability and simplified the overall compensation structure," a company spokesperson said in an email statement. It, however, is yet to decide on the annual wage rise. Last month, Managing Director Mr. S D Shibulal had indicated the company was looking at ways to introduce a new compensation structure, to help address the uncertainties on variable salaries. "We have always been extremely innovative in compensation. Last year, though the environment was tough, we had given a compensation increase. One of the things we are looking at for a while is to restructure the salary so that we balance the variable and the fixed salary," Mr. Shibulal had said. Source : 29-05-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Teachers' recruitment: Order to be issued on May 28 Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Mr. Kimmane Rathnakar on Thursday announced that he would issue orders for recruitment of teachers on May 28. Mr. Rathnakar told reporters here that 16,000 posts of teachers were vacant in Karnataka and the government has already sanctioned funds to recruit 4,000 teachers. The previous government had postponed the process stating the special status accorded to Hyderabad-Karnataka region under article 371 of the Constitution had come in the way of recruitments. The minister said he would hold a meeting with officials of his department on May 28 and issue orders to fill the teachers' posts, except the 1,200 in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region. Source : 28-05-13   Deccanherald.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

 

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HR Articles: Dec-13 (Part-23)

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Mr. Mittu Chandilya is India CEO of AirAsia AirAsia, on Wednesday, named Chennai-born Mr. Mittu Chandilya as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of its Indian operations. AirAsia India (Private) Ltd., a joint venture between Air Asia, Tata Sons and Telstra, will start a low cost airline in India by the year-end with Chennai as its hub. Mr. Chandilya will assume office effective June 1, 2013. "I am extremely pleased and confident that Mr Chandilya will provide the leadership and bring to bear his entrepreneurial skills in successfully growing this new airline in the Indian aviation space." Mr. Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons Ltd., said in a statement. Mr. Chandilya previously worked at Singapore-based consultancy firm Egon Zehnder. He was heading the travel and hospitality segment, where his primary focus was airlines and aviation. "India is an important market for us, and a CEO of Mr. Chandilya's stature and business acumen would definitely help us attain significant market share and achieve rapid growth in India," said Mr. Tony Fernandes, Group Chief Executive Officer of AirAsia. Accepting the appointment, in a statement, Mr. Chandilya said: "I am looking forward to bringing a whole new meaning to the word 'flying' to consumers in India." Source : 15-05-13   Thehindu.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan India Inc likely to give 12% pay hike in 2013 It is good news for jobseekers as the hiring activity is likely to see an uptrend in the coming months and salaries are expected to rise 12 per cent across industries and functions this year, says staffing services major TeamLease. According to the TeamLease's Salary Primer for 2013, hiring will increase going forward and salaries too will see an upward movement across most industries. The study that covered staff working across 318 different job profiles, 15 industries and eight functional domains in nine major locations in India said, hiring has registered 11 per cent growth, and salaries are likely to witness 12 per cent increase across industries and functions."The headwinds of global change, blowing hot and cold have only so much as reshaped the contours of the Indian labour markets for the better," TeamLease Services senior VP and co-founder Ms. Sangeeta Lala said. The study further noted that with companies striking a balance between skills and increment, attrition rate also has been brought under control, emphasising a buoyant and mature job market. Moreover, the gap between permanent salaries and temporary salaries is now negligible. Source : 20-05-13   Mydigitalfc.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Saudi Arabia authorities refuse to accept new Indian passports In fresh trouble for Indians in Saudi Arabia, the authorities there have refused to accept new passports issued by Indian diplomatic missions. Saudi Arabia authorities have declined to transfer data from old passports to the new ones submitted by Indian expatriates for updating, saying they have not received any official information on modification. In the old passport, the passport holder's photo was placed on the second page, whereas the newly issued passports have photos placed on the third page. Though the troubled Indian expatriates have obtained a letter from the Indian Consulate confirming the validity of the new passport, Saudi officials are insisting on receiving confirmation through the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Arab News reported on Monday. Passport holders are legal residents of the Kingdom with valid residency permits who have approached Passport Department to transfer data from their old passports to their new ones, commonly known as "naql maalumat". On Sunday, the Saudi passport office in Jeddah refused to update approximately 200 Indian passports for this reason. Expatriates rushed to the consular service's outsourcing agency and have lodged a formal complaint. Indians in Saudi Arabia are currently facing trouble amid concerns over the 'Nitaqat' labour law that makes it mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers. Source : 21-05-13   Indiatoday.intoday.in   Compiled by Amresh Anjan RBS to cut 1,400 jobs over next two years The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has said that it will cut 1,400 jobs over the next two years as part of plans to restructure its retail head office operations in Britain, a media report said. No customer-facing staff will be affected, but support staff for the bank's retail arm including those working in communications, marketing and customer analytics are expected to be affected by the job losses, Xinhua cited RBS as saying in a press release. "To serve our customers well we have to ensure that our resources are focused on the things that matter most to them," Mr. Ross McEwan, chief executive officer of the bank's UK Retail, was quoted as saying."Regrettably, we can only do that by restructuring the way we work in head office so that every effort is concentrated on supporting our customers and the frontline staff that serve them," said Mr. McEwan."This is clearly difficult news for our staff and we will do everything we can to support them, including seeking redeployment opportunities wherever possible to ensure compulsory redundancies are a last resort," he said. With about 8,000 staff as the fourth largest employer in Edinburgh, RBS also announced that it would invest 175 million pounds (around $270 million) in Scotland over the next three years in areas such as branch refurbishments, improved complaints handling, quicker and simpler processes for account opening and mortgage processing and improved technology in branches. Mr. John Swinney, Scottish cabinet secretary for finance, employment and sustainable growth, said: "The Scottish government will do everything we can to provide support and help to those affected by job losses in Scotland through the Finance Sector Jobs Taskforce and our Partnership Action for Continuing Employment." Source : 17-05-13   Newstrackindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan IIM-Indore student offered salary of Rs 34 lakh per year A post-graduate program student of IIM-Indore has received a job offer with salary package of Rs 34 lakh per annum. Without disclosing the names of the employer-firm and the student, an IIM spokesman said the job was offered in India, to a student of the PGP 2011-13 batches. A total of 432 students and 142 companies took part in the placement process and the average salary offered was Rs 12.1 lakh per annum. Maximum jobs were offered in sales and marketing (29 per cent). Source : 19-05-13   Indianexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan ABN AMRO to cut 400 jobs as profit plunges 17 per cent Dutch banking major ABN AMRO today said it will cut 400 jobs as part of a reorganisation drive and the reductions will be done through natural attrition and internal reallocation. The bank announced reorganisation in the commercial and merchant banking divisions in order to further improve efficiency. "The reorganisation is expected to lead to a reduction of approximately 400 FTEs (full-time equivalent), part of which will be realised through natural attrition and internal reallocation," the bank send while announcing its first quarter numbers. AMB AMRO's net profit for the first quarter of 2013 stood at 415 million euro, 17 per cent lower than the corresponding period a year ago (503 million euro), but was significantly higher compared with the loss of 38 million euro in the fourth quarter of 2012. "The first quarter of 2013 can be qualified as a difficult quarter. The Dutch economy has not recovered and both the number of bankruptcies and unemployment levels continued to rise," ABN AMRO Group Chairman Mr. Gerrit Zalm said. Source : 17-05-13   Indianexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Huge demand for networking jobs in IT Bangalore Attention job seekers. If you are open for trying out segments like networking, the time is just right for you. Networking jobs are up and thriving with almost every private firm as well as many government services seeing a surge in demand for professionals to manage their IT infrastructure including desktops, laptops, servers etc. "Most recruitments in the technical side in Bangalore are happening in the infrastructure management services or IMS segment. Both at the fresher and lateral levels (professionals with some experience)," says Mr. Bhupesh Gupta, director at recruitment firm Krizalis Consulting. If 100 candidates are hired by a tech firm, almost 60-65 will be for the IMS division, say experts. Firms like HCL, Wipro as well as Infosys are big recruiters for IMS. And with services like Aadhar becoming prevalent, demand has also risen in the public sector for professionals who can maintain networks that support schemes like Aadhar."In the last four to five years the demand for networking professionals has increased tremendously," says Mr. Harsh S Bharwani, vice president (international business) at training institute Jetking. The good news is that not just BEs and B.Techs but also those with other degrees or backgrounds can scout jobs in IMS post relevant certification courses. Source : 18-05-13   Dnaindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Regulator to issue new rules on hiring of expat pilots India's aviation regulator plans to do its bit to reduce unemployment among the country's pilots by introducing new rules that will make it mandatory for airlines to hire two locals for every expat, but not necessarily for duties in the cockpit, according to two officials aware of the matter. India has about 350 foreign pilots, down from 800 four years back. The country's airlines had been required to phase them all out by December 2013. This deadline is to be extended to 2016 by the regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), provided the new condition is met, said one of the two persons cited above. The second person confirmed the development. Neither wanted to be named. For every pilot from overseas on the rolls, an airline will need to hire two unemployed commercial pilot licence (CPL) holders and give them alternative jobs such as flight dispatchers or in radio telephony. They can be given jobs as co-pilots based on merit, whenever vacancies open up, the first official said. Source : 21-05-13   Livemint   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Companies encourage staff to rejoin after break Today companies are focussing on the well being and growth of their employees. From sending them on sabbaticals to encouraging women to rejoin after a break, they are doing it all. As Mr. Srikantan Moorthy, Senior Vice President, Group Head of Human Resources, Infosys Ltd, observed, "Through a specific policy on community service, Infosys intends to encourage employees to volunteer for community development initiatives which benefit the society we dwell in, thereby providing individual growth as well." "We observe that this initiative helps boost employee morale, widen perspectives and build better citizens. It also makes an impact on the larger society and, in the long run, on the company." Source : 21-05-13   Newindianexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan SAP looking to tap talent from India The German-based multi-billion SAP AG plans to shift more work to India because of the quality of talent available in the country."We are in India from a (SAP) Lab's point of view for the talent. We have moved more product responsibility to India, especially global product responsibilities. It is a token of recognition for the kind of role India plays in our innovation strategy and not just as a market," Mr. Jim Hagemann Snabe, co-CEO of SAP AG, told Business Line. The $21-billion SAP AG is a leader in business management software. SAP Labs in India is its biggest R&D centre outside Germany. Mr. Snabe said the company has been hiring more in India over the years and has "clearly gone to a strategy to attract absolutely the best talent in the market." The company considers SAP Labs India as one of the most productive and innovative R & D centres in the world. Meanwhile, SAP announced at its conference, Sapphire Now that its blockbuster product, Hana will power all its cloud-based applications even as it tries to fend off competition. Source : 16-05-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Bangalore's techies start 'brand tattoos' craze Young high fliers in India's technology capital Bangalore are so proud to work for Western technology firms such as Microsoft and IBM that they are having their logos tattooed on their bodies. Tattoo artists in the city have reported an increase in the numbers of men asking for "brand tattoos" to celebrate the high status that comes with a job at one of the world's top technology companies. The permanent "branding" of their bodies with their firm's logo is not seen as a symbol of slavery or eternal submission but as a symbol of triumph to commemorate landing a highly coveted job. And despite the fact that many move on to other jobs, they keep the tattoos, according to the city's leading artists. "It's called Brand tattooing. Mostly people from IT companies like IBM, Apple, Microsoft and Oracle have got their company logos tattooed on their bodies. Source : 17-05-13   Newindianexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Infosys's IT Division Unlikely To Give Salary Hike Infosys's IT sector is reportedly running under crises, and is unlikely to give a salary hike to its employees in the traditional hike month, which happens in April-May. The company's IT sector had a growth rate of sub-6 percent in the year 2012-13, reports Times of India. However, Infosys's BPO division revenue, had a healthy growth rate of 17.8 percent in 2012-13, and is expected to announce a single digit hike in June for lower level employees. The company's regular practice is to give promotion and the increment at the same time. However, this year, promotion letters have been already handed out, but the increment letters has not been given to the employees. The company is likely to keep a close watch on what the industry does, before going for call on increments. Last year, the company gave a hike only in October. Today, Infosys is going through a tough phase; as its revenues have decreased significantly, compared to its peers like TCS and Cognizant. Source : 20-05-13   Siliconindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan No takers for Coca-cola's job guaranteed-course, even for free! Not a SINGLE student turned up in the two community colleges at Thane and Vashi launched in association with Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages in 2012 despite repeated recruitment drives which continued till March this year. Interestingly, the company not only promised to pay the course fee for the students but also offered a job after completing the course with a starting salary of Rs15, 000. The community colleges offer two year 'Associate degree" course which includes skill-based training at the company. Source : 21-05-13   Dnaindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Axis Bank MD & CEO Ms. Shikha Sharma gets salary hike Shikha Sharma, MD & CEO of private sector lender Axis Bank, whose term was extended to May 2015 by the bank last February, will get a revised remuneration with effect from June this year, the bank said in a regulatory filing to the BSE on Thursday. The hike is subject to approval by the Reserve Bank of India and the bank's shareholders. Her remuneration was last revised in June last year. According to the filing, her salary will stand revised from Rs 1.78 crore per annum to Rs 1.96 crore, while HRA will go up from Rs 59.52 lakh per annum to Rs 65.47 lakh. Leave fare concession will increase from Rs 11.15 lakh per annum to Rs 12.26 lakh. Utility bills entitlement will be Rs 3.30 lakh per annum. The bank said that the variable pay will be paid as decided by the bank's board and other terms of her appointment remain unchanged. The bank has also raised the remuneration of two more directors, Executive Director and Head (Corporate Centre) Mr. Somnath Sengupta, and Executive Director and Head (Corporate Banking), Mr.V Srinivasan. Source : 16-05-13   Deccanherald.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Successful Indian Startups Sacking Employees in Huge Numbers The cutback of India's e-commerce sector has led to the handing out of pink slips by online retailers as they shift attention from acquiring customers to controlling costs. Among the companies sacking staff, Flipkart and Jabong, the leaders in the e-commerce space have sacked about one-tenth of the workforce. At Flipkart, nearly 250 employees have been expelled while in Jabong, similar number of employees have been sacked. "People are being let off every month", said a Flipkart employee who was sacked in April. Both the companies responded that they continue to hire but according to few industry executives, 'it is the first time that e-commerce firms are sacking staff in huge numbers.' Another startup Inkfruit, an apparel portal has also asked several employees to leave. Source : 17-05-13   Siliconindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

 

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HR Articles: Dec-13 (Part-22)

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Bank of America shifts some projects back to US from India
Bank of America Corp., the second largest US lender by assets, has started to shift a small part of the projects it had awarded to India's software companies to local firms or its own centres to ward off political backlash against jobs being outsourced to India. Bank of America, which has given contracts worth millions of dollars to companies such as Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) and Infosys—India's top two software exporters—as well as Accenture, will bring back some of its information technology (IT) projects to service providers in the US or to their own centres, according to at least two people familiar with the development, who requested anonymity. The move comes at a time when North American and European clients of India's $108 billion IT industry are cutting spending on technology because of economic headwinds. For the year ended 31 March, Indian software exports revenue grew by 10.2%—the slowest since the Lehman Brothers collapse in 2008 triggered a global financial meltdown.
Source : 14-05-13   Livemint   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Yahoo fears losing talent to start-ups
Start ups, rather than giants like Facebook or Google, provide tougher challenge in retaining and hiring talent says Yahoo's new HR head. Mr. Aniruddha Banerjee, who heads human resources of Yahoo! India, which is at present in the throes of a turbulent transition, told Business Line that with top talent turning entrepreneurs, it is increasingly becoming a challenge to retain them or hire new ones. "Therefore, we provide them opportunities similar to start ups in our organisation," according to Mr. Banerjee, who graduated from Queen's University in Canada, after having had HR stints in AOL and Dell. He said even though the work-from-home policy has been withdrawn, employees can in fact take advantage of flexi hours provided by the company to suit their needs. "Our policy on work-from-home does not reflect the industry view, but something that works best for Yahoo and flexi work options still exist," insists Mr. Banerjee. The India centre, which has around 2,000 employees, is the second largest development centre for Yahoo worldwide and works on almost all projects — whether on new devices such as smartphones or tablets to online advertising-related services. Yahoo has also rolled out initiatives like free smartphones, free food, medical insurance for India employees, sabbaticals, maternity leave and more ESOPs for top performers. These are some of the incentives doled out after Ms. Merissa Mayer took over as the CEO of the company last July, in addition to other perks such as childcare facility, a fully equipped health club and free snacks. This, while reducing attrition, would keep its employees from joining start-ups, the company hopes.
Source : 09-05-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Public sector banks stop recruitment from B-schools after court order
The Central Bank of India will appeal against a recent Bombay High Court order restricting campus recruitment for appointment of officers by the bank, said Mr. M V Tanksale, chairman and managing director of the Central Bank of India. Other public sector banks, which are also affected by the court order, are likely to join the appeal. Mr. Tanksale added the bank is picking up management graduates from campuses for specialised jobs under autonomy granted by the government. According to a top executive with a large public sector bank, while the high court verdict may be applicable a specific bank, it is going to have implications for other public sector banks as well. He added the issue will be taken up with the Indian Banks' Association. Management institutes are the most preferred destination to recruit talent for special posts in banks. With good talent available aplenty, banks prefer campus hiring. Students from the finance, marketing and strategy backgrounds are in demand. "Being listed entities, there is expectation to work with private sector efficiency. Public sector entities tend to get the residual talent from management campuses. So, for us, it is quite challenge to do a balancing act," said another public sector bank official.
Source : 15-05-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
After shortage, Mumbai lifts ban on hiring teachers in aided schools
The Mumbai state government has finally lifted the ban on recruiting teachers for aided schools across Maharashtra that had been imposed last year. The government had stopped new appointments of teachers last year as it believed that many schools had "surplus" teachers, after a state-wide school census carried out in October 2011 found lakhs of ''bogus'' pupils on schools' rolls, the circular stated. Many schools had been inflating the number of students on their rolls to get more grants. After students from higher classes were badly affected as schools were grappling with a shortage of teachers, secondary schools have been allowed to hire teachers for English, Science and Mathematics, from the academic year that starts in June. In the latest circular dated May 6, the school education and sports department has cancelled the government resolution issued in May last year that had banned new appointments. "The ban has been lifted for secondary sections. But in case of primary sections in private aided schools, the government will transfer 1,922 surplus teachers to the needy schools,'' reads the circular. The decision on primary sections in aided schools is still pending. Wrestling with a staff crunch, schools have welcomed the state government's decision. Schools across the state were falling short of over 10,000 teachers. Out of this, more than 300 vacancies were in schools in Mumbai. "The number could be more as many schools did not even approach us for approvals after the ban was announced last year,'' said Mr.BV Mane, education inspector of south zone and the western zone.
Source : 14-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Capgemini takes India route to growth
In April this year, when India's largest IT services provider, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), announced the acquisition of France-based Alti, it hinted towards the next area of focus for the industry: continental Europe. Europe, excluding the UK, is still an under-penetrated market for IT players. However, one company which has successfully leveraged its India offshore centre for clients in Europe is Paris-headquartered Capgemini. It's a rare feat as after Dublin-headquartered Accenture, which has over 80,000 employees in India, Capgemini is only the second European company to have set up a base in the country. Capgemini set foot in India in 2000 and since then there has been no looking back. Its focus on scaling up its India operations has been so aggressive that Mr. Paul Hermelin, the group's chairman and CEO and now also the French government's special representative to boost Indo-French economic relations, has been nicknamed "Mr India". That's not surprising as he has been the driving force behind the company's India focus. No doubt a foothold in the country has been beneficial for Capgemini. Its India centre has helped it become a global firm with delivery centres across several regions. It has over 41,900 employees in India of which 20-25 per cent cater to clients in Europe.
Source : 14-05-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Women, too, will pilot VAG Metro
Unlike the suburban railway system, in which women in charge of the rake may be a rarity, it is likely to be a routine sight on the city's first Metro corridor. MMOPL, a Reliance Infrastructure-led consortium, is training around 40 Metro pilots, a fair share of which are women. MMOPL, however, did not provide the number of men and women in training, saying the total could change depending on how many of them successfully complete the training. "The training is challenging. Almost every aspect is stringent and demanding. It is not a mundane job and a great avenue for me to inspire young people like me," said 25-year-old Ms. Srikala Nair, who hails from Ulhasnagar. The training — a mix of theory and experience on simulator —is being conducted by experienced Metro drivers who have received advanced driver training in India, South Korea and China. It also focuses management of crises, such as malfunctions or passenger emergencies. Over 6,000 people applied to be Metro pilots for Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar Metro, which will be commissioned partially from Versova to the Airport road station by September and fully by year-end. A graduate degree in science with maths and physics as mandatory subjects was the minimum qualification that aspirants had to meet.
Source : 14-05-13   Indianexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
US may impose penalty on Infosys for error in employees' details
India's second largest software exporter Infosys has disclosed that the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is still looking into the eligibility of some of its employees working in the US. In a filing to the SEC, Infosys added that the DHS has found errors in a significant percentage of its employees' I-9 forms and may impose fines and penalties related to such alleged errors. "At this time, we cannot predict the outcome of the discussions with DHS or other governmental authority regarding the review of our I-9 forms," it added. WHAT IS I-9 FORM? I-9 form is an employment eligibility verification form provided by the Federal Government to companies that deploy non-American residents working in the US and every hired employee has to fill an I-9 form at the time of hiring. The grand jury is continuing its investigation and we remain in discussions with the US Attorney's Office regarding these matters, we are unable to make an estimate of the amount or range of loss that we expect to incur in connection with the resolution of these matters, Infosys added. The issue of visa irregularity came into light first in May 2011 when Infosys received a subpoena from a grand jury in a US District Court in connection with a lawsuit filed by Mr. Jack Palmer, one of its US-based employee. In his complaint, he accused Infosys managers of mistreating him after he blew the whistle accusing the company of visa irregularities. However, in August last year, a US court dismissed harassment charges filed by Mr. Palmer.
Source : 14-05-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Job aspirants now look for a flying start as more airlines take off
Thanks to the entry of new players such as the joint venture of Tata-AirAsia in the domestic aviation sector and foreign airlines forging new ties in India (Jet-Etihad), many aspiring candidates are now looking to give their careers a "flying" start. Institutes offering courses in aviation and hospitality have seen renewed vigour in placements and many have also introduced new courses. Faced with multiple headwinds in 2010-11, several airlines had cut jobs and stopped flights on many routes. "The aviation sector saw a dip of around 15 per cent in hiring during that period. But this year, the hiring sentiment is better," said Mr. Samir Valia, President, Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess Training. The institute has introduced two new courses this year – MBA in aviation, hospitality, travel and tourism and a three-year degree course in the same subjects. Recently, it conducted a recruitment drive in Bangalore for Tata-AirAsia, where 150 of its students were short-listed. The final letter of appointment is expected by July this year. The entry-level monthly salary packages for cabin crew in the domestic sector range from Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 while for foreign airlines; it is between Rs 45,000 and Rs 1.3 lakh. For the ground staff, salary ranges between Rs 8,000 and Rs 15,000 for freshers. The highest salary package at Frankfinn Institute this year was Rs 1.2 lakh (monthly) offered by a foreign airline. The course fee ranges between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 2.80 lakh, depending on the duration.
Source : 12-05-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
IT plans to earn more with fewer techies
Though information technology (IT) companies in India have been at the forefront of hiring activity, top IT firms this year have deepened their focus on growing non-linear practices in an attempt to wean away the time-tested link between revenues and headcount. The industry has been long dependent on human resources to ramp up revenues. However, these companies are now going the non-linear way to grow revenues. The term non-linearity refers to delinking a company's revenues from headcount and getting higher revenues with lesser dependence on raising employee strength. The IT industry in India is at a point where it faces major difficulties like the end of the tax holiday, competition from MNCs like IBM and Accenture and the traditional labour arbitrage model wearing thin. Industry analysts believe that the industry needs to reinvent itself in order to survive tough competition and a volatile demand economy.
Source : 13-05-13   Deccanherald.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Hand-holding CEOs beyond hiring
Get the job description from the client, trawl your database for candidates who hit the right checkboxes, place the person in the job and walk off with your search fee. If you thought that about describes the role of a recruitment or talent search firm, think again. Where the question of hiring a person for a top role in a company is concerned, it becomes a lot more complicated. Executive search firms today have to play a strategic role, working with clients to get an accurate fix on who - and more importantly, what - they need. However, the challenge for search firms nowadays doesn't end with just finding the right candidate to fill the top job - it extends beyond recruitment to actually helping the candidate settle into the job. Given the importance of the role that top-level managers, such as Chief Executive Officers, Vice-Presidents and others, play in the success of the company, recruiting in this is space is also seen as a high-risk business. And as such search firms' responsibility extends to a certain period after the hiring process has been completed. The first three to six months (and even up to a year in some cases) of a recruit's work life in a new organization are now seen as crucial and search firms continue to act as mentors for the candidates - helping the recruit and the company bond. Mr. Ronesh Puri, Managing Director at Executive Access, says that since head-hunting for top positions is a high-risk, high-returns job, they cannot leave anything to chance and as such Executive Access continuously hand-holds new recruits, and also ensure that they are in constant touch with the company for up to a year after the recruitment.
Source : 09-05-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Salary hike for govt school language teachers
Delhi Government on Monday hiked the monthly salary of over 280 school language teachers by up to hundred per cent, heeding to their long-pending demand to make their emoluments on par with their colleagues. The teachers were employed by language academies in government schools as a part of language development programme. The decision to hike their salary was taken at a cabinet meeting presided by chief minister Ms. Sheila Dikshit."Delhi Cabinet today (Monday) decided to hike monthly remuneration of 282 teachers deployed by Language Academies in government schools," Ms. Dikshit said later. As per the government decision, a post graduate teacher (PGT) will get a salary monthly salary of Rs.23, 265 instead of the current Rs. 13,160. The monthly salary of a trained graduate teacher (TGT) teacher has been fixed at Rs. 22,935 against current Rs. 11,140. The language teachers were appointed to teach students languages such as Punjabi, Sanskrit and Urdu. They were engaged on part-time basis in 2002 and in 2008 they were made full-time teachers. The Cabinet also allowed the retired teachers to retain government accommodation if they were again employed. Government had re-employed over 1,000 teachers last year for two years after superannuation of their services. These teachers will now be able to continue their stay in government accommodation.
Source : 15-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Rural jobs scheme has benefited women, unskilled labourers the most
MNREGS, the UPA government's flagship rural employment guarantee scheme, has benefited women and unskilled labourers the most, an official said Tuesday. The MNREGS has also had a positive impact on agricultural wages and wages in general in rural areas, which had been stagnant for a long time, the official said. MNREGS wages have been revised from April 1 to factor in inflation. A maximum wage of Rs.214 has been fixed for Haryana and a minimum of Rs.135 for the north-eastern states. The National Sample Survey Office's 66th round confirms that the MGNREGS has reduced the traditional gender wage discrimination, which was apparent in several states across the country, the officials said. Gains from the rise in wages are more for the poor and marginalised, including women. An average of five crore households have been given employment every year since 2008. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes account for 50 percent of the total person-days generated.
Source : 14-05-13   Newstrackindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
HSBC in cost-cutting drive, to slash 14,000 jobs
HSBC plans to cut annual costs by up to another $3billion and may axe a further 14,000 jobs as Europe's biggest bank strives to drive profits in the face of sluggish growth outside Asia. HSBC's new cost- cutting drive will be stretching out to 2016.
Source : 16-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Boost for OBCs; Centre set to relax creamy layer bar
More young people from the other backward classes (OBCs) will be entitled to a quota in jobs and education in government institutes with the Centre set to relax the creamy layer bar. The cabinet will Thursday consider a proposal to raise the bar to annual income of Rs. 6 lakh from the present Rs.4.5 lakh. The creamy layer bars the affluent among OBCs from reservation benefit on the basis of family income. The move is aimed at striking parity between increase in income (such as the 6th Pay Commission for central government employees), cost of living and scope of reservation. But ahead of elections 2014, it has the potential to act as a sop for the vast vote-bank of OBCs, who make up 41% of India's population. Raising the bar to Rs. 6 lakh would allow more OBCs to avail of the 27% quota in jobs and education. The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) had initially recommended raising the bar to Rs. 12 lakh in urban and Rs. 9 lakh in rural areas. But due to sharp differences between ministers at an earlier cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Mr. Manmohan Singh formed a group of ministers (GoM) led by finance minister Mr. P Chidambaram to give further recommendations. The GoM prescribed a uniform ceiling of Rs. 6 lakh. The creamy layer ceiling was introduced in 1993 at Rs. 1 lakh and subsequently revised to Rs. 4.50 lakh in 2008.
Source : 15-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan
Labour shortage for India Inc projects
For many Indian chief executive officers (CEOs) planning to start new units, the only problems aren't land acquisition, environment clearances and fund raising. Getting labour at plant sites is fast becoming extremely difficult, as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) is creating a labour shortage, they say. Take the Aditya Birla Group's UltraTech Cement, planning to spend Rs 12,000 crore in expanding its capacity. "We are facing an acute shortage of labour, which is impacting our expansion," says Mr. Adesh Gupta, chief financial officer of Grasim, the holding company of UltraTech. "As we go forward, we have decided to use a lot of machines in our plants to replace labour."NREGS, launched by the central government in 2005, offers 100 days of guaranteed work in a year to each rural household. The scheme is a hit among unskilled workers, as they needn't migrate to other areas in search of work. Apart from NREGS, the other government welfare schemes have also resulted in more rural incomes, encouraging labour to stay at home. "There is a growing shortage of labour," said Mr.Rahul Mehta, who has 30-odd years of experience in the apparel business and is president of the Clothing Manufacturers Association of India, with nearly 2,000 manufacturer members and 15,000 members which are retailers. "The surplus labour situation that India was known for is fast-changing with schemes such as NREGS. Also, our outdated labour laws result in problems in employing contract labour."This shortage comes at a time when corporate India plans to restart work on new projects and expansion, after a prolonged slowdown. Many big companies - Reliance Industries, Steel Authority of India and Oil & Natural Gas Corporation - plan to spend hundreds of crores to expand capacity.
Source : 14-05-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

 

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