To enhance workplace attendance, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has implemented a policy linking performance bonuses to office presence. Employees with less than 60% attendance or those present in the office for less than three days a week will not be eligible for performance bonuses, as per an internal memo circulated to employees on April 18.
TCS aims to address irregular attendance and reluctance to work from office by connecting its work-from-office policies to quarterly variable pay or annual bonuses. The memo also highlights that employees consistently failing to meet the ‘85% and above’ attendance requirement could face disciplinary action.
In determining the performance bonus, the company will consider seat availability at TCS physical locations. Valid exceptions to the directives must be recorded and approved through the company’s employee-related functions portal, Ultimatix.
Employees attending the office four or more days a week will receive the full performance bonus decided by the company management. Those with 75% to 85% attendance will receive 75% of the bonus, while employees with 60% to less than 75% attendance will receive half the bonus.
Furthermore, TCS has mandated 45 hours of weekly office attendance, equivalent to nine hours per day. An anonymous employee expressed concerns about the move, stating that variable pay is never paid in full and is now being tied to return-to-office norms.
TCS has been actively encouraging employees to return to the office since February 2022, initially requesting at least three days of in-office attendance. This has now been increased to five days per week, with consequences for those who fail to comply.
TCS’s move to link variable payouts to office attendance makes it the only Indian IT company to implement such a policy.
