HCLTech sheds nearly 3,300 employees in biggest workforce cut in two years

HCL Technologies reduced its workforce by 3,292 employees during the June quarter, marking one of its sharpest headcount declines in the past year despite delivering a strong set of earnings and maintaining relatively stable employee attrition.

The company's total headcount stood at 223,889 as of June 30, down from 227,181 at the end of the March quarter. HCLTech also hired 1,056 freshers during the quarter, lower than the 1,712 recruited in the previous three months.

Despite the reduction in headcount, the company's trailing 12-month attrition rate remained largely stable at 12.7%, compared with 12.5% in the March quarter, indicating that voluntary employee exits continued to remain under control. The proportion of women employees also remained unchanged at 29.6%.

The update comes days after Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) added 9,279 employees during the June quarter, taking its total workforce to nearly 5.94 lakh, even as the company warned that artificial intelligence would fundamentally reshape hiring across the IT services industry.

More from Tech

HCLTech said it remained focused on improving productivity, fostering innovation and strengthening talent development during the quarter. More than 20,780 employees contributed ideas through the company's Value Creation Portal, generating over 3,600 suggestions, of which more than 1,350 were implemented. According to the company, these initiatives created $159 million in customer-approved value.

Innovation also remained a key focus, with HCLTech filing 18 patent applications and securing 14 patents during the quarter.

The workforce update came alongside a strong financial performance. HCLTech reported a 20.3% year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 4,626 crore, while revenue rose 14% to Rs 34,579 crore.

The company's IT and Business Services segment remained its primary growth driver, while the board declared an interim dividend of Rs 12 per share for FY27.