Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) recorded a sharp fall in employee numbers over the last 2 quarters, with the majority of exits not linked to its restructuring programme.
As per Moneycontrol report, the company’s total headcount declined by close to 30,000 during this period, even as restructuring-related releases formed a much smaller portion of the overall reduction.
TCS said it released around 6,000 employees in the September quarter and nearly 1,800 in the December quarter as part of its ongoing workforce review. This took the total number of restructuring-linked exits to about 7,800 across two quarters.
The gap between this figure and the overall fall in headcount suggests that roughly 22,200 employees left due to voluntary attrition, routine churn and other non-restructuring reasons.
Attrition at TCS rose marginally in the December quarter, increasing by 20 basis points sequentially to 13.5%. The company has stated that its workforce review is a continuous process, with exits taking place only after internal redeployment options are explored.
Hiring has continued through campus and lateral channels, though additions have slowed compared with earlier periods.
At the start of FY26, TCS had indicated that campus hiring would remain steady. The company guided for onboarding around 42,000 freshers during the year, broadly in line with the previous fiscal. This came after TCS added to its workforce in FY25, following a decline in employee numbers in FY24.
Peer HCLTech reported relatively stable headcount over the same period. The company added 3,489 employees on a net basis in the September quarter but reported a net reduction of 261 employees in the December quarter. Its total workforce stood at 226,379 at the end of the December quarter.
HCLTech onboarded 2,852 freshers during the December quarter, following the addition of 5,196 freshers in the September quarter. Total fresher intake in the first half of FY26 stood at 7,180. The company has not disclosed details of any releases or layoffs, making direct comparisons with TCS difficult.
Read More: TCS Share Price in Focus After Collaboration with AMD to Scale AI Adoption!
As of January 14, 2026, 3:30 pm, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) share price closed at ₹3,197.80, a 2.15% down from the previous closing price.
The recent data indicates that TCS’ workforce contraction has largely been driven by slower hiring and non-restructuring exits, while restructuring-related releases accounted for a smaller share of the overall decline.
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Published on: Jan 15, 2026, 9:44 AM IST
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