Green shoots? Edtech player upGrad revokes pay cuts, announces WFH till December 31

Edtech player upGrad that offers online skilling programmes has revoked the salary cuts that were initiated earlier.

In a press statement, the company said 100 percent of the amount cut will be given back to all employees in the July salary, given the growth in business in the April to June quarter. The growth numbers have not yet been disclosed.

The company has also declared work from home till December 31.

To deal the uncertainty, amid the coronavirus outbreak, upGrad had announced salary cuts up to 30 percent for its employees on the basis of seniority in April. The firm has 1,000 employees.

Now, the salary that was deducted since then will be reimbursed to employees. upGrad is among the first such companies in India to announce a reversal in salary cuts.

Moneycontrol had reported earlier that owing to the pandemic and the nationwide lockdown since March 25, edtech companies have seen an almost two times growth in the number of enrolments. This is because students and young professionals who are stuck at home are using e-learning platforms to upgrade their skills.

Speaking at the company townhall, Mayank Kumar, Co-Founder & MD, upGrad, said they sensed anxiety, apprehension among employees on when office will resume.

"Few people who have gone back to their hometowns and those who were planning to go were uncertain about their next steps. Keeping everyone’s well-being in mind, we declared work from home till December 31. We won't be opening our office even if the situation betters now as we want employees to be relieved of this constant uncertainty."

The edtech major saw a 72 percent growth in learners’ on boarded in April and has 500,000 learners. It aims to double its revenue by June.

upGrad had earlier said in Q1 FY21 its revenue will cross an annual run-rate of Rs 500 crore with the launch of their live learning platform, which is free of cost to multiple colleges and universities.