In the last five years, top Indian IT CEOs have seen a 160% salary increase. Freshers’ salaries, however, have only grown by 4%. The median annual pay for CEOs at TCS, Infosys, HCL Tech, Wipro, and Tech Mahindra is nearly Rs 84 crore in FY24. Meanwhile, fresher salaries have only gone from Rs 3.6 lakh to Rs 4 lakh.
The pay gap is striking. For instance, Wipro’s CEO-to-fresher pay ratio is 1,702. In TCS, it’s 192. This disparity raises concerns about fairness and profit distribution.
Former Infosys board member Mohandas Pai criticized this trend. He questioned why boards reward CEOs more while exploiting lower-level employees. He noted that company profits haven’t matched the wage growth.
This also highlights challenges in the IT sector. These include softening demand and stagnant salaries for many employees. Despite these issues, top executives continue to receive large pay increases.
