Wipro Technologies? attrition rate peaked to 23% in the June quarter, the highest the firm has seen in many years. Executives said such a high rate was last seen when the company was emerging from the dotcom bubble burst in 2001.
Attrition was the highest in the firm?s telecom business at 27-28% where Wipro lost employees to other IT firms looking to service numerous telecom operators that have suddenly flooded the market.
?The high attrition rate in telecom is due to sheer demand with so many service providers entering the market. As you know, Wipro is like a training ground,? said Saurabh Govil, senior vice-president (HR), Wipro Technologies. Currently, Wipro employs 3,000 people in the telecom service business.?
Govil said that it would take another two to three quarters for the attrition levels to stabilise. Wipro expects an attrition rate of around 20% in coming quarters, which could decline to about 15% thereafter.
?Attrition is the highest at junior levels ? about 80% of the attrition is among people with three to five years of experience,? Govil said.
The voluntary attrition rate shot up to 23% during the latest quarter as against 8.4% a year ago and 17% a quarter ago. Business process outsourcing (BPO) services accounted for 16% of attrition during the quarter as against 14% during the same period last year.
The IT firm?s involuntary attrition rate was 1.4% during the quarter compared to 2.1% for quarter ended March 2010.