Information technology major Wipro has asked candidates, who joined the company last month, to undergo a fresh training programme, which will be followed by a test. The services of those candidates who fail to clear the exam will be terminated, IT employee union, Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES), told FE on Wednesday.

While the Union says that this new training programme puts new recruits in a difficult spot, the company maintains that it’s part of the routine onboarding process which ensures that candidates are up-to-date on their skill sets.

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The new training programme is called “Project Readiness Programme” (PRP). According to an internal document of Wipro reviewed by FE, PRP is offered to all campus and off-campus hires referred as next gen associates (NGAs). “The broad objective of PRP is to equip NGA with the necessary knowledge and skills that will enable them to start working on customer projects,” the document states.

“Failure to secure more than or equal to 60% post final supplementary attempt (in PRP) will lead to separation action with immediate effect from HR,” the document states.

When contacted by FE on the programme concerned and how it affects new hires, Wipro in a statement said, “At Wipro we place immense value on seeing our talent grow and succeed. The Project Readiness Programme is a part of our routine onboarding process and is designed to ensure that our next gen associates are assigned to the right client projects and have the most up-to-date skill set to make an immediate impact.”

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Harpreet Singh Saluja, president at NITES, said, “The candidates belong to 2021 batch. At that time, they were offered remuneration of around Rs 3.5 lakh per annum. In April 2022, they were asked to complete an unpaid training programme of four months called “Velocity programme” upon which the compensation package was supposed to go up to Rs 6.5 lakh per annum”. He said that the company is still offering these candidates Rs 3.5 lakh pa instead of Rs 6.5 lakh pa.

According to the Union, around 600 new candidates have been affected by this decision of Wipro. “This sudden change in Wipro’s policy has left many of its new employees in a difficult situation, especially since they have already spent 1.5 years in the company,” it said in a statement.

Recently, another IT firm, LTIMindtree was in news for delaying onboarding of new hires.