Listen to this Post
India’s IT sector, once a symbol of rapid upward mobility for aspiring engineers, is witnessing an unsettling trend. Infosys, one of the country’s top-tier IT companies, has recently terminated another batch of 195 trainees after they failed to meet internal assessment standards. This comes just days after a similar layoff of 195 other trainees on April 20, taking the total count of trainee dismissals to over 800 since February.
Infosys is known for its rigorous internal training and assessments, a legacy of building world-class talent in-house. But the company’s recent actions paint a sobering picture of shifting expectations in an industry grappling with transformation, cost optimization, and automation.
Infosys Training Failures: The Numbers So Far
- Two rounds of layoffs within 10 days — both affecting 195 trainees each
- Over 800 trainees let go since February 2025
- Around 250 trainees trained through UpGrad and NIIT—indicating outsourced training pipelines
- 150+ impacted individuals registered for outplacement services supported by Infosys
The affected trainees were primarily hired for roles as System Engineers (SE) and Digital Specialist Engineers (DSE), both entry-level technical roles essential to Infosys’ delivery model. Despite the support offered—including multiple chances, extended preparation time, and mock tests—these employees couldn’t meet the assessment benchmarks.
In an email sent to those asked to leave, Infosys cited a failure to pass the Generic Foundation Training Program. The trainees were given three attempts, as well as additional support such as doubt-clearing sessions, yet were still unable to qualify.
What Support Infosys Is Offering
Despite the layoffs, Infosys appears to be offering some cushioning measures:
– One-month ex-gratia pay
– Relieving letter to aid future employment
- Access to career counselling, external training, and placement support
- Optional 12-week BPM career training or a 24-week IT fundamentals course
This support seems aimed at helping affected individuals re-skill and seek roles either within IT or in related fields like Business Process Management.
What Undercode Say: A Closer Analysis of Infosys’ Assessment-Based Layoffs
Infosys’ move to terminate over 800 trainees through internal testing isn’t just a routine HR decision—it reflects a deep undercurrent of structural change in India’s IT sector.
1. Rising Benchmark for Entry-Level Engineers
The fact that even after training via reputed platforms like UpGrad and NIIT, many couldn’t pass internal tests indicates Infosys is either raising the bar, or the training models aren’t aligned with actual industry needs. This spells trouble for traditional academic and certification pipelines feeding IT recruitment.
2. Shift Toward Performance-Driven Hiring
By enforcing rigorous assessments, Infosys is signaling a strong move toward meritocratic retention. Instead of offering long learning curves post-hiring, companies now expect “job-ready” skills from day one. This is reminiscent of global tech hiring practices and marks a cultural shift in Indian IT HR.
3. Outsourced Training and Its Limitations
Of the 800+ trainees dismissed, at least 250 had been trained through edtech companies like UpGrad and NIIT. This raises concerns about whether outsourced, scalable training programs are truly preparing candidates for real enterprise demands. It calls into question the effectiveness of mass certification models in grooming deep technical talent.
4. Economic Pressures and Utilization Metrics
Layoffs in India’s IT services sector are often buffered with internal rotation and bench deployment. Infosys choosing outright dismissal suggests strong cost pressures and a push to optimize bench strength. Reducing non-performing trainees likely boosts utilization metrics and improves margins amid a tough global economic climate.
5. Implications for Future Freshers
Infosys’ approach may trigger a domino effect across other IT giants like TCS, Wipro, and HCL. We may soon see a broader trend where final onboarding is contingent on rigorous assessments—even after hiring. Freshers should now prepare for a double-gate system: clearing campus recruitment and intense internal assessments.
6. Impact on India’s EdTech Credibility
These events raise credibility concerns for training partners. EdTech platforms will face scrutiny if trainees fail enterprise-level benchmarks after completing paid programs. This could force a revamp in their course design, real-time project involvement, and collaboration with companies on co-certification models.
7. Reskilling and Psychological Impact
While Infosys has offered retraining programs and placement support, the emotional and psychological impact on these freshers shouldn’t be underestimated. Being dismissed at the start of one’s career can lead to anxiety, decreased confidence, and distrust in the IT job market.
8. Industry Moving Toward Specialization
Generalist roles like System Engineer are becoming obsolete. Companies now demand domain-focused and cloud-native skillsets. The training failure may be more about curriculum mismatch than trainee inefficiency.
9. Competitive Edge Through Rigorous Onboarding
Infosys could be aiming to create a competitive edge by retaining only top-performing freshers, thereby reducing delivery errors, training overheads, and dependency on long learning cycles.
10. Future Outlook
If current trends hold, entry into top IT firms may become as competitive as campus placements in IIMs, with pre-joining assessments, live coding tests, and probationary periods becoming the norm.
Fact Checker Results
- Confirmed: Infosys has terminated over 800 trainees since February 2025 due to failed internal assessments.
- Verified: Trainees received up to three chances and additional support before dismissal.
- Reliable Source: Numbers and internal policies quoted from The Economic Times.
Would you like me to rewrite this article for publishing on Undercode with embedded meta tags and SEO optimization?
References:
Reported By: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Extra Source Hub:
https://www.github.com
Wikipedia
Undercode AI
Image Source:
Unsplash
Undercode AI DI v2
