The ministry had sent a notice to Amazon India last week after receiving a complaint of mass layoffs in violation of laws made to by of IT professionals that has over 18,000 members.
The ministry will set up an inquiry to find out whether the recent spate of resignations at Amazon India constituted layoffs that violate laws or terms of service, according to people aware of the development.
The ministry had sent a notice to Amazon India last week after receiving a complaint of mass layoffs in violation of laws made to by the Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate, a collective of IT professionals that has over 18,000 members.
In its reply, Amazon India management had said no employee had some had resigned after accepting the e-commerce firm’s “voluntary separation program”.
The company in its internal communication stated that those who do not opt for the voluntary separation will be retrenched without any benefits under a workforce according to president of which has alleged violation of laws.
Amazon has planned to lay off approximately 10,000 people in corporate and technology jobs globally, starting last week, in what would be the largest job cuts in the company’s history, according to reports. The resignations at Amazon India are being seen as a part of the e-commerce giant’s global retrenchments.
Amazon India has said it planned its food delivery service in Bengaluru by the end of 2022, and also wind up its ed-tech ventures in the country. On Thursday, the company said it would shutter Amazon Academy, an online learning platform in India for high school students. HT has reached out to Amazon India for comments, but has not received a response. “In its response (to the ministry), the company said that they had expected to make more money through their business, but owing to financial expedience, they floated a voluntary exit program. They said there were no forced layoffs. However, we will be examining whether the exits were voluntary and if the terms of services, which includes severance and notice period, were adhered to,” a ministry official said, requesting anonymity.
The ministry will also reach out to the employees who opted for the voluntary exit scheme to verify the claims made by the company.
On whether the government could intervene in the working of a private entity, the official said the ministry has the mandate to ensure that laws were not violated. “We will ensure that the aggrieved workers are heard, and their rights are protected. Otherwise, we will act as per the law,” the official said.
Amazon Food, a business the company was trialing in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru, would be discontinued, it said.
"As part of our annual operating planning review process, we have made the decision to discontinue Amazon Food," a company spokesperson told Reuters.
"We don't take these decisions lightly. We are discontinuing these programs in a phased manner to take care of current customers and partners."
The Economic Times earlier reported that the business would be discontinued from Dec. 29 onwards, citing a communication from the company to its restaurant partners.
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