New York and Delhi NCR-based automation startup Cogito has laid off 177 employees after the project they were working on was shelved, sparking employee protests. According to accounts, the employees were not given any notice before being let go by the corporation.
The company’s management, on the other hand, has refuted these claims, stating that they were paid in April and that the employees were satisfied with the company’s activities.
Cogito was started in 2006 by Rohan Agrawal and provides its customers with training data-as-a-service (DaaS). The company delivers data to B2B customers and assists them in developing business solutions.
The layoffs are the result of a client scaling back their operations, which has harmed Cogito’s project and forced the company to let go of the staff working on it.
On April 28, laid-off employees protested at the startup’s office, and the Noida Police had to intervene to keep the situation under control. When the employees questioned the startup’s decision to terminate them without notice, they said they received no response from management. They further claimed that the corporation failed to pay their salary.
Cogito’s CTO, Rohit Agrawal, told Inc42 that the layoffs were caused by the present market situation and the client’s choice to scale back operations. Agrawal further revealed that 85 of the affected employees were on probation, and that the company currently employs over 1,500 people in India.
The laid-off employees’ rallies have highlighted the growing worries about employee rights in the Indian startup environment. With the epidemic causing companies to restructure and make difficult decisions, it is critical for startups to follow proper protocols and treat their employees decently during such trying circumstances.
