Online auto classifieds portal CarDekho has laid off around 200 employees, and initiated pay cuts across the board, making the Jaipur-headquartered company the latest in a series of well-funded startups that have retrenched staff in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The development was first reported by digital news publication Entrackr, citing sources and an internal company email to staff.
When contacted by ET, a spokesperson for CarDekho confirmed the layoffs and pay cuts, without answering specific queries or providing details.
“We were constrained to look at rightsizing and salary cuts in a few businesses given the period of slow recovery and in some cases permanent change in pattern of consumer spends,” the spokesperson said in an email.
“To help this transition, we not only cover the impacted employees financially but have also set-up an intermediary support system to guide them towards opportunities inside and outside the organisation,” the spokesperson said.
According to Entrackr, CarDekho has laid off 200 of its 5,000 employees. That number, could, however, rise further.
Additionally, the company has also said that employees earning between Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 5 lakh will undergo a 12% cut in salary, while those earning between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 15 lakh will see 15% deduction, effective from May to July.
Separately, employees earning between Rs 15 lakh and Rs 40 lakh, and those earning Rs 40 lakh or more will see 20% and 22.5% cut in salaries, respectively, according to the report.
The development at CarDekho is the most recent example of home-grown, well-funded consumer internet startups undertaking layoffs and deductions in salary, as they look to survive the ongoing pandemic that has decimated sales, even as consumer spending contracts.
Last week, ET reported that online marketplace Snapdeal had put at least 55 people, or about 7% of its 750 full-time staff on a three-month furlough and has not renewed agreements with a chunk of its 800 contract employees.
Others, such as ride-hailing major Ola, hospitality chain Oyo and food delivery majors Zomato and Swiggy have also announced layoffs at scale.
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