Wipro Boss Gets “Hate Mail” As 300 Fired For “Moonlighting”

India – Wipro boss Rishad Premji received “hate mail” as the company fired 300 employees for moonlighting. Wipro’s boss tweeted that moonlighting by employees in the tech industry is cheating. Subsequently, he received hate comments on his tweet. However, he said that he was not deterred by the hate mail he’s been getting over his tweet. Premji said that he firmly stands by his comments on moonlighting.

Premji said on Wednesday that the company terminated the services of 300 employees who were found to be working for its competitors simultaneously. He said that the company cannot tolerate such things. 

Moonlighting is when an employee takes up a second job. He reportedly said that playing in a band over the weekend is different from secretly working for rival companies. He said that employees can have conversations about playing in a band or working on a project over the weekend, but they cannot work for rival companies. 

A group of employees identified as the Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) has said Wipro’s move is unethical.

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What does moonlighting mean?

In simple words, moonlighting means doing two jobs simultaneously. Since most jobs are 9-to-5 in the daytime, the other job would usually be at night, hence the “moon” reference is used. People with low salaries would usually take up another job for additional income. The trend boomed during the Covid-19 pandemic. Remote working and projects across time zones have made it possible for people to do other jobs. 

Many companies have started taking action against employees who prefer moonlighting. Swiggy said last month that it has introduced an “industry-first” Moonlighting Policy, under which staff can take up external projects after taking internal approvals. 

Earlier this month, Infosys also sent an email titled “no double lives” to employees, saying: “No two-timing — no moonlighting!” Infosys called moonlighting “an unethical practice.”