Infosys’ 2019 employee bonanza: Here’s what you need to know

• The IT major announced that it has introduced Expanded Stock Ownership Program 2019'.
  
• Techies, senior management and other employees will be awarded as many as 50 million shares on the basis of their performance.
  
• Infosys has proposed to allot restricted stock units (RSUs) worth 100 million to CEO and Managing Director Salil Parekh under 2019 plan.

India's IT industry has stepped up hiring in a big way. And Infosys just set the bar higher than what has been seen in the industry in a long time.

On 16 May, the IT major announced that it has introduced Expanded Stock Ownership Program 2019' as a part of its performance incentive initiative. As a result, techies, senior management and other employees will be awarded as many as 50 million shares on the basis of their performance.

On shareholders' approval, about 50 million shares of ₹5 face value will be allocated to employees on the basis of their performance. The shares for allotment under the stock ownership plan are equivalent to 1.15% of the company's total equity shares, and are worth 37 billion in value.

‘2019 Plan’

Infosys termed its new incentive plan as ‘2019 plan’ and has said it is distinct from 2015.

"The board of directors approved expanded stock ownership program 2019, linking long-term employee incentives with shareholder value creation," the city-based IT major in a statement.

The grants to employees over seven years will be based on performance criteria of relative total shareholder return (TSR) against an industry peer group, relative TSR against domestic and global indices and operating lead performance metrics such as total revenue and digital revenue growth, and operating margins.

"As we have been a pioneer for many firsts in India, the performance-based stock ownership scheme is a milestone as it sets another benchmark in the industry," Chief Executive Salil Parekh said.

Who’s getting how much

Infosys has proposed to allot restricted stock units (RSUs) worth 100 million to CEO and Managing Director Salil Parekh under 2019 plan.

Further, the company will give away blue-chip shares valued at ₹40 million at market price to its Chief Operating Officer U.B. Pravin Rao as an incentive.

Stepping up hiring

At a time where tech companies are shedding employees who lack skills, the net hiring at Infosys along with three other IT companies hit an eight-year high, reported Economic Times.

Infact, both Tata Consultancy firm and Infosys hired as many as 42,000 techies in the FY18. Infosys alone hired 24,016 software professionals in the financial year ending March, 2019.