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New labour codes hit India’s IT giants with Rs 4,373 crore in Q3
MUMBAI: India’s biggest IT services firms have taken a collective hit of more than Rs 4,373 crore after new labour codes came into force in November 2025, triggering sharp exceptional charges and denting quarterly profits, media reports said.
Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and HCLTech booked the costs in the December quarter to align with the statutory overhaul, which tightens rules on wages, social security and employee welfare. The charges stem largely from higher gratuity and leave liabilities linked to past service.
Infosys reported an exceptional charge of Rs 1,289 crore, dragging its operating margin down to 18.4 per cent from 21 per cent in the previous quarter. The company said margins would have stood at about 21.2 per cent without the labour code impact.
TCS absorbed the largest hit, booking Rs 2,128 crore, but held its operating margin steady at 25.2 per cent. HCLTech reported a charge of Rs 956 crore and improved its margin to 18.6 per cent.
Executives at all three firms played down the longer-term effect. TCS CFO Samir Seksaria, said the ongoing impact would be limited to around 10–15 basis points.
Infosys CFO Jayesh Sanghrajka flagged a similar annual drag of about 15 basis points. HCLTech chief executive C Vijayakumar put the recurring impact at 10–20 basis points.
The four new labour codes mandate higher basic pay, defined working hours, appointment letters and expanded social security, including provident fund and
gratuity calculated on wages that must be at least 50 per cent of cost to company.
Brokerages are less sanguine. Global brokerage firm Jefferies on Monday warned the changes would add to margin pressure already building from slower growth, AI-driven shifts in business mix and potentially higher onsite wage costs. A two per cent rise in employee expenses could cut FY27 earnings by 2–4 per cent, it said, forcing firms to temper future wage hikes.
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With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
