OYO Hotels and Homes, has slashed all employees’ wages by 25 per cent for four months beginning from April and also sent many employees on leave with minimal benefits, due to an inner memo from Reuters.

The OYO logo, India’s largest and highest-growing hotel chain, built on a hotel building is seen by wires in a New Delhi, India alley. (Reuters)-Reuters.

Many OYO staff are also placed on leave with minimal benefits from May 4 and until August, said chief executive of the group, Rohit Kapoor.

“Those on this leave will gain from benefits such as continued medical and parental care, reimbursement of school fees and ex gratia assistance,” Kapoor said in his email, adding that the staff would learn more information from their representatives and HR partners.

The decision comes shortly after OYO had paid overtime thousands of its foreign employees early in April once the coronavirus epidemic brought global travel to a halt, causing havoc in the hospitality.

“Our company is taking a tough but important step for India, calling on all OYOprenuers to consider a 25 percent reduction in their fixed pay,” said Chief Executive Rohit Kapoor on Wednesday in a note.

Earlier in the month, while declaring layoffs for employees around the world and responding to government advisories in India on salary cuts and layoffs, Oyo’s founder Ritesh Agarwal said Oyo is pledged to zero acts that affect the status and wages of ten thousand plus workers on salaries and tens of thousands of OYO workers controlled assets during this 21-day countrywide.

Agarwal also informed his employees that a significant number of his workers were put on temporary leaves or pay cuts on April 8 due to the Covid-19 pandemic for 60 to 90 days.