TCS salary hike: Ratan Tatas Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) one of Indias largest IT services firms is set to announce annual salary hikes for its employees for the financial year 2025-26 however the expected increment is likely to be lowest in the last four years. According to an Economic Times report TCS salary hikes which are set to be rolled out this month will see average increments ranging between 4-8 percent. How much salary hike can TCS employees expect? In February TCS had released its quarterly variable pay (QVP) for the October-December period for eligible employees according to which many of the firms junior and mid-level employees will receive 100 per cent of their variable pay while senior employees will receive lower increments ranging from 20 to 40 percent. TCS employees fall under various categories based on their positions and seniority-level within the IT firm. The Y grade is the lowest rung that comprises of trainees followed by C1 (systems engineers) C2 C3-A & B C4 C5 and CXOs. Only C3B and above level employees are graded as senior-level staff. Notably TCS has linked salary hikes and variable pay to employees’ compliance with the companys return-to-office (RT) policy which was introduced in early 2024 and mandates a five-day office workweek for most employees. According to a report by SightsIn Plus TCS offsite employees can expect a 7-8 percent hike while onsite employees are likely to receive a lower increment of 2-4 percent adding that high-performance employees could be rewarded with a salary hike ranging between 12-15 percent. Lowest salary hike in four years The current increment is poised to be the lowest salary hike for TCS employees in the last four years. In  FY24 TCS gave its employees an average hike ranging between 7-9 percent 6-9 percent in FY23 and 10.5 percent in FY22. Earlier this year TCS reported a net decline of 5370 employees in the October-December quarter cutting down the companys current workforce to 607354. TCS had also reported a marginal rise in attrition rate which increased to 13 percent in Q3 from 12.3 percent in the previous quarter. However TCS Human Resources chief Milind Lakkad said the IT giant was on track to hire 40000 freshers in FY25 and anticipates increasing campus hiring in the next fiscal year. Lakkad added that promotions have also been a key focus with more than 25000 associates promoted during Q3 bringing total promotions for FY25 to over 110000 – nearly 20 per cent of its workforce.