IT firms in Hyderabad keen on staff returning to office

Hyderabad: Software enterprises in Hyderabad are bullish on getting employees back to offices now that the Covid cases are on a two-year-low across the country.

The Hyderabad Software Enterprises Association (HYSEA) on Thursday claimed that the occupancy at offices, currently around 15 per cent, would be around 40 per cent by June-end.

“There is a lot of traction of people returning to office,” said HYSEA president Bharani K Aroll. CEO, Raheja Mindspace, AP & Telangana, G. Shravan said the occupancy levels at IT offices had dropped with the Covid first wave, after which occupancy levels were at just five per cent for about 15 months.

 “Today the levels are close to 15 per cent. Firms too are now trying to get employees back to offices,” he said.

Shravan added that many offices had adopted certain practices keeping in mind the pandemic. At Mindspace IT park, for instance, all elevators are touch-free and thermal scanners have been installed at the entry points, he said.

Satyanarayana Mathala, president, Telangana facilities management council, said offices were now ready to accommodate 100 per cent of employees, with even cafeterias being operational. As regards transport facilities, he said that there was a shortage of drivers as most of them had returned to their native places during the pandemic. However, vendors are now trying to bring back those drivers asking them to re-join work.

Occupancy of hostels where IT employees stay also provides an indication of the number of employees returning to offices.

Mahender, treasurer of the IT Hostels Association, whose members provide accommodation to hundreds of employees in IT corridors, said, “If there is no new wave, we expect occupancy to rise to 50-60 per cent by June-July.”

He added that about 20 per cent of the 3,500 hostels in the city had shut down when the pandemic began, while about 30 per cent had gone through financial difficulties.