MUMBAI/BANGALORE: For Savjibhai Dholakia, Diwali gifts are not limited to sweets and dry fruits alone. For three years, this diamond baron from Surat in Gujarat has been giving artisans of his firm who have been meeting their annual targets diamond jewellery, new cars and flats.
Dholakia, CEO of Hari Krishna Exporters, which manufactures cut and polished diamonds, came into the limelight again this year for presenting valuable gifts to 1,268 employees. He has awarded Fiat Punto cars to 491 employees, diamond jewellery to 570 and flats to 207 employees. Of course, the employees had to choose their reward from among the three options.
Established in 1992, Dholakia’s company is worth Rs 6,000 crore. “Performance and growth was the basis for selecting employees for this reward,” he told Express over the phone.
Dholakia said he had kept aside Rs 50 crore for the bonuses which he calls a “loyalty programme”. “I am not giving them anything from my pocket. This is a part of the profit they have earned for the company. I recognise the efforts of high performers and make them my partners,” he said.
“I do it purely to motivate them,” he said.
IT major Infosys, riding on a recent second quarter profit announcement, is giving its employees a 100 per cent bonus, according to sources. Some other key players like Samsung have also announced a reward of around Rs 50,000 for their employees based on designations and years of service.
However, others like Wipro and Cognizant will most probably not be doling out any bonuses this year. According to employees, there have been no announcements yet and with the festival around the corner, the mood is gloomy among employees.
Last year, online retailer Flipkart had announced a 15-20 per cent bonus for its employees. This year, however, there has been announcement yet.
Traditionally, the automotive, manufacturing and consumer goods firms announce the largest bonuses. Companies in the IT, ITeS and financial services sector have usually given smaller amounts mostly linked to performance.