A Tata Power employee has raised concerns about an alleged forced laptop buyback program imposed by the company. According to a Reddit user, the company is forcing him to buy a laptop before leaving the company. He claimed he was asked to pay ₹65,000 for the laptop.
In his anonymous Reddit post, the user mentions that he was not told anything like this when he joined this organization 1.2 years ago. The company issued a circular 5-6 months ago outlining the terms of the buyback. The user, Melodic-Trainer8508, is seeking legal advice on Reddit. In his post, he asks Reddit users for suggestions on what legal action he should take.
Melodic-Trainer8508 wrote in his post, “I need your advice on what legal action I should take. When I joined this organization 1,2 years ago, they never mentioned anything like this. 5-6 months ago, they issued a circular outlining the terms of buyback. They are forcing employees everywhere to buy the laptop they gave us for working in the company and if you refuse, they won’t give you his job reference either.”
“I need help on what actions I can take to overcome this situation. I plan to leave the organization in a few months,” he added.
HT.com has reached out to Tata Power for comment and will update this copy once one is received.
Reddit reacts
Responding to the viral post, Reddit user classic_performer346 commented, “Here’s a lawyer: A company cannot force you to buy the official laptop. This sounds outrageous and unbelievable for a company like TATA. You should send a strongly worded email to HR.”
A second user, BeDumbLiveSimple, commented: “This is probably some middleman pocketing commissions. They tell you 65k but in the company records it’s probably 30k. Try writing an anonymous email to the top of the chain. You should be able to get email IDs from your company’s people directory.”
Another user, Kingphysics427, commented, “Looks like some details are missing here. Are you directly employed by Tata Power or is this some kind of payroll for a consulting firm? I have worked with Tata Group a lot and have never come across a similar policy. Also, this is not at all in line with Tata’s code of conduct.”
As employees look for ways to challenge this policy, this issue raises questions about the transparency and fairness of labor practices.