Flipkart not the only firm to delay joining dates of recruits

Mobile advertising leader InMobi has also deferred the joining date from July to November 2016.

The logo of India's largest online marketplace Flipkart is seen on a building in Bengaluru, India, in this April 22, 2015 file photo. To match INDIA-WAREHOUSES/PRIVATEEQUITY REUTERS/Abhishek N. Chinnappa/Files

E-tailer Flipkart’s move to defer joining dates of recruits picked during the last campus placement season from the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) may have drawn flak, but it is not the only recruiter resorting to this ploy.

InMobi, a leader in mobile advertising, has also deferred the joining date from July to November 2016.

“We requested the company to reduce the delay by two months because we will be idle during the deferred period. But the officials said it was not possible,” an InMobi recruit from an IIT told

The Hindu .

“I didn’t request for any compensation, though. The company has guaranteed the job and so I am not worried,” the student added.

IIM Ahmedabad responded to Flipkart’s decision to defer joining dates of placed students from June 2016 to December 2016 with a strongly worded communiqué tagging other major institutes like IIM Bangalore and IIM Lucknow.

On its part, Flipkart has offered an additional joining bonus of Rs 1.5 lakh to all recruits for the delay.

‘Worried about delay’

“This is the first time in the last five years that a company is deferring the joining date. The students are worried about the delay by the company,” said Sapna Agarwal, head, career development services at IIM Bangalore. However, the scenario is different at IITs.

“Every year, there are one or two companies that end up doing this. But even that shouldn’t happen. Some companies do it due to factors out of their control. For instance, if the company is shutting down, you can’t do anything. But otherwise, if companies have made a certain commitment, they have to abide by it,” said Anishya Madan, Industrial Liaison Officer from Training and Placement Cell, IIT Delhi.

Aditya Gupta, who graduated from IIT Kanpur in 2013 with a job from Schlumberger, one of the world’s largest Oil Field Services company, recalled that his appointment was cancelled by the firm after several delays.

A Flipkart recruit said some students have already started looking for other jobs while some are searching for internships for the break period.