Despite massive job cuts, TCS CEO gets salary hike. What he drew in FY26 will blow your mind

In the fiscal year 2026, K Krithivasan, the CEO of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), saw his total annual compensation rise to ₹28.1 crore, reflecting a 6.3% increase from the previous year's ₹26.52 crore, according to the company's annual report. This substantial remuneration package includes ₹1.67 crore in base salary, ₹1.43 crore from benefits and allowances, and a hefty ₹25 crore in commission. Notably, Krithivasan's earnings are reported to be 332.8 times greater than the median salary of TCS employees. This salary increment comes at a time when the company has reduced its workforce, ending FY26 with 5.84 lakh employees, down from 6.07 lakh the previous year, which translates to a loss of 23,460 jobs annually. In addition, TCS's Chief Operating Officer, Aarthi Subramanian, earned a total of ₹18.3 crore in FY26, comprising ₹1.5 crore in base salary, ₹1.83 crore in benefits, and ₹15 crore in commission. The company noted that these salary increases align with broader employee salary revisions across various regions. While junior and mid-level employees in India received annual pay raises ranging from 4.5% to 7%, top performers enjoyed even larger double-digit increases. Conversely, N Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Group and TCS, chose not to accept any commission, instead earning ₹4.2 lakh in sitting fees for FY26, as stated in the annual report. The report explained that the overall increase in employee wages fell between 5% and 8%, factoring in promotions and other compensation adjustments. Junior and mid-level staff saw raises between 1.5% and 6%. The company emphasized that these remuneration adjustments are consistent with market trends in the respective countries, linking variable pay to organizational performance as well as individual contributions. In the March quarter, TCS reported a notable 12.22% increase in net profit, amounting to ₹13,718 crore. For the fiscal year 2025-26, its profit after tax rose by 1.35% to ₹49,210 crore, compared to ₹48,553 crore in FY25. Furthermore, TCS's operational revenue grew by 9.64% in Q4 FY26 to ₹70,698 crore, and by 4.58% for the entire fiscal year to ₹2.67 lakh crore.