Clear fallout of apex court ruling in Som Mittal case

PUNE: Employee security has got a boost with 32 infotech companies joining hands in Pune to strengthen safety measures. The National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) plans to replicate the initiative in Bangalore, Hyderabad and other IT hubs.

The Nasscom move is a clear fallout of the Supreme Court’s recent observation that the head of a company is responsible for the safety and security of employees. Last month, the SC had allowed the prosecution of Nasscom chief Som Mittal in connection with the murder of Hewlett Packard Global Software employee Pratibha Murthy in Bangalore (see box) when Mittal was CEO of the company.

Nasscom’s vice-chairman and Zensar deputy chairman and MD Ganesh Natarajan said the Pune initiative would be taken to Bangalore and Hyderabad. He acknowledged that the murder of a BPO employee in Pune in November last year was the catalyst.

As a first step, IT firms will implement a common code of conduct to provide a secure workplace, besides guiding employees on how to mitigate potential risks.

Nasscom officials said the code of conduct would relate to four key issues: security during commute; transport and security vendor selection; employee communication; and security within the premises.

Companies that are part of this initiative in Pune include Wipro, WNS, IBM Daksh, Zensar and Serwizsol.

“Since the BPO industry functions predominantly at night and employs a high percentage of female workforce, it has become important to implement these measures,” Natarajan said, adding that the work environment, including physical security and transport had become a crucial area for the industry.

Nasscom chief Som Mittal has said the move is an attempt to offer a safer working environment.