Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has confirmed that over 12,000 employees have been laid off so far this financial year, just weeks after introducing a controversial new benching policy.

The move has sparked anxiety across the IT sector, with online discussions warning that the rapid adoption of AI could further reduce opportunities in an already uncertain job market.

On Reddit, users have been speculating about what lies ahead for those impacted.

One such post on Reddit, which has gained significant attention, asked one such question, “What will those 12,000 laid-off TCS employees do now?”

One user wrote, “You can broadly bucket them into 2 categories – need to find work desperately due to no savings and debt and expenses and not need to find work desperately.”

According to the Reddit user, there are two categories:

• Those desperate for work due to debt, expenses, or lack of savings are likely to accept contract roles, lower pay, night shifts, or relocation to other cities.

• Those unwilling to take a pay cut may remain unemployed for months, eventually facing “forced retirement” or becoming desperate enough to accept whatever comes their way.

Another user broke it down by age:

• 50+ years: Most will likely exit the workforce.

• 45+ years: Only 20 per cent may find new jobs, half of whom could quit within a few years.

• 40–45 years: Around 50 per cent may get rehired; the rest could remain unemployed.

• 30–40 years: Likely to find jobs but remain wary of big financial commitments like home or car loans.

• 20–30 years: Have a “second chance” to take upskilling seriously.

Another user wrote, “30+Will manage something but will never take an EMI ever in their lives. House/Car, whatever.”

While earlier reports indicated TCS was targeting only mid-to-senior-level staff, fresh claims suggest the layoffs now include freshers from the company’s Ahmedabad and Pune offices.