EdTech firm BYJU'S, which lost its auditor last week, has been delaying the provident fund (PF) payments of several employees for almost six months now.
Former employees who The New Indian Express spoke to said the company last made PF contributions in November and a few shared their PF passbooks that showed payment only till November 2022.
A former employee, on condition of anonymity, said the company has offered many employees only one month's salary as severance instead of two months and that they are having a tough time getting another job.
Arpit Singh, a former employee with BYJU'S said, he is struggling to get a job and that his family is entirely dependent on his income. He hoped that the company will settle his final dues as early as possible. Sources from the company said they have made all payments and that there is some reflection issue.
A spokesperson from BYJU'S said, "This is to confirm that there are no pending PF payments towards employees. There are no dues."
Sources also said that the company will file its Financial Year (FY)-2022 financials by September and FY-2023 results by December.
According to reports, the EdTech firm's founder Byju Raveendran has addressed the concerns of several shareholders about the firm's financials. Last week, the company's auditor, Deloitte Haskins & Sells, exited with immediate effect due to the delay in the filing of FY22 financial results and BYJU'S announced the appointment of BDO (MSKA & Associates) as statutory auditors for the year commencing from FY22 for the next five years.
Also, three prominent board members representing Peak XV Partners (Formerly SequoiaCapital India), Prosus and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative have stepped down.
A spokesperson from Peak XV Partners said, "We confirm that GV Ravishankar, MD, PeakXV Partners has resigned from the board of Think & Learn. We are committed to supporting the company by bringing on board an independent director in order to strengthen business processes and internal control mechanisms."
The EdTech firm recently elected not to make any further payments on a $1.2 billion Term Loan B (TLB), including any interest until the dispute with lenders is decided by the court.
