Online car search portal CarDekho.com has laid off 200 employees in order to mitigate the economic cost of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company’s senior management had already taken a pay cut in March and according to reports the company has reduced salaries across levels in the range of 12 percent to 22 percent. A company spokesperson confirmed that CarDekho had indeed laid-off employees and reduced salaries as part of a cost reduction drive but did not share any other details.

“We were constrained to look at rightsizing and salary cuts in a few businesses given period of slow recovery and in some cases permanent change in the pattern of consumer spends. To help this transition, we not only cover the impacted employees financially but have also set-up an intermediary support system to guide them towards opportunities inside and outside the organization”, said the company in a statement. The company is are also extending insurance cover for employees who have been laid off and their families as well, said official requesting anonymity.

Officials at the company told CNBC-TV that the company was regularly reviewing the viability of different businesses and operations. According to sources, employees involved in the buying and sales department of the business have been the worst impacted due to a fall in customer demand.

However, officials at CarDekho.com remain positive about the used car business. “We expect the used car business to bounce back quickly as there will be a preference for personal mobility going forward”, said a company official.

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First Published:May 26, 2020 4:04 PM IST