By Divyanshi Sharma: Google has started firing people in Indian offices and over 400 people have been impacted by the layoffs, reports suggest. People are pouring their hearts out on social media and are reflecting upon their professional journeys as the layoffs reach India. LinkedIn is full of stories of impacted employees and people are hopeful of finding newer opportunities in the tech job market.

Among such employees is Priytosh Tripathi, who says that he initially took some time to absorb the news of layoffs and to settle down his emotions. Priytosh was working as a Software Engineer at Google India for around 10 months but his role was recently terminated by the tech giant.

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Google India employee shares layoff story

Sharing his story on LinkedIn, he wrote, « I was recently laid off by Google. A lot of my friends asked me to express my feelings and reaction after getting let go by Google. I waited for the emotions to settle down and facts to be absorbed so that I could be thoughtful about what I write.

I had a short but exciting stint at Google, and there is a reason why it is called one of the best places to work for. It gave me a chance and insight into how to grow as an individual and an Engineer. My wonderful team stood with me in all the sudden parties, all losses at TT tables and beyond, and of course all the successful sprints. It’s mixed feelings about how it ended and also about how I got the privilege to work with some of the finest computing brains in the world. It’s a memory to cherish for life. »

He continued the post on a rather positive note and said that even though things seem grim right now, there is hope for better days in the future. He wrote, « But like it’s said, « You can only be a warrior if there is a battle to fight, and the biggest glory is not about the victory, but about the battle scars ». Right now, it’s very difficult, but not far from now, this all will be connected, just like connecting the dots looking backward. And I’m looking out for that ray of hope for now. »

Priytosh is currently looking for better opportunities and urged employers to connect with him if they have a suitable role.

Google layoffs not performance-based?

On a related note, a Google India employee recently wrote on LinkedIn that the layoffs at the company were not based on how well an employee had performed. He added that some of the best performers and people who had recently been promoted were also among the ones who were fired from the company.

« Gentle reminder that the Google layoffs, including 450+ in India, were not performance-based. The people who managed to stay (including me) are not necessarily better than those laid off. People I personally know, with the highest ratings and recent promotions, are amongst the ones laid off. And yes, they will add value to your team, » the employee wrote.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced the company’s decision of firing 12,000 employees last month. Even though severance package guidelines are yet not clear for Indian employees, the tech giant has confirmed the benefits and severance that US-based employees will get.