On Tuesday, July 2, Karnataka Labour Minister Santosh Lad met with representatives from Think and Learn Pvt Ltd, the parent business of Byju's, to discuss outstanding dues owing to former employees, Moneycontrol reported.
According to the article, at the meeting at Vikasa Soudha in Bengaluru, Minister Lad asked the ed-tech firm's executives to settle 50% of the outstanding dues to ex-employees immediately, with guarantees that the balance 50% would come in due time.
Lad tol a credible source, "I have asked them to settle at least 50% of the dues owing to former workers as soon as possible, with the other 50% to be paid in due course. They have notified us that a case hearing is set on July 4 and that their funds are in an escrow account with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). They will then provide us an update on the steps taken to pay the outstanding balance."
The minister reported that 160 to 200 former workers had been in touch with the labor department, and that the total amount of unpaid debt was around ₹4.5 crore. Lad told Moneycontrol, "The majority of employees have sent emails to our department; very few have approached us in person."
The Labour Department's Principal Secretary, Muhammad Mohsin, informed the magazine that they promised to pay any outstanding debts within a month of the NCLT issuing a relief order. Former Byju's employees have been protesting via emails to the labor department for months, not receiving their complete and final compensation after being fired.
