BookMyShow lays off and furloughs 270 employees

Online movie and entertainment ticketing app BookMyShow has laid off and furloughed 270 of its total employees or 18.5% of its workforce today as the company’s business is under immense distress due to the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak.

“Out of 1,450 employees at BookMyShow in India and globally, about 270 employees across various functions and teams, will be impacted through this exercise. This includes those who will be put on furloughs, along with those who we will have to part ways with, at least, as of now,” said Ashish Hemrajani, Founder & CEO, BookMyShow in an email sent to their employees. 

However, the Mumbai-based company has announced to provide financial and outplacement support among others to ease the burden for its impacted employees. It’s worth noting that the company hasn’t cleared about the exact number of layoffs and staff who have been furloughed.

Besides layoffs, the employees of the company are also taking a voluntary pay cut in the range of 10-50%.

Out of all the impacted employees, all those furloughed will continue to remain employed with BookMyShow and will be eligible for all medical insurance, gratuity, and other benefits as per the employment standards.

Employees who are handed over pink slips by the company today would be offered a minimum of two months’ salary irrespective of their tenure as per notice period, whichever is higher.

In addition, the company also plans to offer medical insurance cover for affected employees and their nominated family members until September 30, 2020.

With all the cinemas and theatres having been closed for the last two months due to a nationwide lockdown, revenues of online ticketing apps such as BookMyShow have also been hit hard. According to an ET Prime report, it had zero revenue for April and May. The company has been trying out virtual shows to make-up for the lost revenue. So far, it has raised about $225 million across six rounds. It’s also in conversations to raise up to $100 million in a fresh round that could value BookMyShow $1 billion.