Small firms see sharp decline in staff costs amid Covid-19 pandemic

Salary bill of firms below top 200 in net sales was down 10.3% in H1

The pandemic has dealt a bigger blow to smaller firms and their employees than it has done to bigger companies. The sharp decline in sales and revenue in the first half of 2020-21 has forced smaller companies to cut operating costs, especially employee costs, far more than their bigger peers have done.

The salary and wage bill of small-sized listed companies —those not among the top 200 in net sales —was down 10.3 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) during April-September while their net sales fell 25.3 per cent during the period.

As a result, the salary and wage bill of the