COVID-19: CARS24 offers employees ESOPs in lieu of voluntary pay cut

New Delhi, Apr 14 () Online used car marketplace CARS24 on Tuesday said it has introduced a voluntary pay cut for employees that will be invested as ESOPs of the company.

The company, whose founders have decided to forego their salaries for the next six months amid the COVID-19 crisis, said the employees will get ESOPs worth two times the amount they invest.

These 2X ESOPs will be allotted right away, CARS24 said in a statement.

"...all the four co-founders of the company will forgo 100 per cent salary due to the ongoing COVID 19 crisis for the next six months. The underlying idea behind the decision was to keep the financial wheel running and ensure that the salaries of their employees are released on time," it added.

A CARS24's spokesperson said the company will keep evaluating the situation continuously and take all the essential measures while keeping the interest of employees in mind.

"We are optimistic and believe that we will emerge stronger once the situation is better," the spokesperson added.

The nationwide lockdown, which has now been extended to May 3, has disrupted businesses, especially startups. Many startups are facing financial stress given the paucity of business, and some of them are resorting to measures like salary cuts and even layoffs to weather the ongoing turbulence.

Recently, self-drive mobility platform Zoomcar had said it has decided to defer salaries of senior leaders and CEO Greg Moran as part of its efforts to tide over the "difficult time" on account of the coronavirus crisis. SR BALBAL