As Tata Motors reshapes its business, pay trends highlight workforce shifts

Tata Motors reported a notable reduction in median pay for its female workforce during the 2025 fiscal year. The automaker disclosed in its annual report that the median salary for women employees, excluding senior executives and board members, fell 7.34 percent to ₹12.48 lakh in the year ended March 31. In contrast, the median pay for male employees slipped just 1.72 percent, to ₹17.07 lakh.

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Despite the compensation cuts, Tata Motors said it had made strides in improving gender representation. The percentage of women in its workforce rose to 9.4 percent in fiscal 2025 from 8.3 percent the previous year. However, gains were uneven: the number of female technicians on shop floors declined, from approximately 6,500 to 5,200, and women’s share in top management remained stagnant at 5.4 percent. The company has set a target of reaching 10 percent women in senior leadership roles by 2026.

There has been steady progress in a complex operating environment, N. Chandrasekaran, chairman and non-executive director, said in the report, emphasizing that the company’s upcoming demerger will “create rewarding careers and job opportunities.”

Tata Motors plans to separate its passenger vehicle and commercial vehicle divisions into two distinct entities — Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and TML Commercial Vehicles, a structural shift expected to be completed in the second half of 2025.

While rank-and-file employees saw tightening in wages, board members, including three women, received modest raises. Director compensation rose an average of 2.8 percent in FY2025, down from a 13 percent increase the previous year. Notably, independent director Kosaraju Veerayya Chowdary saw his remuneration jump nearly 30 percent.

Median remuneration across all employee categories, encompassing both white-collar and blue-collar roles, stood at ₹12.32 lakh in FY2025. Pay for white-collar employees fell more, with median compensation growth slowing from 13.6 percent last year to just 8.09 percent this year. Blue-collar workers, however, saw a modest increase, with wage growth rising to 11.28 percent.

As of March 31, Tata Motors employed approximately 28,176 permanent workers.