Hindustan Unilever and Dabur India both reduced their permanent workforce in FY26 even as most rivals in the sector raised headcount and pay, according to disclosures in their latest annual reports.
HUL’s permanent employee count fell to 5,898 as of March 31, 2026, from 6,604 a year earlier, a reduction of more than 700 employees. Dabur India’s permanent workforce shrank to 4,770 from 5,343 over the same period. The decline stands out against the rest of the sector: Nestle India, Marico and Tata Consumer Products all added headcount during the fiscal, with TCPL’s permanent employee strength climbing to 4,558 from 4,079, partly on account of the merger of NourishCo Beverages, Tata SmartFoodz and Tata Consumer Soulfull into the parent entity.
The staff reductions came alongside higher pay for those who stayed on. HUL’s median employee remuneration rose 6.08% in FY26, lower than the 8.39% increase recorded in FY25, though the average salary hike for non-managerial employees was actually higher, at 6.85% versus 4.62% the previous year. Dabur gave a steeper median pay hike of 7.7%, up from 6% in FY25. Both companies report these figures under Section 197(12) of the Companies Act, 2013, which requires listed firms to disclose median employee pay, percentage increases and permanent headcount in their annual reports each year.
The exact functions or locations affected at HUL and Dabur have not been independently detailed in either company’s public disclosures.
The workforce contraction comes as HUL also trims its total worker strength, which fell 5.3% to 17,490 from 18,465 the previous year, according to earlier annual report data, even as the company reported 5% sales growth in FY26. For a sector that has spent the past two fiscal years narrowing headcount while pushing pay upward for a smaller base, the FY26 numbers suggest the shift toward leaner, more automated operations is continuing rather than reversing.
