An IIT Bombay graduate has caught the internet’s attention after claiming that a recruiter offered him an internship paying just one-tenth of his current salary despite the role involving the same work he was already doing. In a post on X, Soham Nayak recalled receiving a call from an HR representative while he was searching for a new job.
In the post, Nayak said that the recruiter first asked about his current salary. After he disclosed the figure, he said that the HR representative proposed a 3-6 month internship period before offering a full-time position.
“Got a call from an HR yesterday. He asked my current salary. I told him. Then he offered me a ‘3-6 month internship period’ before the actual job. At 1/10th of the pay I just told him,” Nayak wrote.
The IIT graduate said that the proposal was particularly surprising because it was not a junior position or a role requiring a different skill set. “Not a junior role. Not a different stack. The same work I ship every day, relabeled as an internship so it costs 90% less,” he wrote.
Nayak said he rejected the offer immediately despite being unemployed for more than 2 weeks. “I said no before he finished the sentence. 16 days from unemployment, money tight, and I still think it’s the easiest no I’ve ever said,” he wrote.
{{/usCountry}}Nayak said he rejected the offer immediately despite being unemployed for more than 2 weeks. “I said no before he finished the sentence. 16 days from unemployment, money tight, and I still think it’s the easiest no I’ve ever said,” he wrote.
{{/usCountry}}Explaining his decision, he added, “Because the moment you accept a tenth of your value, that becomes your value.” He concluded the post by asking others whether he had made the right choice or whether difficult job markets eventually force people to lower their expectations.
HT.com has reached out to Soham Nayak. The article will be updated once a response is received.
(Also Read: ‘Mujhe nahi mili naukri 😭’: Sarthak Sidhant denies reports of IIT Kanpur job offer after CBSE OSM row)
Social media reactions
The post drew mixed reactions from social media users, with many supporting his decision.
One user wrote, “Many companies do this for probation for freshers but it should be reasonable (30k-50k) depending on the city and they should cover food and travel , if not then you have to evaluate your situation (how many interviews replies and offers you got before this)”
“In this market, you need to take whatever you can get. And assume you’re gonna get screwed over, sooner or later,” commented another.
“You are right bro . Before the HR were thinking like that . But now we can easily jump to good packages if we have skills . Startups still do hire of your talent not by your previous package,” wrote a third user.
“Right. Don't compromise and don't accept obscure contracts. Most of them will find way to even pay less than what you accept. They are trying to find gullible candidates to reduce current liabilities from balance sheet which is salary,” said another.
Another commenter warned against accepting such arrangements, saying companies offering unusually low compensation may attempt to cut costs at employees’ expense.