Anupam Mittal, founder of Shaadi.com, has called for a fundamental shift in how Indian companies pay their employees. In a LinkedIn post on Monday, Mittal advocates moving away from the current 'British-era' next-month payout system to a more employee-friendly approach. He specifically recommends that companies pay salaries on the 15th and 30th of every month instead of the traditional practice of paying on the 7th or first of the month.
As reported by NDTV Profit and StartupFox, Mittal highlighted that while many businesses advertise benefits like extended vacation, free meals, and remote work to project an employee-focused image, they frequently ignore timely salary payments. He noted that most companies pay salaries on the 7th, with some paying on the 1st unless it falls on a weekend, which then means payment on the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th of the month. The standard Indian payroll system is built around a rigid 30-day cycle, frequently with payouts intentionally delayed into the first week of the subsequent month, allowing companies to sit on substantial working capital while effectively utilizing employee labor as a zero-interest, rolling 30-day loan.
According to Mittal's LinkedIn post and StartupFox analysis, delays in compensation payments can significantly affect employees' daily financial situation. As reported by NDTV Profit, he explained that a week's delay may be an accounting detail for some, but for most employees, it can mean an EMI bounce, a rent scramble, or half a day wasted fixing something that should never have broken. The unit economics for the average urban employee look very different from corporate treasury perspectives, with workers routinely experiencing severe end-of-month cash crunch due to rising rent, compounding inflation, and early-month EMI deductions. Mittal emphasized that 'cash flow is dignity' and that workers' financial stability is enhanced by consistent and quick access to revenue.
As reported by NDTV Profit and StartupFox, Mittal acknowledged that payroll teams may initially 'grumble' about the change but emphasized that with technology in 2026, this is not 'rocket science'. He noted that Shaadi.com modified their payroll procedure a few years ago by crediting salaries at the end of the current month instead of the subsequent month, describing this as 'common sense' rather than a perk. Modern HR and payroll software infrastructure is now fully capable of handling the administrative load of bi-monthly processing without heavy manual intervention.
According to Mittal's analysis reported by NDTV Profit and StartupFox, more frequent wage payments could provide multiple benefits for both employees and the economy. If mainstream corporate India begins implementing bi-monthly payouts, the ripple effects across the talent market will be significant, with major corporations instantly commanding a massive premium in employer branding. The conversation directly intersects with the rapidly growing fintech sub-sector of Earned Wage Access (EWA), where startups have already proven there is massive demand among Indian workers for mid-month liquidity. Mittal went a step further in his latest proposal, suggesting that companies should pay twice a month to reduce financial stress, help workers avoid debt traps, and boost spending velocity. He concluded by urging businesses to push their HR departments to end the current British-era next-month payout system, arguing that 'better cash flow means less stress, fewer debt traps, more spending velocity and ergo, a GDP nudge' - creating wins for employees, companies, and the economy as a whole.
