An ‘integrity pact’ can effectively address India’s offer dropout problem

In India’s fast-moving job market, a worrying trend has become common: candidates who accept offers but don’t show up on the joining day.

For some candidates, this may feel like a smart career choice — a way to keep multiple options alive until the very last moment. But for companies, it is a nightmare. Project plans fall apart, teams are left waiting, and clients start losing trust.

Numbers tell a big story

Recent reports show how serious the problem has become:

A Communications Today survey found that in Q3 2024, around 33 per cent of candidates who accepted offers backed out before joining.

Recruitment firm Taggd says 25–35 per cent of accepted offers drop every month across Indian industries. A Mint + Shine study revealed that 22 per cent of companies said dropouts were their single biggest hiring challenge in the June quarter. For certain tech roles, the numbers are even worse.

The Economic Times has reported dropout ratios as high as 50–60 per cent for niche skills like front-end and full-stack developers. One major reason is India’s long notice periods — often 30 to 90 days. This gives candidates time to collect multiple offers and decide later which one to choose. By the time the company knows the candidate won’t join, weeks are lost and hiring has to restart.

Why this matters

When a candidate accepts an offer, it is not just a formality. Companies immediately start planning projects, budgets, and client commitments around that person. When candidates don’t join, the impact is real;

Teams face unexpected gaps and more workload; Clients face delivery delays and lose confidence; Employers lose trust and often over-hire as insurance. On the other side, candidates argue they have the right to choose the best possible opportunity until the day they join. Both sides have a point. But one question remains: Does an accepted offer carry an ethical responsibility?

The ‘ethics’ debate

If a company cancels an accepted offer at the last minute, it would be called unethical. Shouldn’t the same standard apply to candidates?

Workplace ethics are not only about contracts. They are about values. If young professionals grow up in a culture where breaking commitments is seen as acceptable, it shapes how they act throughout their careers. Trust suffers — and everyone pays the price. But companies must also reflect. Many recruiters run after “immediate joiners” and chase candidates by asking them to reveal other offers they have. In some cases, they try to lure them with counter-offers. This may solve a short-term hiring issue, but it creates a dangerous cycle.

Counter-offers push salaries higher and higher. As this game continues, the cost of offshore talent in India will eventually rise so much that it could even cross onshore costs. If that happens, the very advantage that made India attractive for outsourcing and Global Capability Centres (GCCs) could collapse.

A new approach-Offer ‘integrity pact’

To solve this, we need more than blame. We need trust. One idea is the Offer Integrity Pact (OIP), a cultural compact, not a legal one, where both sides commit to fairness once an offer is accepted.

Candidate’s commitment: Treat acceptance as a promise, not just a placeholder. Back out only in rare and genuine cases.

Employer commitment: Keep pay transparent, shorten notice periods, stop the unhealthy “immediate joiner” chase, and avoid counter-offer bidding wars.

Mutual accountability: Set fair consequences if either side breaks the pact, such as claw-back on joining bonuses or industry reputation markers.

This is not about paperwork. It is about building predictability, fairness, and trust.

Why it matters for India

India is no longer just a supplier of talent. We are building the world’s largest Global Capability Centers (GCCs) and leading the global outsourcing industry.

But here’s the risk: if we keep fuelling offer-shopping and counter-offer wars, offshore costs will rise beyond onshore costs. At that point, India’s advantage as a cost-effective and reliable talent hub will vanish. Multinationals may rethink their expansion plans, and outsourcing credibility will take a major hit.

India’s GCC and outsourcing opportunity is a once-in-a-generation chance. To protect it, we must show that our talent market values not only skills but also reliability.

The debate we must have

So the question is this: is dropping out after acceptance just a career strategy, or does it cross into ethical failure?

The truth lies in the middle. It reflects today’s market realities, but it also signals a loss of values. That is why it’s time for both candidates and employers to come together under solutions like the Offer Integrity Pact. At the end of the day, skills may build careers, but values build trust. And trust will decide whether India becomes the global leader in GCCs and outsourcing, or risks losing that opportunity.

(The writer is a Director in Product Development, Technology Solutions Division (Audit function) in a Big 4 firm in Hyderabad. The views expressed are personal)