With COVID-19 hitting the hotel industry hard, Oyo Hotels & Homes founder/group CEO Ritesh Agarwal plans to forego 100 percent of his salary for the rest of the year as the rest of the company’s executives take pay cuts.
Oyo’s entire executive leadership team has taken a voluntary pay cut starting at 25 percent, with many opting for an additional uncapped amount and some going up to 50 percent. These cuts are effective this month.
Click here for all of Hotel Management's COVID-19 coverage
"The current situation the world over is deeply concerning to each and every one of us,” Agarwal said in a statement. “Oyo is doing everything to support the world with its limited resources in this pandemic from making isolation centers to finding a safe place for first responders. Given the current business situation, which is unprecedented for our industry globally, I am foregoing 100 percent of my salary for the rest of the year. I am grateful to my leadership team, that have also taken pay cuts and support the company during these tough times. We at Oyo stand committed towards the fight against COVID-19 and will try to do everything in our control to reach out and help people while also ensuring long-term success of the company, and our ability to continue delivering on our mission to bring better living spaces for all, at the right prices, globally."
In light of the pandemic, Oyo also has taken steps to support the U.S. medical community. The company's more than 300 U.S. hotels have begun offering free rooms to all medical professionals, including doctors, nurses and first responders.
Oyo Hotels & Homes’ portfolio encompasses more than 43,000 hotels with more than 1 million rooms, as well as more than 130,000 homes. It operates in more than 800 cities in 80 countries.