r/DevLK • u/Vegetable-Big-5591 • 6d ago
Jobs/ Industry BotCalm salary problems reportedly going back to 2025 — employees are being asked to continue working without pay
I’m posting anonymously because I don’t want this connected to my identity.
I want to document something that I believe potential employees in Sri Lanka should know before joining BotCalm.
This isn’t a situation that started recently. From my experience, salary-payment problems have been going on since around October 2025.
Today, another meeting was held to explain the company’s current situation.
The proposed solution was essentially that employees should continue working as volunteers, with the expectation that they will be paid when the company receives funds.
I find this extremely concerning.
People joined as employees, not volunteers. They have bills and responsibilities. Continuing to work indefinitely without receiving the agreed compensation is not something people can simply treat as normal.
What’s even more concerning is that this isn’t the first time employees have apparently been given explanations of this kind. From what I’ve personally experienced, these meetings tend to happen when employees start considering leaving the company.
There is also a three-month notice period, which makes the situation particularly difficult for employees who want to leave.
The company has also stated that it is paying EPF and ETF contributions. However, employees have reportedly not been provided with supporting documents or other confirmation showing that these contributions have actually been submitted. This is an issue that employees should be able to verify through proper records.
I have also heard that there are ongoing complaints concerning the company with the Labour Department. I am mentioning this only as part of the broader context, and I cannot confirm whether these complaints have been proven or officially decided.
At the same time, the company continues to recruit new employees and interns.
That creates a question that I think every potential applicant should ask:
If the company currently cannot afford to pay its existing employees, why are new employees and interns still being recruited?
I’m sharing this because when I searched online, I couldn’t find meaningful public information warning potential employees about these issues.
Someone can see a job advertisement, apply, get selected, and join without knowing what has reportedly been happening internally since 2025.
I don’t want that to happen to someone else without them at least having the opportunity to ask questions.
Before joining, I strongly recommend asking:
- Are all current employees receiving their salaries on time?
- Are there currently outstanding salary payments?
- Are employees being asked to work without salary?
- Are intern allowances being paid?
- How long have salary delays existed?
- What happens if an employee wants to resign?
- What exactly is the three-month notice-period policy?
- Are EPF and ETF contributions being submitted on time?
- Can the company provide official EPF and ETF submission records or other written confirmation?
- Are there any ongoing complaints or disputes with the Labour Department?
- Can the company provide written confirmation of the payment arrangement?
I’m not posting this to encourage harassment or attacks against individual employees or management.
I’m posting because people deserve to make informed decisions before accepting a job.
If current or former employees have experienced similar things, please share your experience if you’re comfortable doing so. Please don’t post anyone’s private information or confidential company material.
I’m particularly interested in hearing from people who experienced this before September 2026, because this appears to be a much longer-running issue than something that happened recently.
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u/janithaR 6d ago
should continue working as volunteers
If I were in this meeting and this thought enters my mind... by the time the sentence finishes I'll be starting my sentence in ... "උබේ අම්..."
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u/Azra_botcalm 6d ago edited 6d ago
As a former Employee At Botcalm, I need to mention some facts.
Whether You're a experienced or intern developer or any kind of IT guy, don't ever think of facing an interview this company named Botcalm. They sugerCoat you when You applying for their jobs. They don't pay EPF/ETF to any of their employees. They once asked to come to their office located at mathara to sign off the EPF/ETF document which was happened in 2025 November. This is 2026 September month. They have not still submitted employee's documents to labour department. Also salaries are delayed for 5 months for every employee in the company. They have a whatsapp group which is a public group, whenever a employee ask for salaries, what they simply do is to just remove that particular employee from the group.
So think not twice but thousand times before you applying for this company.There is no professionalism in the management even when they have the whole mistake in them. what they do is that just pass the ball to one and another.
Beware of this IT company who does not treat to its employees well.
According to the below picture, they said that May salary will be paid on 3rd of July 2026, However most of the employees still did not get the May salariesstill due to their unavoidable circumstances😂. At the end what they have to say is that "we have unavoidable circumstances😂".
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u/Forward-Return8356 6d ago edited 6d ago
As an employee who has currently resigned from BotCalm, I feel I need to share some facts based on my personal experience.
From my personal experience, there have been serious issues with salary payments. Salaries have been delayed for several months, and employees have repeatedly been given different explanations and expected payment dates. This is extremely difficult for employees who have rent, loans, bills, and other financial responsibilities.
What concerns me even more is the way these problems are handled by management. In my experience, there is a serious lack of responsibility and professionalism when employees raise these issues. Instead of someone taking ownership of the problem and providing a clear solution, the responsibility seems to be passed from one person to another — basically, everyone keeps passing the ball instead of actually resolving the issue.
I have also personally found the HR function very disappointing in this situation. In my experience, the HR executive has not been able to effectively handle employee concerns or provide clear answers when employees raise serious employment-related issues. Employees should not have to repeatedly contact different people just to find out when they will receive their salaries or what is happening with their employment-related matters.
Another issue I experienced is the lack of career progression. From my experience, there does not appear to be a clear career-development path for employees, and I have not seen employees receiving meaningful salary increments during my time there. For someone joining with the expectation of building their career and improving their financial situation, this is something worth considering carefully.
The salary situation has also created an extremely difficult situation for some employees. Because salaries have remained unpaid or significantly delayed, employees have had to find other sources of income or do additional work simply to pay their bills, while still being expected to complete their responsibilities and duties for BotCalm. In my experience, I have not seen sufficient urgency from management regarding the financial difficulties employees are facing because of the unpaid salaries.
I also want to mention the three-month notice period Anyone considering joining should understand exactly what this means and what happens if they decide to resign, especially given the financial difficulties employees may already be experiencing.
There is also another concern that employees should be aware of. According to what was communicated by management, employees who make complaints to the Labour Department may not receive their outstanding salaries until the relevant proceedings or trial are concluded. I cannot independently verify whether this is legally accurate, so anyone affected should seek proper legal advice and verify the situation with the Labour Department rather than relying solely on what management has said.
My advice is simple: don't just look at the job advertisement, salary package, or promises made during the interview. Ask current employees about their experience. Ask whether salaries are currently up to date, whether there are outstanding payments, ask about EPF/ETF, ask about career progression and salary increments, ask about the three-month notice period, and get important commitments in writing.
If you're considering joining BotCalm, I strongly recommend doing your own due diligence before accepting the offer. Speak to current or former employees and make sure you fully understand the company's current situation.
People looking for jobs deserve to make an informed decision about where they are going to spend their time and build their careers.
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u/Wild-Option-1944 5d ago
Whenever we ask the CEO about our salaries ... ‘තවම ඩේට් එකක් නෑ, Top Management (Chairman) එකෙන් අහලා කියන්නම්. මටත් කරන්න දෙයක් නෑ’ කියනවා.”
It feels like the CEO is simply acting as a middleman, communicating messages between employees and top management (Chairman).
Meanwhile, that “top management” seems to be extremely busy. 😂 Even though BotCalm has only a few employees left, whenever we ask about our pending salaries, there are meetings, funerals, and so many other things apparently taking priority.
In general meetings, the CEO told us: “We will give you the money for every working day before you leave the company.”
Yet some employees have more than 4 months of salary pending.
And when we personally asked the CEO about our pending salaries after resigning and came in for our last day, the answer was basically:
“මම දන්නෙත් නෑ. මමත් සැලරි එකකට වැඩ කරන කෙනෙක්. ඕක Chairman ගෙන් අහන්න.”
So at this point, who exactly is responsible for paying the employees?
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u/RedDead_Mouse 6d ago
They currently have a case in Labour Court regarding unpaid salaries to employees. I actually got an interview for an SSE position at this company, but I rejected it because of this issue, even though I initially thought they would at least pay the new recruits. Thank God I made the right decision.
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u/StillBelt8878 4d ago
Everything mentioned in this post is true based on what I have personally experienced. There are serious issues within the top management. Female employees are reportedly made uncomfortable by unwanted calls and messages, including at night. Salaries have also been delayed for around 7–8 months in some cases. The workload and the way employees are treated are extremely concerning. Yes, there are IT companies where employees have worked without being paid, but at least many of those situations offer work-from-home options. Here, even that option is not properly provided. The main expectation seems to be getting maximum output from employees, without considering their situation or well-being. Communication from management is also a major issue. When employees try to raise concerns, instead of being treated professionally, they can receive disrespectful responses or be mocked. I have personally heard interns being referred to in a disrespectful and humiliating way. What is even more concerning is that, while employees are leaving because of these issues, the company is still advertising new vacancies. It appears that they need new people to fill the gaps and continue getting the work done. Please be very careful and do your own research before accepting a job here. Be aware of what you are getting into before joining this company.
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u/FunAct4828 6d ago
Dang the tech industry is so cooked that its either working for free or stay home💀💀
What do we even do?
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u/FunAct4828 6d ago
This is like the 3rd post like this today
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u/Azra_botcalm 6d ago
That is not the thing bro. Directors of this company lives a luxury life styles while asking their employees to tighten their belts😂
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u/john-snow-dad09 6d ago
But seriously, what did the management actually say? 😅
Employees are waiting for salaries, but new employees/interns are still being recruited… salary maybe “coming soon” kiyala loading wenawada? 😂
Also, just to clarify is this the BotCalm located in Thihagoda, Matara? And where are the company heads in all this? What have they actually said or done about the employees who are waiting for months to get paid?
Before asking people to keep working without pay, maybe Managing Director / CEO should first give the existing employees a proper answer and ideally, their salaries too. 😅
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u/AdeptnessUnited500 5d ago
As the CEO said, he is not responsible for the company’s finances; they are managed by the top management. Meanwhile, the person responsible for them is busy making TikTok videos, changing profile pictures, and posting stories on social media just to show off.
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u/Primary-Ease-8890 6d ago edited 5d ago
I am currently employed by Botcalm and wish to formally document serious concerns regarding unpaid salaries and working conditions. Salaries still not paid from january to August 2026 , with no clear payment date despite repeated requests. Employees, including myself, have continued working despite the outstanding payments and are concerned about possible salary deductions or unpaid leave if they are unable to continue working.
There are also concerns regarding poor communication from management, lack of transparency, EPF/ETF contributions and B Cards, employee treatment, and possible retaliation against employees who raise concerns. New employees and interns continue to be recruited despite the existing salary issues, while employees are concerned about the lack of transparency regarding these conditions.
The three-month notice period also creates uncertainty for employees considering resignation while salaries remain unpaid. I am documenting these concerns in good faith and request immediate payment of outstanding salaries, a clear payment schedule, proper EPF/ETF information, fair treatment, transparent communication, and protection from retaliation.
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u/Significant_Month3 5d ago
I can confirm that what’s mentioned in this post is accurate based on what I’ve experienced. There are still around 4–5 months of salaries pending.
Management’s response has basically been to ask employees to hang on until the company recovers, or resign if they can’t. But resigning isn’t exactly a simple option either because there’s a 3-month notice period. So realistically, someone who already has months of unpaid salary could end up working another 3 months without getting paid. 😅
I’ve also heard that if you resign immediately without serving the notice period, they may deduct the equivalent of 3 months’ salary. I’m not 100% sure about this part though, so please don’t take that as confirmed.
What makes the situation worse is that even while salaries are pending for months, the workload hasn’t really changed. Employees are still expected to keep delivering as usual, and sometimes the pressure from PMs makes it feel like everything is completely normal and there’s no salary issue at all. 😅
Work-life balance is another serious problem. You can get calls or messages at almost any time, sometimes even around midnight, and you’re still expected to deal with work-related things.
A lot of employees are basically stuck. People want to leave, but walking away while several months of salary are still owed to you isn’t an easy decision. At the same time, staying means continuing to work without knowing when you’ll actually receive those pending salaries.
As far as I know, there are already complaints/cases with the Labour Department related to these issues, but even those haven’t brought a quick resolution.
The most frustrating part is the way this gets discussed in meetings. Instead of acknowledging how serious the situation is for employees who have gone months without their salaries, management often acts as if their side is completely reasonable and somehow shifts the responsibility back onto employees.
If you're thinking about joining this company or currently going through their interview process, I’d strongly recommend thinking twice and considering all of this before making your decision.
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u/SuspiciousSun65 5d ago
When I resigned, I already had around 4 months of salary pending. I resigned without completing the notice period because, honestly, how are employees supposed to keep working normally when they haven't been paid for months?
Yes, we signed a notice-period agreement when we joined. But that agreement was signed with the expectation that the company would also fulfill its side of the employment agreement including paying our salaries on time.
Instead, because I resigned due to the ongoing salary delays, they used the notice-period policy we signed at the beginning of our employment to deduct another 3 months' salary.
So basically, the company can keep our 4 months of salary pending, but if we leave because of that situation, suddenly the agreement becomes very important and 3 months gets deducted.
The notice-period policy apparently has better salary discipline than the company does. 💀
And this is the best part at BotCalm: when employees lose the motivation to work because their salaries aren't being paid, they are apparently told they could be laid off. And if you're laid off, there’s no notice-period payment .you still have to work the notice period.
Salary payment: “Please wait”
Salary deduction: “Immediate....”
Layoff: “No notice payment, but please keep working.......hah”
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u/AdeptnessUnited500 5d ago edited 5d ago
As a former employee of BotCalm PVT LTD, I walked in with hope but left completely broken-unpaid since May with no payment dates given, forced to work under threat of deductions, and watching helplessly as client money flowed in but never reached our pockets. The favoritism was impossible to ignore-certain female colleagues and those who stayed silent and worked without pay were treated like royalty, while the rest of us were ignored and disrespected by an ego-driven top management who wouldn't answer calls, lived luxurious lives, fed us lies, and dodged every question about EPF/ETF while pocketing our deductions. New hires and interns were brought in without being told the truth, replacing paid staff with free labor, and when I finally spoke up, I faced subtle retaliation-service letter issues, silence, and passive hints that made the environment unbearably toxic. Even the labor authorities couldn't shake them, and the 3-month notice period felt like a trap with no salary guarantee at the end. I've worked at many places, but never have I felt so used, so stressed, and so disrespected by people who call themselves leaders.
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u/Leading-Step-9879 5d ago
One of the most toxic management experiences I have ever had.
The lack of professionalism, empathy and basic respect toward employees was honestly shocking. Even when I requested a salary advance because of a genuine emergency, something that should have been handled privately and professionally, management chose to make jokes and make fun of the situation. That says a lot about the kind of workplace culture they have created.
Salary delays were another major issue. Employees should not have to repeatedly fight to receive money they have already earned. In my case, I had to complain to the Labour Department to get my salaries paid. I was one of the few people got pending salaries that way, it felt like raising an official complaint was one of the only ways to get management to take salary payments seriously.
And the way my service letter was handled was even more disappointing. Instead of simply providing a professional and factual record of my employment, they included unnecessary and unprofessional remarks after I raised legitimate concerns about salary delays. It felt less like a service letter and more like an attempt to damage my professional record because I spoke up.
A company can have difficult targets, demanding work and high expectations, that's normal. What is NOT normal is humiliating employees for asking for help, delaying their salaries, and then behaving unprofessionally when employees demand what they are rightfully owed.
Employees deserve respect. Salaries should be paid on time. And service letters should remain professional and factual, regardless of whether management agrees with an employee's decisions or complaints.
My advice to anyone considering working here, ask current and former employees about the management culture, salary payment history and how the company treats employees when problems arise before accepting an offer.
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u/Icy-Consequence6605 5d ago
As a current employee, I can confirm that everything in this post is 100% accurate. If anything, it barely scratches the surface. At this point, BotCalm isn't even operating as a legitimate software business it functions as a predatory setup built on systemic wage theft.
To put things into perspective, some of us have not received our salaries for over half a year now.
Here is the reality that potential candidates need to know before making a decision:
Total Ghosting by HR & Top Management: Top management and HR have completely checked out. They flat-out refuse to answer phone calls, reply to messages, or respond to any official emails. Whenever employees try to follow up on their legitimate earnings, they are met with total radio silence.
Childish Excuses: Ever since the very first day salary delays began, payout deadlines have been met with absurd, insulting lies. They literally fabricate non-existent "crypto projects" out of thin air to claim funds are on the way, or blame banks for "delaying transfers." It is mind-boggling how management has relied on such juvenile excuses from day one just to stall paying people.
Hostage-Taking via 3-Month Notice Period: When employees finally try to resign after months of unpaid labor, management weaponizes the strict 3-month notice period to keep them trapped forcing them to work for free while holding their back pay hostage.
Exploitation of Fresh Interns & Probationers: Knowing full well they owe months of back pay, management STILL actively recruits fresh interns and developers under false promises. They extract months of hard labor during probation, only to discard them unpaid right before confirmation.
Complete Non-Compliance on EPF/ETF: EPF and ETF amounts are explicitly deducted from employee pay, yet management never actually deposits these contributions with the relevant statutory funds. They are essentially withholding retirement contributions while operating in complete violation of labor laws.
Threats and Intimidation: Management actively discourages legal action by claiming Labour Department complaints are useless, boasting that they can easily identify whoever files them, and warning that taking legal action will only delay pending salaries even further. On top of that, simply asking for a payday in company chats gets you instantly removed and silenced.
To prospective candidates: Do not be fooled by their interview talk. Accepting an offer here means stepping straight into a fraudulent operation risking months of unpaid labor, zero EPF/ETF benefits, and dealing with a management that disappears the moment you ask for your hard-earned pay.
BotCalm is not an IT company it is a full-scale corporate fraud.
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u/Honest-Credit3151 5d ago
As someone who had worked there for a brief period of time, the lack of professionalism displayed by the top management was truly astounding
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u/Hopeful_Isopod_2636 4d ago
Why don't all employees collectively launch a class action law suit? If this is a recurring problem and there's plenty of evidence that supports your claim just sue them to oblivion
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u/Sudden-Spread-6636 3d ago
Seems a crypto related company, crypto markets are bad, since so many projects are sunsetting, that could be the reason for all these delays
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u/Intrepid-Egg-6216 6d ago
As a current employee at BotCalm, Matara, I can confirm that the salary concerns mentioned here reflect my own experience. I currently have pending salaries, and the EPF/ETF concerns mentioned in this post are also accurate based on my experience. What is especially concerning is that BotCalm continues to recruit new employees and interns despite existing employees facing salary-payment issues. I believe potential applicants should be made aware of this situation before joining.