Court dismisses whistleblower lawsuit against Infosys

India’s software services major Infosys on Monday won a lawsuit filed against it by a former employee who alleged that it illegally used foreign workers on client projects. HT reports.

India’s software services major Infosys on Monday won a lawsuit filed against it by a former employee who alleged that it illegally used foreign workers on client projects.

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A US federal judge in Alabama, Myron Thompson, threw out the case against Infosys brought by Jay Palmer citing technicalities in Alabama state law, according to Computerworld.

Palmer had alleged he was harassed at work, sidelined and even received death threats for refusing to participate in an alleged Infosys scheme to use workers on business visitor,

or B-1 visas, for tasks that required an H-1B work visa.

“Without question, the alleged electronic and telephonic threats are deeply troubling,” wrote Thompson. “Indeed, an argument could be made that such threats against whistleblowers, in particular, should be illegal.”

But Thompson wrote that “the issue before the court, however, is not whether Alabama should make these alleged wrongs actionable, but whether they are, in fact, illegal under state law. This court cannot rewrite state law.”

Consequently, “this court must conclude that, under current Alabama law, Palmer has no right to recover from Infosys”, wrote Thompson.

“Today’s decision confirms what we have been saying from the beginning: Mr Palmer’s claims of retaliation were completely unfounded. This is a company built on core values that include leadership by example, integrity and transparency,” said Infosys.

Thumbs-up from mkts

HT Correspondent
letters@hindustantimes.com
new delhi: Infosys shares rose 4% intra-day after a US court dismissed harassment charges. The company’s stock, after losing some steam later in the day, still closed with a gain of 2.4% at Rs 2,407 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The scrip was one of the top gainers among Sensex stocks.
“We believe the retaliation suit is over. Judge Myron H Thompson has not accepted Palmer’s complaint,” said SD Shibulal, CEO and managing director, Infosys, after the judgment.

Palmer’s claims of retaliation were completely unfounded, he added.

The ruling comes as a big relief for Infosys since the company’s reputation was at stake. The US is the most important market for the company as Infosys earns more than 60% of its revenues from there. Any adverse ruling would have proved detrimental to its image that has received a setback in recent months after the company failed to meet market expectations in its quarterly results.