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‘TCS gave our jobs to Indians with H1-B visas’, allege 22 laid off US employees
According to the report, at least 22 American workers have lodged complaints with US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against TCS
A group of American workers have accused Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) of illegally discriminating against them on the basis of race and age, firing them on short notice and recruiting workers from India on H1-B visas, Wall Street Journal reported.
According to the report, at least 22 American workers have lodged complaints with US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against TCS, whose clients include dozens of biggest American firms.
The laid off former TCS employees happen to be Caucasians, Asian-Americans and Hispanic Americans who are between the age of 40s and 60s and are living in more than a dozen US states.
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According to the WSJ report, several fired employees hold an MBA or other advanced degrees.
According to American professionals, the Indian IT major allegedly broke the law by targeting them on grounds of age and race, further accusing TCS of ‘preferential treatment’ to Indian workers in the US on coveted visas.
However, a TCS spokesperson told the website that the allegations pertaining to ‘unlawful discrimination’ are ‘meritless and misleading’. The company spokesperson stated that TCS has a “strong record of being an equal opportunity employer in the US, acting with integrity in its operations."
The complaints have now raised questions on how Indian IT firms use H-1B visas, that are designed for skilled foreign workers. But the Americans have raised concerns about their own employees being replaced by ‘cheaper’ foreign workers with lesser qualifications.
The companies apply for visas on behalf of the workers and are not required to show that Americans with those skills are not available. TCS has more than 6 lakh staff, most of them in India. It generates about half of its revenue in North America, but employs a much smaller workforce in the US.
According to the EEOC discrimination in the workplace attract federal charges.
