Infosys told to settle dispute with US employee out of court

Infosys has been asked to settle out of court the dispute with its US employee, Mr Jack Palmer.

According to a report in the US media, a District Court Judge, Mr Myron H. Thompson, has ordered a mediation conference between the parties. Mediation conferences mean out-of-court settlement.

Mediation statements

According to the media report, the two sides were directed to provide, before July 23, mediation statements. If the case is not settled, it will go to trial in August. An Infosys spokesperson said this was “standard procedure.”

The issue of visa irregularity first came to light in May last year, when Infosys was subpoenaed by a grand jury in connection with a lawsuit filed by Mr Palmer.

In the lawsuit, Mr Palmer had alleged that Infosys was victimising him and that it had withheld his bonus for blowing the whistle on what he called the company’s practice of repeatedly violating business visitor visas. Infosys has been under the lens of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which questioned the legality of the company’s employees working in the US after it found a ‘significant percentage’ of errors in the Form I-9 of of its employees.

Eligibility

I-9 is an employment eligibility verification form provided by the US Federal government to companies that employ non-US residents. Every hired employee has to fill this form at the time of joining.

In a statement, an Infosys spokesperson said the company has provided all the information requested by the DHS.

Indian IT companies are increasingly facing scrutiny from the Department of Homeland Security, particularly in this election year.

This has resulted in a higher visa rejection rate, especially with the US Government capping annual H1B visas at 65,000.

> venkatesh.ganesh@thehindu.co.in

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