TCS Accused Of Firing US Workers And Replacing Them With Indians On H-1B Visa, Company Calls It ‘Meritless’

The H-1B visa program allows US companies to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations requiring technical expertise.

New York: A group of American tech professionals have raised serious allegations against Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), claiming that the company abruptly terminated their employment and replaced them with workers from India on H-1B visas. The accusations, reported by the Wall Street Journal, suggest that TCS may have engaged in illegal discriminatory practices based on race and age.

Since late December, at least 22 workers have filed complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, accusing TCS of discriminatory practices. The affected employees, including Caucasians, Asian-Americans, and Hispanic Americans aged between 40s and 60s, claim that TCS unfairly terminated their contracts and transferred their roles to lower-paid Indian immigrants on temporary work visas.

“While companies often conduct layoffs that affect workers with more seniority, the American professionals say TCS broke the law by targetting them based on protected characacteristics of age and race,” the WSJ report said.

They allege that the TCS demonstrated preferential treatment towards Indian workers in the US who already possessed the H-1B visa.

Note: TCS, a prominent player in the tech industry, serves a wide range of major firms in the United States.

The H-1B visa program allows US companies to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations requiring technical expertise. Typically, H-1B visa holders are employed for three to six years, with the possibility of renewal if they pursue permanent resident status through the Green Card process.

TCS says allegation  meritless and misleading

In response to inquiries regarding allegations of discrimination against American professionals, a spokesperson for TCS said, “Allegations that TCS engages in unlawful discrimination are meritless and misleading. TCS has a strong track record of being an equal opportunity employer in the US, embodying the highest levels of integrity and values in our operations.”

According to the Journal, the complaints raise concerns once again about the utilisation of H-1B visas by Indian IT companies.

The report noted that numerous prominent US tech companies like Google, Microsoft, and Meta, with distinct business models from outsourcing firms, utilise H-1B visas to hire high-wage employees. These companies have faced comparatively less criticism in this regard.