Thread: US will hit Infosys with record fine for immigration violations, $35 MILLION

US will reportedly hit Infosys with record fine for immigration violations

Published October 29, 2013 FoxNews.com

A man walks past a billboard of Infosys Technologies Ltd's office inBangalore, capital of the southern state of Karnataka, October 10,2003. Infosys reported on Friday its quarterly earnings rose 33 percenton the global boom in outsourcing and raised its profit forecast.REUTERS/Jagadeesh NVKK/FA


The United States government is preparing to hit India-based outsourcing giant Infosys with the largest immigration fine ever levied, after an investigation found that the company illegally placed workers on visitor visas at American corporate clients.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the fine would be approximately $35 million. The Journal reported that a probe conducted by the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department found that Infosys was able to bring a number of its employees to the U.S. for long-term stays by using B-1 visas as opposed to the more expensive H-1B visas.

B-1 visas are meant to be used for short stays and can be obtained in a matter of days for $160. H-1B visas entitle the holder to remain in the U.S. for as long as three years. The U.S. issues a maximum of 65,000 H-1B visas per year and acquiring one can cost up to $5,000 per individual.

The settlement in the case is expected to be announced Wednesday, according to a press release issued by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas. A company spokesman told the Journal that Infosys had set aside $35 million to settle the case and cover legal costs.

The investigation stemmed from a 2011 lawsuit filed by an Infosys employee named Jack Palmer, who sued the company for harassment and breach of contract, claiming that his managers had retaliated against him after he raised concerns that the company was violating immigration laws.

Palmer alleged that he had attended meetings at Infosys headquarters in Bangalore, India, where he was asked to prepare letters in support of B-1 applications that would claim employees were coming to America for meetings as opposed to working at a job. Palmer's lawsuit was dismissed by a federal judge in 2012, but his attorney, Kenny Mendelsohn, told the Journal Palmer had co-operated with the federal investigation.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013...on-violations/

Glad to see this fine, but what really needs to happen is InfoSys needs to be forced to fire all their illegal hires and deprived of the ability to import new workers into America because of this.

W

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   1. Lots of media coverage.
      
      US will reportedly hit Infosys with record fine for immigration violations
      
      Fox News ‎- 11 hours ago
      The United States government is preparing to hit India-based outsourcing giant Infosys with the largest immigration fine ever levied, after an ...
   
   
   1. Infosys to pay $34M fine to settle visa fraud charges, Justice Dept. to announce
      
      CBS News‎ - 8 hours ago
   2. Indian Tech Giant Said to Reach Settlement on US Visa Fraud Claims
      
      New York Times‎ - by Julia Preston‎ - 4 hours ago
   
   
2. Infosys - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
3. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infosys‎
   Infosys (formerly Infosys Technologies) is an Indian multinational provider of business consulting, information technology, software engineering and outsourcing ...‎NR Narayana Murthy - ‎NS Raghavan - ‎SD Shibulal - ‎Nandan Nilekani
   
4. Infosys Stock Price and Quotes - Infosys Company Profile
   economictimes.indiatimes.com › ... › Stocks › Stock Quotes › Infosys Ltd.‎
   Infosys Stock prices, Stock quote of Infosys Ltd, Infosys stock news, Live Quote, Real time quote, investing data of Infosys stock chart, price history, company ...
5. Infosys says in process of resolving US visa investigation - CNBC.com
   www.cnbc.com/id/101151131
   3 hours ago - India's Infosys said it was in the process of reaching a settlement with the U.S. over the company's alleged misuse of temporary business visas.
6. Infosys to pay $34M fine to settle visa fraud charges, Justice Dept. to ...
   
   
   ►►www.cbsnews.com/.../infosys-to-pay-$34m-fine-to-sett...
   8 hours ago
   Sources tell "CBS This Morning" announcement about settlement to come Wednesday; a look back at what ...
   
   
7. INFY: Summary for Infosys Limited American Deposi- Yahoo! Finance
   finance.yahoo.com/q?s=INFY‎
   Oct 15, 2013 - View the basic INFY stock chart on Yahoo! Finance. Change the date range, chart type and compare Infosys Limited American Deposi against ...
8. US to slap fine on Indian outsourcing firm Infosys: report - Yahoo News
   news.yahoo.com/us-slap-fine-indian-outsourcing-firm-infosys-report-0609...
   8 hours ago - From Yahoo News: Washington (AFP) - The US government plans to punish Indian outsourcing giant Infosys with the largest immigration fine ...
9. Infosys in process of resolving U.S. visa probe | Reuters
   in.reuters.com/article/2013/10/.../infosys-visa-us-idINDEE99S08K2013102...
   2 hours ago - BANGALORE (Reuters) - Indian IT firm Infosys Ltd said on Tuesday it was in the process of reaching a settlement with the U.S. government over ...

I.C.E. News Release

OCTOBER 30, 2013
PLANO, TX

Indian corporation pays record $34 million fine to settle allegations of systemic visa fraud and abuse of immigration processes


PLANO, Texas – Infosys Limited, an Indian company involved in consulting, technology and outsourcing, has agreed to a record $34 million civil settlement based on allegations of systemic visa fraud and abuse of immigration processes, and also agreed to enhanced corporate compliance measures. The $34 million payment made by Infosys as a result of these allegations represents the largest payment ever levied in an immigration case.

This settlement was announced by U.S. Attorney John M. Bales, Eastern District of Texas. This case was investigated by special agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, and by attorneys from ICE’s Office of Principal Legal Advisor.

Infosys is located in 30 countries and in 17 U.S. cities, including a location in Plano, Texas. The Plano location is responsible for handling the immigration practices and procedures for U.S. operations of Infosys. Infosys brings foreign nationals into the United States to perform work and fulfill contracts with its customers under two visa classification programs relevant to this matter, H-1B and B-1.

The H-1B visa is a strictly regulated visa program that protects the American worker from unfair competition from overseas countries that have drastically lower labor wages. The H-1B visa allows employers to temporarily employ foreign nationals needed for certain specialty occupations. The H1-B visa also protects foreign workers and mandates that they must be paid fair wages while working in the United States. H-1B visas are limited by congress to 65,000 visas nationally per year.

However, there is no limit to B-1 visitors. And the B-1 visa program only allows foreign nationals to temporarily enter the United States, for conferences, seminars, and the like. B-1 visa holders are not allowed to work in the United States. Infosys unlawfully and fraudulently used B-1 visa visitors as though they were H-1B workers in violation of U.S. immigration law.

According to court documents, the government alleged instances of Infosys circumventing the requirements, limitations, and governmental oversight of the H-1B visa program by knowingly and unlawfully using B-1 visa holders to perform skilled labor to fill positions in the United States for employment that would otherwise be performed by U.S. citizens or by legitimate H-1B visa holders. The government also alleges that Infosys violated U.S. immigration laws to increase its profits, minimize costs of securing visas, increase flexibility of employee movement, obtain an unfair advantage over competitors, and avoid tax liabilities. Following are the specific allegations:

• Infosys fraudulently used B-1 visa holders to perform jobs that involved skilled labor that were instead required to be performed by U.S. citizens or legitimate H-1B visa holders.
• Infosys submitted "invitation letters" to U.S. Consular Officials that contained false statements regarding the true purpose of a B-1 visa holder’s travel to deceive the U.S. Consular Officials and secure entry of the visa holder into the United States. These letters often falsely stated that the purpose of travel was for "meetings" or "discussions," when the true purpose was to engage in activities not authorized under a B-1 visa.
• Infosys directed B-1 visa holders to deceive U.S. Consular Officials, including providing specific instructions to avoid certain terminology, to secure entry of the visa holder into the United States. Infosys created a "Do’s and Don’ts" memorandum that it provided to foreign nationals entering the United States on a B-1 visa that included the following directions: "Do not mention activities like implementation, design & testing, consulting, etc., which sound like work"; "Also do not use words like, work, activity, etc., in the invitation letter"; and "Please do not mention anything about contract rates."
• Infosys told its foreign nationals to inform U.S. Consular Officials that their destination in the United States was the same as that provided in the Labor Condition Application, notwithstanding the fact that Infosys knew that the destinations had changed.
• Infosys wrote and revised contracts with clients to conceal the fact that Infosys was providing B-1 visa holders to perform jobs that involved skilled or unskilled labor that were otherwise required to be performed by U.S. citizens or required legitimate H-1B visa holders.
• Infosys concealed the fact that B-1 visa holders were performing jobs that involved skilled or unskilled labor that were otherwise required to be performed by U.S. citizens or legitimate H-1B visa holders. Infosys billed clients for the use of off-shore resources when, in fact, work was being performed by B-1 visa holders in the United States.
• Infosys failed to maintain I-9 records for many of its foreign nationals in the United States in 2010 and 2011 as required by law, including a widespread failure to update and re-verify the employment authorization status of a large percentage of its foreign national employees.

The settlement agreement requires Infosys to pay $34 million to the United States. This agreement was largely predicated on Infosys’s cooperation with the United States during the investigation and on compliance measures taken by Infosys in the areas of B-1 and H-1B visas and I-9 documentation, both prior to and during the course of the investigation. The settlement agreement requires additional auditing for I-9 forms, a reporting requirement for B-1 usage, an agreement to continue to use only detailed invitation letters, and the continued use of corporate disciplinary processes for employees that violate the immigration laws of the United States.

"We will not tolerate actions that mislead the United States and circumvent lawful immigration processes, whether undertaken by a single individual or one of the largest corporations in the world," said U.S. Attorney Bales. "The H-1B and B-1 visa programs are designed and intended to protect the American worker; and we will vigorously enforce the requirements of those programs."

David M. Marwell, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Dallas, concurred: "This settlement against Infosys is the largest immigration fine on record. The investigation indicated that Infosys manipulated the visa process and circumvented the requirements, limitations, and governmental oversight of the visa programs. The investigation also showed that more than 80 percent of Infosys’s I-9 forms for 2010 and 2011 contained substantive violations.

Ultimately, these actions by Infosys cost American jobs and simultaneously financially hurt companies that sought to follow the laws of this nation. Companies that misuse the visa process can expect to be scrutinized and held accountable."

The investigation and settlement also earned the praise of George M. Nutwell III, special agent-in-charge of the Houston Field Office of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service said that: "The Infosys investigation illustrates the unique role that DSS plays in investigating complex visa fraud cases that reach far beyond U.S. borders. DSS collaborates with our law enforcement partners and is committed to investigating and bringing to justice those who violate the law."

This case was investigated and the settlement negotiated by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shamoil T. Shipchandler, Alan R. Jackson, and J. Kevin McClendon, and attorneys from ICE’s Office of Principal Legal Advisor.


U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security.

ICE is a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities. For more information, visit www.ICE.gov. To report suspicious activity, call 1-866-347-2423 or complete our tip form.

http://www.ice.gov/news/releases/1310/131030plano.htm

Originally Posted by ALIPAC

Glad to see this fine, but what really needs to happen is InfoSys needs to be forced to fire all their illegal hires and deprived of the ability to import new workers into America because of this.

W

Yep!

Also, fines are just another cost of doing business. But nobody wants to go to jail. If we're serious about sending a message to corporations re displacing Americans with illegals, we need to lock up a few CEO's.

Neither fines nor an appeal to patriotism or the rule of law will have any effect. As someone remarked decades ago, the business of business is busines.

But nobody wants to go to jail.
******************************************
Americans first in this magnificent country

American jobs for American workers

Fair trade, not free trade

This fine is an utter joke. Infosys has been doing this for years and with thousands of foreign workers. They can get a foreign worker in these tech jobs for $25-30k a year and not have to deal with healthcare benefits while if an American the same job will pay $20k+ more a year with benefits and such. In just 1 year they make triple in savings then the fine costs and they have been doing this for years.

Further every illegal hire should be terminated and sent back home. Infosys should be liable to lawsuits and class action lawsuits from Americans who applied for positions in the tech field and didn't get a job with them even if they didn't apply at Infosys directly. Infosys should also face a 20 year ban on importing ANY worker through any subsidiary or parent company and further be banned from contracting to any company that hires any foreign workers. Now that would put a major sting in it.

They like to collect the fines, but they don't deport the offenders. It is all about revenue.

Originally Posted by Newmexican

They like to collect the fines, but they don't deport the offenders. It is all about revenue.

Fines make headlines, but they don't actually interfere with corporate strategy. The fines are just another business expense. As ReformUSA posted, Infosys still comes out ahead.
*******************************************
Americans first in this magnificent country

American jobs for American workers

Fair trade, not free trade

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

US will reportedly hit Infosys with record fine for immigration violations

Published October 29, 2013 FoxNews.com

A man walks past a billboard of Infosys Technologies Ltd's office inBangalore, capital of the southern state of Karnataka, October 10,2003. Infosys reported on Friday its quarterly earnings rose 33 percenton the global boom in outsourcing and raised its profit forecast.REUTERS/Jagadeesh NVKK/FA



http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013...on-violations/

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