Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) said on Friday that it does not expect the US action on the green card programme to affect its workforce strategy or customer work. On Thursday, the US suspended eight IT firms from the programme. They include TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Cognizant and Microsoft. The US said the practice has shut Americans out of the job market.
TCS said its PERM applications were in single digits in the last two years. It said it will follow any directive from the US Department of Labour. It said its US strategy is built on hiring local talent through campus recruitment. It has 31 offices and delivery centres in the country. As announced earlier, TCS plans to hire 15,000 more people in the US over the next five years.
Nasscom said immigration and skilled talent mobility are “two distinct issues”. It said the decision affects a specific immigration pathway. It said it has always wanted the two issues kept apart.
The action comes as Indian IT firms already face tighter scrutiny of work visas and higher costs for H-1B applicants. The US is the biggest market for the USD 300-billion Indian IT industry.
SOURCE: THE TRIBUNE
