$22 billion visa fraud? US Labour Dept’s explosive claim puts Infosys, TCS, Wipro in the crosshairs

The US Department of Labor has uncovered what it described as $22 billion in visa fraud and suspended several major technology companies from the permanent labor certification programme, alleging that the system had been exploited to bring foreign workers into the US at the expense of American workers.

Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling made the claim during a press briefing on Thursday, saying the department's investigation had exposed what he called "systemic fraud" involving foreign labour and employers.

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$22 billion visa fraud uncovered

"Because of this task force, the Department of Labor has uncovered 22 billion dollars in visa fraud, but today we are protecting something far more valuable than any dollar amount. We are protecting the American worker," Sonderling said.

He alleged that universities and companies had effectively become "visa mints", promoting foreign workers who had "lied about their qualifications" to secure jobs.

"It begins with universities and companies that have turned into visa mints, promoting foreign workers that have lied about their qualifications to take jobs from our beloved American workers," he said.

Sonderling said employers had enabled the pipeline by prioritising foreign labour, adding that the issue extended beyond the initial hiring because jobs could eventually provide a route for workers and their families to remain permanently in the US and seek citizenship.

"And who pays for it all? The American worker," he said.

Also read: Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL among 8 IT firms suspended from US green card programme

US suspends major tech firms from green-card programme

The Labor Department said it was suspending several major IT outsourcing companies from the permanent labor certification programme, including Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini. Sonderling also said Microsoft and Adobe were being suspended because of active federal investigations.

"I am hereby suspending from the permanent labor certification program some of the largest IT outsourcing firms in the world: Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL, and Capgemini," Sonderling said.

"And also due to active federal investigations, the Department of Labor is suspending Microsoft and Adobe from the program."

The department will not accept new or process pending permanent labor certification applications involving the companies, he said.

Sonderling claimed that since 2009, the companies named had collectively requested nearly 3 million foreign workers, received more than 230,000 H-1B visa approvals and secured more than 100,000 permanent labor certifications.

"That's hundreds of thousands of jobs that were taken from American workers," he said.

The action, Sonderling said, was intended as the first step towards curbing what the administration described as fraud and abuse in US foreign-worker programmes.

"Our historic action is the first critical step to stop the fraud and the abuse and ensure that these programs never come at the expense of the American worker," he said.