Infosys expands presence in Mexico, Canada as H-1B visa issue rages on in US

Infosys is expanding its presence in Mexico and Canada to offer same time-zone services to clients in the US as the Trump administration continues to clamp down on H-1B visa rules which IT companies depend on.

The Trump administration published a new set of rules this month that has led to a hike in wages for H-1B visa holders and more stringent inspection and monitoring of employers. However, companies such as Infosys, TCS and Wipro have been able to lower their dependence on H-1B visas over the years through increased localisation.

"The new wage increase will impact only new labour conditions applications (LCAs) for H-1B visas, not existing ones," Infosys COO Pravin Rao said.

"We have recruited 13,000 people in the US since 2017 and have 63 percent localisation there," he said.

"In addition, we have expanded our presence in Mexico and Canada to offer same time-zone services to clients," he added.

Rao noted that the company has been hiring both laterally as well as from colleges in the US and training employees. Infosys hired a total of 5,500 people in the September quarter, of which 2,500 were lateral and the rest were freshers.

"We are looking at 16,000 freshers joining us this year and 15,000 hires next year," Rao said. Infosys also saw a big drop in voluntary attrition to 7.8 percent in the second quarter of the fiscal, from 11.7 percent in the previous quarter and 18.3 percent in the same quarter last year.

The company has also announced 100 percent variable pay and special incentive for employees and will be rolling out salary hikes and promotions across all levels from January 1.

"Our focus has been on employee management, their physical and emotional wellness, health and safety," Rao said. "We will keep attrition in the narrow band going forward," he added.