Former employees claim Tata Consultancy Services unfairly laid them off while retaining their Indian colleagues
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has opened an investigation into allegations by dozens of American workers that Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India’s largest IT outsourcing company, has discriminated against them based on race, age, and national origin, Bloomberg has reported.
A group of former employees, mostly professionals from non-South Asian ethnic backgrounds over 40 years old, claim that TCS unfairly targeted them for layoffs while retaining their Indian colleagues, including some on H-1B skilled worker visas, the report said on Thursday. The former employees began filing complaints against TCS in late 2023, it added.
“Allegations that TCS engages in unlawful discrimination are meritless and misleading,” a TCS spokesperson was quoted as saying. “TCS has a strong track record of being an equal opportunity employer in the US, embracing the highest levels of integrity and values in our operations.”
The EEOC did not comment on the investigations due to federal law, under which complaints are kept confidential, Bloomberg noted. However, the news agency was able to review over two dozen of them.
The investigation into the complaints started during the administration of former President Joe Biden and continues under President Donald Trump.
Similarly, three former TCS workers in the UK made claims of discrimination based on age and nationality during a 2023 redundancy program, as reported by The Guardian. TCS denied the allegations in a response submitted to the tribunal.
In 2020, the EEOC investigated another Indian company, Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp, and found discrimination against non-Indian workers in its US operations. A federal jury ruled in 2024 that Cognizant intentionally discriminated against over 2,000 non-Indian employees from 2013 to 2022.
Cognizant has denied the allegations and maintains that it provides equal opportunity. The company has appealed the verdict.
