Jack Palmer returns to haunt Infy

Jack Palmer, the former Infosys employee who had triggered a probe by US authorities into the company’s visa practices three years ago, has filed a fresh complaint against the Bangalore-headquartered information technology (IT) services company and some of its executives, alleging he was wrongfully terminated.

In a complaint filed with the US Department of Labor in May, Palmer said Infosys and eight of its senior executives denied him work, bonuses and promotions and later terminated him, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Tuesday.

Palmer had earlier sued Infosys in an Alabama state court accusing the company of harassment and breach of contract after he raised concerns about possible visa violations by the firm. That case was dismissed by the US court. US district court Judge Myron H Thomson had noted while dismissing the case that there was “no basis to support any of the charges filed by Palmer”.

An Infosys spokesperson said: “Palmer’s current complaint is a repetition of the issues tried and dismissed by a federal court in 2012. Palmer resigned in November 2013 and released the company from the claims he has alleged in the complaint. We believe this is without merit and we expect to prevail.”

Last year, Infosys had paid $34 million for civil settlement of a US visa misuse case. Despite the hefty payment, the company was asked by the US authorities to retain an independent third-party auditor at its expense to review its visa compliance until 2015.

As part of the settlement, the independent auditor would be responsible for annually reviewing and reporting on Infosys’ compliance with Form I-9, a type of employee documentation. These reports would be given to the US attorney, Infosys had said in its annual report for 2013-14.

In his fresh complaint, Palmer, who left Infosys last year, had sought damages to compensate for the losses he incurred in the past and might incur in the future. He also sought damages to compensate for the costs he had incurred, WSJ reported. The complaint, however, does not mention the amount of money he wishes to be compensated with.