Trump's H-1B visa ban: 'Employees in US anxious'

BENGALURU: TCS global HR head Milind Lakkad described Donald Trump’s decision to suspend H-1B and L-1 work visas as unfortunate and unfair. “There will be a business impact in the short-term. With customers adopting a location independent model of secure borderless workspaces (SBW), we will be able to manage the situation in the short term. In the longer term, we anticipate challenges from a sourcing perspective,” Lakkad said.
Lakkad also said changes to the Optional Practical Training (OPT) regulation will have implications not only on TCS but the future of tech in the US.OPT is temporary employment that is directly related to an F-1 visa student's major area of study.
“It’s important for all stakeholders to understand that the proclamation is causing uncertainty and anxiety to our associates. Remember, these associates help run major banks, retailers, telcos, and every day, they are contributing to the US economy. You should understand and empathise with our people,” he said.
COO NG Subramaniam said the company’s 118 development centres and campuses are open. It has created a safe operating zone where 100-120 people will be operating, and a massive tech play is on to ensure employee safety..
TCS’s headcount dropped 4,788 to 4.4 lakh employees, compared to the preceding quarter. The company has said it won’t lay off employees, that it would honour all the 40,000 job offers it has made to campus recruits, but won't be giving wage hikes.
“Our sustained focus on organic talent development helped us fill over 4,500 open positions this quarter with internal candidates,” Lakkad said.