Infosys former HR claims IT company asked her not to hire people with Indian origin, mothers 

A former Vice President of HR at Infosys has filed a lawsuit against the Indian IT firm and some of the senior US executives are also alleging illegal and discriminatory hiring practices.

Jill Prejean, a former vice president of talent acquisition at Infosys, testified in US court that Infosys asked her to avoid hiring employees of people having Indian origin, women with children, and people aged above 50. This is for the second time that Infosys is facing allegations of discriminatory hiring practices in the United States.

Following the complaint, Infosys and its executives filed a plea in US court for the dismissal of Prejean's complaint. They requested the dismissal on the grounds that the former VP did not highlight specific comments as proof and there was a lack of jurisdiction, among other reasons.

The US District Court for the Southern District of New York rejected Infosys' plea to dismiss Prejean's complaint, which alleged hostile working conditions and retaliatory termination. The defendants in Prejean's complaint include Infosys, Dan Albright and Jerry Kurtz, two former business partners, and Mark Livingston, a former senior vice president and director of consulting.

Prejean said that she was 59 years old when she was hired by Infosys in 2018. She was working as a specialist in recruiting executives at the vice president and partner levels. During her employment, "she was shocked to find a rampant culture of illegal discriminatory animus among the partner level executives based on age, gender, and caregiver status," stated a report by ET.

According to Prejean's complaint, she "tried to change this culture within the first two months of her employment" but faced "resistance from Infosys partners - Jerry Kurtz and Dan Albright - who became hostile in the face of her objections and tried to circumvent her authority to evade compliance with the law."

Prejean also said she routinely received requests from Infosys partners or executives that the company preferred not to hire more consultants of Indian origin, preferred women without children at home, and favoured individuals not yet in their fifties. She further mentioned in her complaint that the biases prevailing in Infosys were violating New York City Human Rights and Laws and even took away her job.

It is to be noted that this is not the first time that Infosys has been called out for following discriminatory practices when hiring. In 2013, an American job applicant Brenda Koehler alleged that Infosys rejected her because of her nationality. The complaint alleged that the Infosys workforce in the US prefers individuals of South Asian descent.