US DOL says Cigniti violated H-1B guidelines
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H-1B guidelines: The US Department of Labor has recovered $64,244 from IT services firm Cigniti NSE – 1.81 % Technologies for illegally ‘benching’ an H-1B worker in the US, in violation of the visa program.
In a statement, the DoL said Cigniti Technologies in Irving recruited a system analyst under the H-1B visa program, then, neglected to utilize and pay the worker the necessary prevailing wage for non-productive time—an illegal practice known as ‘benching’.
Also, the investigation by the division’s New Orleans District Office led to the recovery of $64,244 in wages owed to the employee.
DOL says Cigniti violated H-1B guidelines
“The department’s Wage and Hour Division determined Cigniti Technologies Inc benched the employee illegally for more than a 15 month period and failed to pay the full, pro-rated amount of the worker’s prevailing wage for periods of non-productive work. By doing so, the employer violated the requirements of the federal H-1B visa program,” it said.
“Employers who hire workers under the H-1B visa program should conform comply with all legal requirements, which are obviously detailed in the program’s application process,” said Wage and Hour District chief Troy Mouton in New Orleans.
In a statement, Cigniti said it had arrived at an amicable settlement with the said employee.
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“Cigniti follows the highest corporate governance and follows robust HR practices in India and across global subsidiaries. The said employee left Cigniti with an amicable settlement over a half year ago and the case is closed,” the company said in the statement.
A subsidiary of Cigniti Technologies Ltd in India, Cigniti Technologies Inc gives staffing services and information technology support, including software development, programming investigation, and engineering services. The organization employs US and H-1B workers in the US.
