Infosys says more local hiring in US may not hurt margins, but skill shortage must be overcome

Infosys Ltd MD and CEO Vishal Sikka on Thursday said the increase in local hiring in the US may not necessarily hurt margins, following his assertion that the company is hiring more people in the US to engage better with clients and foster innovation on the ground.

“It is incorrect to assume that local hiring means change in margins,” Sikka said in an interview to ET Now, adding that at times people on visa from elsewhere may cost higher than local people on site.

However, Infosys is seeing shortage of skilled people in the US in some new service areas, but expects to overcome it, Sikka told ET Now on the sidelines of the ongoing World Economic Forum in Davos.

Earlier this month, Infosys had said the company is not “overly concerned” about potential restrictions on sending its employees to the United States for client work, as it is anyway increasingly hiring more local people.

Indian information technology companies such as Infosys use H1B visas to send employees to the US to work with the clients on their projects. However, of late, it has created resentment among the US residents, who face tougher competition for jobs.

Donald Trump, who was surprisingly elected in November the next US President, had curbing immigration and job creation for US citizens as his major poll promises, and has reiterated his views on this several times.

Infosys Technologies Limited