Bay Area Tech Company Busted For Paying Indian Workers $1.21/Hour

[unokitty]

According to Susana Blanco, district director of the U.S. Labor Department's wage and hour division in San Francisco, the Department got an anonymous tip that Electronics for Imaging had brought eight employees to Fremont from Bangalore, India to set up the company's computer network and systems from September 8, 2013 through December 21, 2013, as part of the company's move from Foster City to Fremont.

Though the workers were working in the US, they were paid roughly $1.21 per hour, in rupees, for 122 hour work weeks, without any regard for California minimum wage or overtime laws.

EFI, which, according to the Associated Press, "earned $109 million last year and awarded CEO Guy Gecht with a pay package valued at nearly $6 million, including more than $1.2 million in salary and bonuses," claimed ignorance of federal laws requiring those working on US soil to be paid following US regulations...

Following the Department's investigation, EFI was ordered to pay the eight workers more than $40,000 in back wages, as well as a fine of $3,520.

Feds fined Electronics for Imaging $3,520. If my calculator is correct that represents .058% of the CEO's annual compensation.

Question One
Anyone think that a fine of .058% of the CEO's annual compensation represents effective deterrence?

Questions Two and Three
Do you think that this is just more evidence that a career in IT isn't what it used to be...

Or, do you think that something else is in play here?

Uno

 

[rudeguy]

If Indians are willing to work 120 hours a week for $1.20/hour, it explains why its so hard to get american tech support.

 

[nixium]

Feds fined Electronics for Imaging $3,520. If my calculator is correct that represents .058% of the CEO's annual compensation.

Question One
Anyone think that a fine of .058% of the CEO's annual compensation represents effective deterrence?

Questions Two and Three
Do you think that this is just more evidence that a career in IT isn't what it used to be...

Or, do you think that something else is in play here?

Uno

It means that USCIS, DOL and other entities that are supposed to monitor this are clueless until someone files a complaint. Also that corporations have freely purchased the government and can do what they want with minimal penalty. Immigration laws are not properly enforced, foreign workers are not informed of their rights, and legally can't switch jobs easily. This, coupled with the desperation of the worker distorts a proper labor market where employers and employees enter a contract to mutual benefit.

And because much of the right wing is brainwashed into using free market dogma to support powerful corporations, rather than small businesses, individual enterprise, and pull-yourself-by-the boots initiative, such situations will only continue, and become much worse as time progresses.

 

[postmortemIA]

something else. the salaries of capable indian IT workers have been rising significantly over the last few years. And they are surely not single percentages of US salaries, rather they are double digit percentages...

 

[CheeseNizzle]

This is horrible. That fine is also a joke.

 

[michal1980]

LOL. just beautiful. But these companies need nore h1b visa's. and we are told those programs are very monitored, and everyone is paid at least as good as an American worker.

Now we know its all a lie, why even bother with the visa if you can get away with 1.22 wages. and if you get caught, somewhere close to min wage, with a slap on the wrist fine.

Big biz will take those odds any day.

--------
Puts on liberal hat
---------

These are hard working india's, lazy ass americans wont do this kind of work, we need these people here to do this work. Companies are starving for labor.

 

[Zaap]

Add it to the ever-growing list of "jobs Americans won't do": Computer Networking.

Anyone opposed to this is of course just a racist xenophobe.

 

[shortylickens]

Sure as shit, the bastion of liberal america is completely full of shit.

 

[OutHouse]

Wow, I hope those workers fucked it all up.

 

[halik]

Add it to the ever-growing list of "jobs Americans won't do": Computer Networking.

Anyone opposed to this is of course just a racist xenophobe.

Jobs americans won't do for 1.20 / hr

 

[OverVolt]

Wow last I heard was 89cents must be be upward pressure on IT wages in the bay area.

 

[her209]

That fine. What a fucking joke.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Feds fined Electronics for Imaging $3,520. If my calculator is correct that represents .058% of the CEO's annual compensation.

Question One
Anyone think that a fine of .058% of the CEO's annual compensation represents effective deterrence?

No, the fine should've been several times larger IMO.

Questions Two and Three
Do you think that this is just more evidence that a career in IT isn't what it used to be...

If I knew what I know now, I would not have gone into IT. I would've taken a semester off from grad school, relaxed, and then gone back and finished my MSEE and stayed in EE.

IT started circling the shitter for a few different reasons IMO:

1. In the late 90s, everyone and his/her brother got certs and got jobs with no experience, causing businesses to distrust certifications. Certifications have never been an indication of skill; experience should ALWAYS come first.
2. The emphasis in IT at many companies is on "customer service" rather than serving the business. They aren't mutually exclusive necessarily but placing great customer service (serving COWORKERS, ie "internal customers") above all else is foolish. The IT department should be a partner to other departments, not viewed as subservient. The help desk should be focused on providing good customer service; echelons above the help desk should be empowered to say "NO" to Joe Blow end user if he makes ridiculous requests.
3. Businesses view IT as a cost center and treat it accordingly. I strongly disagree with this notion and view it as antiquated, group MBA think. Rather than thinking of IT as a cost center, businesses should realize all of the money a good IT group can make for the company through automation, reporting, etc.

I've worked for larger companies my entire career but let me tell you, going back to a smaller company and being the one-stop shop is starting to look more and more appealing.

Or, do you think that something else is in play here?

Uno

I interviewed for a consulting company last year and the owner was a guy from India. When I walked in, I could immediately tell it was a sweat shop (they interviewed me on a Saturday morning and a ton of employees were there working) and it made me wonder how many of the foreign workers he was taking advantage of as many looked exhausted and stressed. I don't think anything else is at play here other than people wanting to spend as little as possible to get something they need without regard to the people doing the work.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

LOL. just beautiful. But these companies need nore h1b visa's. and we are told those programs are very monitored, and everyone is paid at least as good as an American worker.

Yep, the "need" for h1b visas translates to "need workers who will work for scraps" in normal-people speak.

As a shareholder, I think we should consider hiring h1b visas for CxO level positions and return the salary savings to shareholders every year. Of course, that will NEVER happen.

 

[michal1980]

Yep, the "need" for h1b visas translates to "need workers who will work for scraps" in normal-people speak.

As a shareholder, I think we should consider hiring h1b visas for CxO level positions and return the salary savings to shareholders every year. Of course, that will NEVER happen.

+1

The wages for CxO must be so high because theres a lack of qualified americans to do the job, so its about time we fix that problem.

When wages of regular people start spiking then maybe we can open up more h1b visas.

 

[piasabird]

Fine the company $100,000 for every worker and give the worker's their portion and the lawyers their portion. Seize all their assets and throw them in jail.

 

[smackababy]

I just love their excuse. "Oh, we didn't think it was against the law to pay workers from India who are in the US the legal wage."

 

[Zorba]

Feds fined Electronics for Imaging $3,520. If my calculator is correct that represents .058% of the CEO's annual compensation.

Question One
Anyone think that a fine of .058% of the CEO's annual compensation represents effective deterrence?

Questions Two and Three
Do you think that this is just more evidence that a career in IT isn't what it used to be...

Or, do you think that something else is in play here?

Uno

Fine is BS, they should have to pay the employes back wages at the prevailing wage for that job, since that is the idea of H1Bs.

The fine should be at least double what they "saved."

But labor fines and even most environmental fines are BS and aren't a deteriorate at all. I am used to the airline industry, screw something up (even something that is tiny and doesn't matter), the fine is $25,000 per flight. Considering a 737 typically does 5 flights a day, you are looking at huge fines very quickly. Then you have FAA inspectors on your planes every single day, so they do actually catch stuff.

 

[trenchfoot]

I look at this situation as more of a class warfare issue rather than a political one, although I can agree with the notion that the line between the two can be blurred beyond recognition if ones agenda sees fit to do so.

 

[sm625]

From now on they'll be setting the networks up inside of shipping containers off the Indian coast. Once set up, the containers will be shipped to america.

 

[moonbogg]

Should be executed.

 

[nixium]

This is likely not a H1B visa issue. The article doesn't make it clear, but if they came from a branch in India, then they would be on an L1 visa (intra-company transfer). H1B has minimum protections; employers have to commit to paying at least the prevailing wage for the position in the area, so their whole "oops we didn't realize" would be even more hollow than it is. L1 visas have no wage protection.

 

[Belegost]

This is likely not a H1B visa issue. The article doesn't make it clear, but if they came from a branch in India, then they would be on an L1 visa (intra-company transfer). H1B has minimum protections; employers have to commit to paying at least the prevailing wage for the position in the area, so their whole "oops we didn't realize" would be even more hollow than it is. L1 visas have no wage protection.

This, reading through the rather brief article I saw no reason to believe that these workers were here on H1B, they were only here for a few months, no point in fighting for H1B slots to have them here that short.

All the H1B workers I work(have worked) with are on US scale salaries. The issue is more to do with work hours, where H1B workers are unlikely to push back against unreasonably long work weeks (80+ hours) effectively giving the company the work of 2 people for the salary of 1.

 

[smackababy]

This, reading through the rather brief article I saw no reason to believe that these workers were here on H1B, they were only here for a few months, no point in fighting for H1B slots to have them here that short.

All the H1B workers I work(have worked) with are on US scale salaries. The issue is more to do with work hours, where H1B workers are unlikely to push back against unreasonably long work weeks (80+ hours) effectively giving the company the work of 2 people for the salary of 1.

I think the laws for wages in the US don't care about the type of visa though. No worked in the US is legally allowed to work for less than the federal minimum wage. So, continuing to pay them their extremely low Indian wage is illegal while they are working in the US. There entire argument was "well, we didn't know that".

 

[Thebobo]

Sure as shit, the bastion of liberal america is completely full of shit.