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French labour authorities have fined Infosys approximately Rs 2 crore after its system for recording employees' working hours was found to be non-compliant with local legal requirements.
The Bengaluru-headquartered IT services company said it had received communication from DRIEETS Ile-de-France, the regional labour, employment and social solidarity authority in France, regarding the collection of a penalty of EUR 175,000 on July 24, 2026.
According to the regulator's findings, Infosys' system for recording working time did not fully comply with French labour rules. The authority said the concerns related to the system's reliability, its ability to maintain auditable records, and its monitoring capabilities for certain categories of employees.
French labour laws require employers to maintain reliable and auditable records of employee working hours, including adherence to the statutory 35-hour workweek, overtime, and mandatory rest periods.
The filing did not specify which categories of Infosys employees were affected by the findings. It also did not indicate whether the company had been directed to make specific changes to its time-recording system.
The company’s co-founder Narayana Murthy was sharply criticised in 2023 for suggesting that young people work 70 hours a week. That would amount to over 11 hours per day for a six-day work week. Labour laws generally cap regular working hours to eight per day, with protections in place for overtime duty.
The penalty comes at a time when Infosys has been tightening its return-to-office requirements in India. The company had earlier asked employees at job level 7 and above to work from the office four days a week. In March, the policy was reportedly extended to employees in the 6A band across some business units, bringing more senior staff under the stricter attendance requirement.
According to an internal email reported by The Economic Times, employees were informed that those at job level 6 and above were required to be in the office four days a week, with the communication noting that some staff had not completed the required 10 days of office attendance each month.
Despite the stricter attendance expectations, Infosys has continued to describe its workplace model as hybrid, saying the arrangement is intended to promote collaboration, innovation and effective delivery of work.