Narayan AmmachchiUS-based BPO provider Conduent has confirmed that it had not initiated any process to end the work-from-home arrangement for its staff in Jamaica, dismissing allegations that it was doing so in order to avoid tax payment.
Lynda Langford, Conduent’s senior director and country lead, wrote to the Jamaica Observer to complain about an earlier article that cited an unnamed source to allege that Conduent could be ending its remote-working arrangement in order to qualify for tax exemptions under the country’s Special Economic Zones (SEZ) law.
The earlier article, ‘Conduent considers the end of work-from-home’, contained “several misleading or erroneous statements” which were “serious, untrue and damaging”, said Langford.
Companies operating in the SEZ cannot claim tax exemptions if their employees are not physically present in their workstations.
However, the government waived the restrictions following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020.
“The waiver …. facilitates remote working until June 30, 2022,” according to a letter from Conduent published by the news daily.
In its letter, the BPO provider made it clear about the remote-working arrangement: “There has been no change to our policy, nor are we contemplating a change at this time.”
Conduent went on to say that it has not made vaccination mandatory for its all employees, yet it would “strongly encourage vaccination if their health situation allows for it”.
Conduent, formerly the business services division of US technology giant Xerox, employs more than 4,000 people in Jamaica.
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