Infosys Surveys WFH Employees on Electricity Use to Track Emissions

Months after Infosys carried out multiple rounds of layoffs and CEO Narayana Murthy sparked debate by urging young Indians to work 70 hours a week, the IT major has introduced a new initiative focused on its remote workforce. As hybrid work becomes a permanent operating model, Infosys is now tracking how much electricity employees consume while working from home.

The initiative, according to reports, is aimed at improving the accuracy of the company’s environmental impact calculations. With a large share of employees no longer working exclusively from office campuses, Infosys says emissions linked to home-based work can no longer be ignored in sustainability reporting.

Infosys begins tracking electricity use of WFH employees

Survey linked to hybrid work policy

According to a report, Infosys has launched an internal exercise asking employees to track electricity usage when they work from home. The initiative applies to staff operating under the company’s hybrid work framework.

Under this policy, employees are required to work from office premises for at least 10 days a month, while the remaining working days can be spent remotely. As a result, a significant portion of Infosys’ workforce now consumes electricity outside company-controlled facilities.

Why Infosys says this data matters

Infosys believes that understanding power usage during work-from-home hours is critical to estimating its total emissions footprint more accurately. Electricity consumption at home, when used for official work, is now being treated as part of the company’s broader operational impact.

Internal communication explains the reasoning

CFO outlines environmental logic

Infosys reportedly informed employees about the initiative through an internal email. In the message, CFO Jayesh Sanghrajka explained why electricity usage at home is being factored into the company’s sustainability framework.

“With hybrid work becoming an integral part of our operations, the environmental impact of our work increasingly extends beyond our campuses and into our homes. Electricity consumed while working from home also contributes towards Infosys’ greenhouse gas emission footprint,” he said.

He further added, “As we seek to enhance and update our reporting methodology, obtaining accurate data on current work-from-home energy usage is essential to our ongoing efforts.”

Focus on emissions reporting, not surveillance

Infosys has positioned the initiative as an accounting and reporting exercise, rather than a monitoring tool. The company has emphasised that the data will be used to improve emissions measurement and sustainability disclosures.

What Infosys is asking employees in the survey

Details sought from staff

The survey reportedly asks employees to provide information on:

• Household electricity usage during official work hours

• Types of devices used for work, such as laptops, monitors, routers and networking equipment

• Suggestions on how energy efficiency can be improved while working remotely

How the data will be used

Infosys has said the information collected will support:

• Internal environmental assessments

• Regulatory compliance requirements

• Transparent sustainability reporting to investors and other stakeholders

Employees have been encouraged to participate, with the company describing the process as simple and limited in scope.

Why Infosys is collecting electricity consumption data

Part of a long-term sustainability strategy

The move is part of Infosys’ sustainability programme, which has been in place for over 15 years. Over time, the company has expanded its focus from tracking emissions at office campuses to accounting for indirect emissions arising from broader business operations.

With remote and hybrid work now entrenched across the IT industry, companies like Infosys are increasingly expected to account for emissions beyond traditional office boundaries.

Hybrid work remains the norm

Infosys continues to follow its post-pandemic hybrid model. Employees must attend office for a minimum of 10 days each month, with attendance tracked through automated systems. Any additional work-from-home days require prior approval from managers.

This structure means that a large proportion of work-related energy consumption now occurs in employees’ homes, prompting the need for updated emissions tracking methods.

Broader context: Work culture and sustainability debate

Work hours and corporate responsibility

The initiative comes against the backdrop of intense public discussion around work culture in India’s IT sector, particularly after Narayana Murthy’s remarks advocating longer working hours. While unrelated in intent, the timing has linked the electricity-tracking exercise to broader conversations around employee expectations, corporate responsibility and transparency.

ESG reporting under sharper scrutiny

Globally, technology firms face increasing pressure from regulators and investors to improve the accuracy of ESG (environmental, social and governance) disclosures. Tracking remote work emissions reflects a growing shift toward more granular and comprehensive sustainability reporting.

Conclusion

Infosys’ decision to track electricity consumption of work-from-home employees highlights how hybrid work is reshaping corporate sustainability accounting. By extending emissions measurement beyond office campuses, the company is aligning its reporting methods with the realities of modern work models. While the initiative has sparked discussion due to its timing and broader work culture debates, Infosys maintains that the exercise is focused purely on environmental impact assessment and regulatory transparency. As hybrid work becomes a long-term norm across the IT sector, similar approaches may soon be adopted by other large employers seeking more accurate emissions data.