Imagine heading into a meeting expecting a raise or promotion. Instead, you’re told you’ll be laid off in 90 days. To add salt to the wound, your final task at the company is to train your replacement — a foreign laborer willing to work for less money.

Up to 5,000 Verizon employees could soon face that harsh reality. In late September, the telecom giant announced it would outsource many information technology jobs to Infosys, an Indian offshoring company. Infosys relies heavily on imported “H-1B” visa workers who come to the United States, train under soon-to-be-laid-off Americans, and then transfer that job knowledge to their coworkers back in India.