More H-1B visas on the way?

Technology companies are on their way to securing a larger pool of foreign workers from which to hire.

A provision in a budget measure approved by a late 52 to 47 vote in the U.S. Senate on Thursday would bump up the number of guest-worker visas, known as H-1Bs, from 65,000 to 95,000 for next year.

The proposal would also elevate H-1B application fees for U.S. employers by $500, the proceeds of which are intended to offset other government spending and deter sizable increases in the federal budget deficit.

The measure won't take effect unless it is also approved by the U.S. House of Representatives.

The H-1B program's intent is to keep U.S. companies globally competitive by allowing them to fill voids with skilled professionals from abroad. Under the program, which began in 1990, foreigners with at least a bachelor's degree in their area of specialty can remain employed in the United States for up to six years.

American Electronics Association President William Archey was quick to applaud the move, saying in a statement that it "sends a strong message to the House of Representatives that the Senate understands the importance of these H1-B visas and green cards to the high-tech industry."

The high-tech industry has long been supportive of elevating the government's cap on these visas, which peaked at 195,000 from 2001 to 2003.

Other groups, including the U.S. division of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, have argued that the system is used not to bring in the best and the brightest foreign talent, but to some extent, the cheapest. IEEE-USA claims some companies use the system to offer lower wages than they would to the workers' American counterparts.

[Mabytemi]

How can the Senate betray us like this?

Good jobs were JUST becoming available for the first time in five years and then our Senate sells us out for corporate campaign contributions.

I know of at least two companies which have NO U.S. born employees, just hoards of H1B people they work like slaves.

And do not get it wrong, this is slavery we are talking about here, the visa is owned by the company not the employee so if they try to get a better job they get deported.

[FreddieT]

Deport them?

Employers have no power to deport H-1B workers. All they can do is fire them. Those who've been fired can either choose to find another company to sponsor them within the next 10 days or go back to their country.

It is the risk that all the H-1B employees are aware of.

[Stating]

$$$$

Is the answer.

[JoeF2]

What are you smoking?

First of, people on H1 have the same rights as all other employees.
There is no slavery.
Second, people on H1 can transfer to other companies just fine.
Third, it would help if you actually learned about this topic before posting complete and utter crap.

[GDS1230]

Please educate yourself before having an "opinion"

I think that more H-1B visas is a good thing. I don't really believe that the U.S. graduates enough students in science, math or technology, including IT, to fill the jobs available. I worked in two colleges and the science & math departments were always the smallest and I have read lots of stats on U.S. education results, etc. that show the same problem. Some people say there are lots of such science/tech graduates, but I do not see them. I certainly do not encounter them unemployed! Also, Americans seem to forget that the IMMIGRATION SYSTEM ITSELF employs tens of thousands of Americans! People like me who work for a corporation or law firm and file immigration petitions for foreign workers, the thousands of foreign students who pay $40,000/year for a private American education help to prop up our elite education system and its employees, and the huge bureacracy of Federal workers that work for the 3 branches of the Department of Homeland Security devoted to immigration and the State Department. These people depend on a robust immigration system in the U.S. to keep THEIR jobs! (which are usually well paid and with good benefits).

Unfortunately, any increase in legal immigration channels is seen as threatening by some Americans who conflate the legal immigration system with our illegal problem. The fact is, these types of immigration are on opposite ends of the charts. Anyone coming here through legal means has to show high levels of qualifications and rigurously keep to the law to be able to stay, they come here and get well-paying jobs and are more educated than the American population as a whole (obviously since ALL H-1B workers MUST have a minimum of a Bachelor's degree...only 27.2% of Americans possess higher education, and this is a recent all-time record). Illegal immigrants (the vast majority of whom are from Mexico and Central America, NOT India or China and certainly not Europe or Africa) are uneducated, sometimes illiterate low-wage workers that don't speak English and do the most menial labor the market offers. The two types of "immigration" have nothing to do with each other.

While I can say from experience that there have been a few companies that sometimes hire all H-1B workers, first of all these are never major companies, they are usually small start-up companies established by foreigners (usually Green Card holders orTreaty Investors, the highest forms of visa holders in the U.S. and closest to U.S. citizenship) who want to hire their compatriots. And second, if your entire staff or close to it is H-1B workers you must disclose that and there are fines and steps you have to take.

Secondly, hiring a person with a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology from India, for example, and putting him to work in Austin, Texas at Dell or at IBM in New York is hardly what I would call "slavery". For the company I do immigration for, all the workers make no LESS than $60,000/year in the United States, on top of their salaries back in India. $60k is 20 times the average wage in India, and it is not a cheap wage here either. Of course, companies do what they can to pay people at the most competitive wages, but before you even file an H-1B you must file a form called a Labor Condition Application in which you disclose a person's worksite and their salary before you file the petition. The pay MUST be no lower than what a government-supported salary survey says is the prevailing wage of a region for that type of employment, so it is very rare indeed to have an H-1B worker making less than an American. In fact, sometimes it is hard to find a reputable salary survey that shows the real wages of an area, often they tend to skew towards higher wages. Trust me, I have American friends educated at American schools who work much longer than many H-1B people I know and earn much less than the IT average, even though they have highly specialized jobs. In the entire time I have worked in immigration (5 years), I have NEVER filed a visa for someone making less money than me, usually the salaries of foreigners I file visas for are 50-100% better paid, even for people my age and just out of college!

Also, no H-1B visa is "OWNED" by the company. Also, the people that think U.S. companies save money by hiring H-1B workers are completely bonkers. Usually to pay both a law firm to file the visa petition and pay the government filing fees costs $5,000 or more. It costs MUCH more to hire an H-1B worker than an American. AND, the companies do NOT "own" the visa. There is a provision in the law called H-1B portability which allows an H-1B worker to switch to a comparable or better job at another company whenever he wants. The new company just has to agree to file an "amendment" petition, notifying the government of the visa holders switch of companies. This happens all ALL the time.

My last point is... In a country of 300,000,000 people I don't know how a person can say with a straight face that increasing the number of H-1B visas from 65,000 to 95,000 is selling out American workers! 30,000 more POTENTIAL visas is not a lot, and they might not all be used. Even if they were the number is a drop in the bucket compared to the total number of workers in this country. IBM alone has 315,000 workers worldwide and hired over 22,000 worldwide last year, including about 9,000 in the States.

H-1Bs are not a threat to the American economy. H-1B workers often BECOME Americans after several years, or they go home when their 6 year visa is up, and ostensibly many of their jobs can later be filled by Americans. So what's the problem?

[rootzeye]

Lets not be too emotional

First of all, to liken H1B workers to slavery is quite reckless. Secondly, believe it or not, the senate recognizes the importance of having US companies having a large pool of skilled workers to choose from. Over 45% of graduate degrees in Science and Engineering in most US Universities are awarded to foreign students. In some fields, physics, Mathematics its over 50%. There simply aren't qualified enough locals (Americans) for some jobs. In the highly competitive global interdependent economies, to maintain our dwindling edge in technology and innovation, the govt must strive to provide US companies all the opportunities to be productive. China graduates over 300K engineers each year compared to 65K in the US. Remember, of this 65K engineers about 50% are foreign students....
So lets be a little pragmatic here. We actually do need more H1-B visas

[imric1]

Correct.

And it shows how little Congress cares about most of the welfare of the citizens of the United States.

There IS no tech worker 'shortage' in the United States; there is no shortage of skills. It's documented FACT that the reason companies hire H1Bs is because they are cheaper.

[JoeF2]

People on H1 have to get paid the same

People on H1 have to be paid the same as Americans. The "cheap worker" assertion is a myth.

[Bill Dautrive]

re

Where is the documentation for your "fact"?

[jirohkanzaki]

H1-B Swindle

According to "The Bottom of the Pay Scale: Wages for H1-B Computer Programmer - F.Y. 2004" a report by Programmers Guild board member John Miano, non-U.S. citizens working in the US on a H1-B visa are paid "significantly less than their American counterparts". This is hard evidence than employers are using the H-1B visa program to hire cheap labor. Miano went out of his way to be balanced on this report and even gave the benefit of the doubt to the employer. You can find this in an Infoworld article 10/31.

[JoeF2]

Biased

The so-called Programmers Guild is an anti-immigrant outfit. Their report is biased. It is the law that people on H1 have to be paid the same as Americans. If the "study" from the so-called Programmers Guild was right, they would know about violations of the law and should have informed the authorities. Since they haven't done that, they are obviously lying in their "study."

[capfan12]

Leave it to congress

Congress sold out the U.S. Tech worker.

[JoeF2]

You voted for them, right?

So, vote for somebody else next time...

[BogusName]

If you want to fight that fight

How about the thousands of criminals and smugglers crossing the mexican border each day? That's the true immigration problem.

The H1-Bs are law abiding and educated. They might be suppressing salaries for the average tech worker, but are good for the economy overall.

[capfan12]

nope again

are they better then the american that should be in that job? there are plenty of unemployed american tech workers with plenty of skills for 99.9% of the jobs filled with Hb-1 labor

[imric1]

Not a myth. Not an assertion.

For instance, Infoworld just ran an article about it.

*shrug*

Argue with fact all you like. You'll still be incorrect.

[JoeF2]

If it's in the paper...

<sarcasm>
It must be true if it's in the paper or on the Net...
</sarcasm>
It is always funny that everybody who claims that H1s are paid less never comes up with an actual example...

Nudge, Nudge, Wink, Wink

While it is true that worker protections are part
of the H1-B law, and while it is true the there
is a complaint process, the whole thing is
basicaly a scam.

I've been this business since the 1970s, and have
worked with many H1-Bs, L-1s, and TN-1s. Nobody
has ever been deported for being "out of status"
or for losing their job. We have had 800,000
H1-Bs so far, and maybe 600,000 in the other
temporary worker visa categories. The only ones
who were deported had been convicted of some
unrelated crime, such as murder or prostitution.

People who quote laws and DOL regulations are
full of it. None of those laws are being
enforced. In fact, the H1-B laws specifically
prohibit a US worker from suing in court before
a jury, and specifically prohibit state courts
from hearing cases related to H1-B. All such
complaints are heard by a DOL "Administrative
Law Judge", with no jury, no punitive damages,
and appeals going to the Secratary of Labor.
No US worker has ever won a case in this so-
called court. It's like "Casablanca", or
perhaps Kafka.

Pay the H1-B's the same as Americans?
Sure. <nudge, nudge, wink, wink>

Give American workers a shot at the job?
Definitely! <nudge, nudge, wink, wink>

If there's a recession, will only Americans
be laid off?
Certainly not. <nudge, nudge, wink, wink>

[JoeF2]

It is you who is "full of it"

1. "Been in this business since the 1970s..."
The H1 and L1 categories only exist since 1990, and the TN came even later.
2. I suggest you read up on workplace raids...
3. Immigration law is federal. But that does not mean that workers on H1 don't have the same rights as everybody else. US laws apply to everybody under US jurisdiction.
4. The laws are enforced. Companies have been forced to pay back wages to H1 workers who were paid less than the prevailing wage.

Reciting anti-immigrant propaganda doesn't make it true.

$20 Billion? Maybe $50 Billion

In my experience, the breakdown of underpayment
of H1-Bs, L-1s, TN-1s, Ws, etc. goes like this:

25% really being paid as much as an American
50% being paid perhaps 30-40% less
25% being paid less than half, often a lot less

Example of thie first group:
-A German marketing guy, here on H1-B, who
objects to suggestions that H1-Bs are all
just cheap slave labor
-Several graduates of Chinghua University, who
were hired by a friend of their advisor (also
a graudate of Chinghua). They not only got
paid the same as Americans; they also got the
same stock option package.

Examples of the second group:
-A Japanese guy, with a PhD from a US univeristy,
here on an L-1 visa, getting paid a little over
half of what he was worth. As soon as he got
his green card, he got a raise. Imagine that.
-A Chinese Software Engineer, from Kunming,
working in California with Canadian immigrant
papers and a TN-1 visa. Also being paid a
little more than half of the going rate.

Examples of the third group:
-The Indians who got busted working for HP
(as featured on 60 minutes). They were paid
$24k in the mid-to-late 1990s, perhaps 30%
of the going salary.
-About 100 software engineers hired by Walmart
(according to the public LCA records), paid
an average of perhaps $38k each, which is
about half of the going rate.

People who work as headhunters have told me
that, when you include employment tax, overhead,
and the employer's share of social security,
the average H1-B worker saves his employer
about $50k per year.

This means that the H1-B visa program is
worth $30 Billion per year, given that we
currently have 600,000* H1-Bs working here.
That's a mighty nice subsidy for Sun and Apple.

The other guest worker programs are probably
worth an additional $15-$20 Billion per year.

Now you know where the money to pay the
lobbyists comes from.

-----------------------------------------

*Since 1990, about 800,000 H1-B visas have
been issued. I estimate that zero of them
have gone home, and that 200,000 of them
have obtained a green card.

[JoeF2]

Why would they pay lobbyists?

When the companies who are looking for cheap labor outsource to other countries right away?
That shows nicely that the H1 is not about cheap labor. It is about getting people with the needed skills.

[GDS1230]

We are all immigrants

My grandparents came to this country in the last century. They sacrificed to be here and raise a family that would appreciate the surroundings. We have all flourished in America and do not blame whatever shortcomings we or our pocketbooks have on the advantages that later comers or the children of rich established Americans had over us. The world and the human race migrate and change, success comes from beating the curve, now from feeling disgruntled at other people's success.

I strongly support families. Sometimes whole families have to move for the unit to survive, sometimes a member of the family needs to branch off for better opportunities for him or herself why the rest stay behind. Every person's situation is different. I just moved from one U.S. state to another, hundreds of miles away. I "immigrated" here and left my family behind because there was a better economy here than in my home state and because I wanted better economic opportunities for myself. Was I 'anti-family' because I'm willing to build a life here and see my parents and siblings on the major holidays instead of several times a month?

I don't see how anything I've had to say is anti-family. That tactic is misdirecting away from the issues that economic choices are always tough choices and lots of people in America feel entitlement to be rich just because they are American and went to school until they were 21. I say, go look for your fortune wherever you can. You'll feel a lot better about yourself when you accomplish than sitting around and sulking over other people's opportunities.

[stopoffshoring]

Here's your chance to stop this H-1b increase before it bcomes law.

This H-1b increase is an example of how totally corrupt the US Senate is. Consider the following facts. Here is a list of major tech layoffs announced since the beginning of the year.

Novell up to a 20% layoff (about 5000 workers)
Unisys 10% layoff (about 3600 workers)
HP 15% layoff (about 14,500) workers
Honeywell 10% layoff (around 3500 workers)
IBM 15% layoff (around 14,000 workers)

Total: over 40,000 high tech layoffs this year alone.

Consider the fact that these layoffs have occurred during a so-called good economy. Also consider how many American tech workers lost their jobs in smaller layoffs of which there are to many to list.

Yet in spite of the fact that major layoffs among American tech workers are up by 20% this year (source Challenger group), the utterly corrupt US Senate wants to bring in another 30,000 H-1B job thieves to STEAL American jobs from American workers. If this increase is allowed to pass then another 30,000 American families will be destroyed just so Bill Gates and his plutocrat friends can make a few more cents. There are many well documented cases where American workers have been forced to train their H-1b replacements and then have been laid off.

Yet it is not to late to fight this abomination. The companion US House bill does not contain an increase in the H-1b limit. It correctly raises the fees for L1 visa holders.

You can make your voice heard. Below is a link to a Washtech webpage that is setup to email an all ready written letter to your Congressional Representative to let them know that you oppose this H-1b increase.

Time is critical.

If you value your job then email Congress and let them know how much you oppose this action. It doesnt cost you anything and the job you save may be your own.

Here is the link
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/051027_h1bcap" target="_newWindow">http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/051027_h1bcap</a>

Please send this information to your friends and coworkers and encourage them to email Congress as well. We can still win this battle.

Here are some links that show how corrupt the H-1b program really is.

The H-1b Swindle: <a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.infoworld.com/article/05/10/25/44OPreality_1.html" target="_newWindow">http://www.infoworld.com/article/05/10/25/44OPreality_1.html</a>
Senate Bill Will Take Even More Jobs From Americans:<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2005/11/2/135209.shtml" target="_newWindow">http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2005/11/2/135209.shtml</a>

[JoeF2]

Yet more uninformed rambling

Just an example: layoffs in Novell's Netware unit have nothing to do with the fact that people with different skillsets are used somewhere else.
You just can't use people who worked on Netware and have them work on some completely different technology.
Furthermore, even Novell salespeople would fall under the "IT" label.

Second, since when does anybody have a right to a job? Something can only be stolen from the owner. The jobs belong to the companies, not the worker. Or do you prefer the communist world, where everything is owned by the people?

Third, if you don't like the members of Congress and think they are corrupt, why don't you vote somebody else in?

Forth, repeating anti-immigrant propaganda doesn't make it any more true. In fact, it shows that you anti-immigrants don't have any arguments.

[rleon]

Do you really think this is bad?

Well, that you might prefer they move the companies to China or
India. To me, it is better to keep the companies at home, besides,
new inmigrants help the economy a lot. Many newcomers buy all
sort of stuff that they could never have at home. Immigrants spent
most of their money and save less then locals.
Companies always look for cheap labor, the question is, do you
prefer to loose some jobs? or to loose all the jobs?

[stopoffshoring]

I think its disastrous

Your H-1B workers don't buy much because they can't. In California an H-1B worker's salary is $20,000/year less than the median salary. In some cases it's as much as $40,000/year less.

See The H-1b swindle <a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.infoworld.com/article/05/10/25/44OPreality_1.html" target="_newWindow">http://www.infoworld.com/article/05/10/25/44OPreality_1.html</a>

Save less than locals? Do you know how low the saving rate is? It's national disgrace.

Lose all the jobs? To answer your question we are losing far more than just the jobs. We are losing the American engineering profession. The IEEE-USA reported there has been a 24% decline in the last four years in the number of employed computer programmers. There was also a decline of 23% in the number of employed electrical engineers.

High tech salaries are declining and enrollment in computer science programs is down by 50%. We are losing our technical lead. See Outsourcing is blowing our technical lead <a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.startribune.com/stories/146/5606759.html" target="_newWindow">http://www.startribune.com/stories/146/5606759.html</a>
or
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2005/10/31/story6.html" target="_newWindow">http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2005/10/31/story6.html</a>

Most importantly THERE IS NO SHOARTATE OF AMERCAIN ENGINEERS. After all over 40,000 American high tech workers have been laid off this year alone. What about these workers? How are they going to get new jobs? What about their families?

We don't need any more H-1bs. Every time you bring in an H-1B you ruin the salaries of the American engineers. What that does is discourage even more American students from majoring in an engineering field. All the H-1b program is doing is destroying what's left of the American engineering work force.

As far as offshoring there are tax law changes that would make offshoring a far less attractive option. I prefer to keep a strong, competitive, American engineering profession so America can be competitive with other countries. The utterly corrupt H-1b program is destroying it. In any event if a company wants to offshore a job they will do it rather than bringing in an H-1b. Stopping a company from bringing in H-1bs does not automatically mean an American job would be offshored.

[dobbsj]

Message has been deleted.

[JoeF2]

America is awake and knows it needs more immigrants

Everybody knows that America needs more immigration, not less. In particular immigration of highly qualified people.
Isolationism would lead to dramatic job losses. Who would buy American goods? Do you really think nobody else can build computers, cars, etc.?
Get the good people from abroad here, and the US economy flourishes. Keep the good people from coming here, and they are starting companies abroad that compete with US-based companies.

[cool_mag_young]

you are plain idiot

You are just plain idiot. Immigrants help US to grow. Your opinion just like a frog in the well.

[WebProgrammer]

the last word

you know what they say, always let the idiot have the last word!

[stopoffshoring]

H-1b supporters are American hating, Racist bigots

H-1b supporters are American hating, Racist bigots

I have proved in other threads posted to this story that the corrupt H-1b program is one of the destructive programs every passed by Congress and is gravely damaging the American middle class.

I have proved the abuse and low pay that some H-1b workers are experiencing.

I have proved the extreme anti-democratic measures that corrupt groups and politicians have to use to pass the H-1b program. I have backed up my arguments with accurate, facts, figures, and links that cannot be refuted.

Pro H-1b supports claim they care about immigrants.

They Lie.

They don't care that many H-1B workers are being abused and underpaid.

They dont care that these H-1b workers will be discarded as so much trash the minute economic conditions change. Just as the American workers have who they replaced have been discarded.

They don't care that hundreds of thousands of American workers have lost their jobs and careers because of the H-1b program and many more will lose their jobs if this corrupt program is allowed to continue.

They dont care that every time an H-1b worker replaces an American worker the American workers family is destroyed.

They don't care that the H-1B program is being used to destroy the wage scales or middle class Ameican workers and that real wages in this country are falling because of it.

They dont care that middle-aged American workers are being forced from their professions into low paying, no benefit, service jobs.

They don't care that hundreds of thousands of American workers will lose their homes, that their children won't go to college, or that their retirements are being destroyed by H-1b workers.

They don't care that the American engineering profession is being destroyed which will gravely damage America's economy and national security.

They don't even care that over 40,000 high tech workers have been laid off this year alone and so obviously no need to bring in any more H-1bs workers.

In short all of this proves what they truly are.

They are an evil, American hating, RACIST, Bigots.

They would pimp their mothers, betray their county, or sell their children into slavery all to make buck.

They would even advocate bringing more H-1b workers to be abused and underpaid. They only thing that an H-1b proponents cares about is have a large supply of workers they use as slaves. All they care about is destroying the American middle class.

They are truly evil, corrupt, racist, bigots.

This H-1b increase can be stopped. Its not late. Honest, patriotic, America groups such as the IEEE-USA are fighting the increase but they need your help. Below is a link that is setup so you can email you Congressional Representatives. WashTech has all prepared a letter and all you need is fill in the information, which takes all of five minutes.

If you value your job then email Congress today. The job you save might be your own.

<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.washtech.org/news/legislative/display.php?ID_Content=5017" target="_newWindow">http://www.washtech.org/news/legislative/display.php?ID_Content=5017</a>

[stopoffshoring]

H-1b supporters are American hating, Racist bigots

H-1b supporters are American hating, Racist bigots

I have proved in other threads posted to this story that the corrupt H-1b program is one of the destructive programs every passed by Congress and is gravely damaging the American middle class.

I have proved the abuse and low pay that most H-1b workers are experiencing.

I have proved the extreme anti-democratic measures that corrupt groups and politicians have to use to pass the H-1b program. I have backed up my arguments with accurate, facts, figures, and links that cannot be refuted.

Pro H-1b supports claim they care about immigrants.

They Lie.

They don't care that many H-1B workers are being abused and underpaid.

They dont care that these H-1b workers will be discarded as so much trash the minute economic conditions change. Just as the American workers have who they replaced have been discarded.

They don't care that hundreds of thousands of American workers have lost their jobs and careers because of the H-1b program and many more will lose their jobs if this corrupt program is allowed to continue.

They dont care that every time an H-1b worker replaces an American worker the American workers family is destroyed.

They don't care that the H-1B program is being used to destroy the wage scales or middle class Ameican workers and that real wages in this country are falling because of it.

They dont care that middle-aged American workers are being forced from their professions into low paying, no benefit, service jobs.

They don't care that hundreds of thousands of American workers will lose their homes, that their children won't go to college, or that their retirements are being destroyed by H-1b workers.

They don't care that the American engineering profession is being destroyed which will gravely damage America's economy and national security.

They don't even care that over 40,000 high tech workers have been laid off this year alone and so obviously no need to bring in any more H-1bs workers.

In short all of this proves what they truly are.

They are an evil, American hating, RACIST, Bigots.

They would pimp their mothers, betray their county, or sell their children into slavery all to make buck.

They would even advocate bringing more H-1b workers to be abused and underpaid. They only thing that an H-1b proponents cares about is have a large supply of workers they use as slaves. All they care about is destroying the American middle class.

They are truly evil, corrupt, racist, bigots.

This H-1b increase can be stopped. Its not late. Honest, patriotic, America groups such as the IEEE-USA are fighting the increase but they need your help. Below is a link that is setup so you can email you Congressional Representatives. WashTech has all prepared a letter and all you need is fill in the information, which takes all of five minutes.

If you value your job then email Congress today. The job you save might be your own.

<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.washtech.org/news/legislative/display.php?ID_Content=5017" target="_newWindow">http://www.washtech.org/news/legislative/display.php?ID_Content=5017</a>

[mgreere]

hmmm

I'll just make one point.

Companies must opt to request visas for foreign workers. It's
the choice of the company. This is America. Whoever makes the
choice or fails to put in the effort is to blame. (... unless you're
on the otherside of the fence, in which case you're always a
victim seeking retribution/handouts.)

So boycott or lobby the COMPANIES. They are, after all, the ones
demanding more visas now, aren't they.

[JoeF2]

No arguments anymore, eh?

It is obvious that the people who are against the H1 don't have any arguments anymore, so they pull the old race card...
How disgusting.

[mgreere]

Solution to make everyone happy

Shut down the H-1B visa program. Allow the same number of
people a right to expedited citizenship, and require citizenship
before they can work in the country. The same people could take
the same jobs, but they'd be Americans who couldn't be screwed by
any potential loopholes.

Only Americans would get the jobs!

Anyone have a problem with this?

[Scott Tidwell]

Off Base on the Slave labor Comment

I have been recruiting for over 10 years in the High Tech and related fields. There is a shortage of qualified US workers for many jobs that I work on. Staffing does not stop if a qualified US worker can't be found when I have a choice of filling the positions with a qualified worker that needs an H1B. As far as slave labor goes, they get paid the same wages as anyone else doing the same job. In filing an application for an H1B, the sponsoring company has to define the position and pay at the least a salary defined by the INS as standard for the job in the geographical region the position is located in. The process has controls and is regulated. Anyone working in the US pays for housing normal cost of living and taxes. This money is spent here not overseas and makes our economy stronger. I currently have two workers on a one year practical training visa that I'll have to move to our Taiwan facility if I can't get H1B visas for them. If this happens then the jobs go overseas and how does that help the US economy?

[skylla]

It is more complex

H1-B's being used to cut on wages. Let me give an example where I work, a very large Pharma. We do not sponser H1-B visas. However, we have a very large number of consulting positions (instead of full time positions). Now, 95% of people in this temp positions are H1-B for some mom&#38;pop tech company. Now, is that cost cutting? Yes. The H1-B fellow (I am one too), will move to any state, to do his 2 / 3 month assignment at state level wages i.e. 50,000/60,000. But, that job requiring travel would actually pay lot more! More over, My company pays 65$/hr. That goes down the chain .. of middle men .. finally actually person gets paid 45$ (good salary? No benefits).

Any way... Until all American Techies unite, they will not win! Remember, H1-B could be very good program (if administered correctly). But, it is not, because rules are rarely enforced. Simple rule.. that requires all H1-B's to be paid every month (including bench time) if enforced, majority of abuses can be eliminated.!