H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption Cap Count as of 07/20/2006
On July 19, 2006, USCIS updated the current cap count with new data gathered
as of July 18. The number of approved and receipted pending petitions has
now reached 16,991. Approximately 360 H-1B Advanced Degree petitions have
been received but have not yet been data-entered and receipted. As of July
19, the combined approximate total is 17,351. Data gathered on July 11 and
posted to the USCIS website on July 12 showed that approximately 16,008
petitions had been approved, data-entered, or received but not yet processed as
of July 11. Thus, USCIS received a little over 1,343 petitions in the
course of 5 business days.
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption
|
|
Cap |
Beneficiaries Approved |
Beneficiaries Pending |
Beneficiary Target 1 |
Total |
Date of Last Count |
|
H-1B |
58,200 2 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
5/26/2006 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption |
20,000 |
5,943 |
11,505 |
21,000 |
16,991 |
7/18/20063 |
|
H-1B (FY 06) |
58,200 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
8/10/2005 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption (FY 06) |
20,000 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
1/17/2006 |
1
Refers to the estimated numbers of beneficiary applications needed to
reach the cap, with an allowance for denials and revocations. Each
target is subject to revision later in the cap cycle as more petitions
are processed.
2 6,800
visas are set aside during the fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under
the terms of the legislation implementing the U.S.-Chile and
U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreements. Unused numbers in this pool can
be made available for H-1B use with start dates beginning on October 1,
2006, the start of FY 2007. USCIS has added the projected number of
unused H-1B1 Chile/Singapore visas to the FY 2007 H-1B cap as announced
in the H-1B Press Release, dated June 1, 2006.
3
The numbers on the table for H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption include
only receipted petitions. As of July 18, 2006, an estimated 360 I-129
H-1B petitions seeking the Advanced Degree exemption had yet to be
receipted. Several hundred of these petitions were received prior to
July 18, 2006.
Jobs that get you US visas (NEWS.COM.AU)
Via News.com.au
07/17/2006
By Tara Weiss
WHAT is the easiest way to legally enter the US? Love. Fall in love with an American citizen, get married and you’re in. Unfortunately, not everyone can rely on romance. Only select few like Australians can breeze into the country.
Most people have to work their way into the US. But to do that, you need to find a job, a company willing to sponsor you and then apply for one of the country’s precious H1B visas.
With up to 100,000 applications filed each year (that’s where the US Government cuts it off), getting one of the 65,000 H1Bs given out annually is a bit like winning the lottery.
The same is true for other highly coveted visas like the L1 work visa, which enable multinational firms to transfer employees and executives to the US. For would-be immigrants, such visas can often lead to the ultimate golden ticket: a US green card, 140,000 of which are available each year.
Clearly, there just aren’t enough visas or green cards to go around. “Those caps are both backed up,” says Crystal Williams, deputy director for programs at the American Immigration Lawyers Association. That means it can take years to legally enter the US workforce.
That is unless you happen to be a university professor, nurse, physical therapist or work in any one of several professions that are in such great demand you’re practically guaranteed a US visa. It also helps if your home nation has signed a free trade agreement with the US.
“(But) need is the very first step,” says Chris Bentley, a spokesperson with US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
“We’re looking for people that have some type of skill and whose job is in demand here in the US.”
In the late 1990s, software engineers and other IT specialists were in demand. Now, immigration lawyers say, they’re a dime a dozen and aren’t usually successful getting into the country.
Topping America’s most wanted list these days: academics. Bentley says that someone petitioning to teach Medieval History is more likely to get approved than an accountant because the professor position is specialised and more difficult to fill.
“With other professions, employers have to test the labour market to see if someone else is qualified and willing to do the job that’s offered,” says Elizabeth Kirberger an immigration attorney who practices in New York.
“With a college professor, the standard is different. Employers get to pick the most highly qualified, but there’s no particular standard for that. You flesh out (the argument for that) in the application.” That’s because there aren’t enough American professors to fill the available jobs.
The same goes for nurses and physical therapists. According to The American Hospital Association, the country will need 2.8 million nurses by 2020, but only 2 million will be available.
Still, foreign nurses should be mindful of a few caveats. According to Greg Siskind , founding partner of the immigration law firm Siskind Susser, nurses aren’t eligible for temporary work visas. They can only enter the country as green card applicants; a process that can take two years. While that may sound like an eternity, foreign nurses have a relatively easy time finding hospitals and companies willing to sponsor them.
“As an employer, hiring two years ahead of time is not ideal. But because of the shortage, employers are willing to do it,” says Mr Siskind.
You’re also in luck if you’re especially talented in the arts or in sports. Artists and athletes can get in with virtually no hold-up. But you can’t just brag your way into the US.
But remember, immigration is ultimately a numbers game. The limited number of H1Bs and green cards available each year is first divvied up into categories and further divided among certain nationalities. Immigration officials can reconfigure the numbers based on need and demand. For instance, the quota for nurses from India may get maxed out before the quota set for Scandinavian nurses.
Aside from professions, some nationalities have a breeze coming into this country.
“If you’re Australian you’re sitting pretty,” says Mr Siskind. “They can bypass the whole H1B process.”
Last year, Congress created a new visa class: the E-3, which is solely for Australian workers. That means there are up to 10,000 slots for our friends down under – that’s separate from the 65,000 cap. There’s also an exemption for workers from Singapore and Chile because of the free trade agreements with those countries.
While the demand will continue to exceed the supply of US visas and green cards, achieving the “American Dream” is still possible. But working toward that goal is a lot easier when you know which jobs can get you in the country to begin with.
Bad News for Some H-1B Applicants
On July 10, USCIS Service Center Operations (SCOPS) informed AILA that it has
finalized the letter notifying those cap-subject H-1B petitioners whose cases
were received on May 26 that they were not selected in the “random selection”
lottery. USCIS stated that letters will be mailed out in the next few days. The
letter will inform petitioners that fees are being refunded, but that petitions
and exhibits will be retained by USCIS for consideration at the end of the
fiscal year in the event it is determined that there has been underutilization.
SCOPS has also informed AILA liaison that three cap-subject H-1B cases that
were not selected in the “random selection” lottery conducted on May 26 were
approved in error. USCIS will be moving to reopen the approvals on service
motion for the purpose of revocation within the next few days and parties will
be notified accordingly.
On a related note: SCOPS has confirmed to AILA liaison that about 5,000 H-1B
cap cases have been moved from VSC to TSC and about 22,000 I-130s from VSC to
CSC to assist VSC move the heavy volume of H-1Bs that came in during the first
two months of the filing season. A public information notice is planned.
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption Cap Count as of 07/11/2006
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption
|
Cap |
Beneficiaries Approved |
Beneficiaries Pending |
Beneficiary Target 1 |
Total |
Date of Last Count |
|
|
H-1B |
58,200 2 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
5/26/2006 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption |
20,000 |
5,295 |
10,326 |
21,000 |
15,208 |
7/11/20063 |
|
H-1B (FY 06) |
58,200 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
8/10/2005 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption (FY 06) |
20,000 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
1/17/2006 |
1
Refers to the estimated numbers of beneficiary applications needed to
reach the cap, with an allowance for denials and revocations. Each
target is subject to revision later in the cap cycle as more petitions
are processed.
2 6,800
visas are set aside during the fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under
the terms of the legislation implementing the U.S.-Chile and
U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreements. Unused numbers in this pool can
be made available for H-1B use with start dates beginning on October 1,
2006, the start of FY 2007. USCIS has added the projected number of
unused H-1B1 Chile/Singapore visas to the FY 2007 H-1B cap as announced
in the H-1B Press Release, dated June 1, 2006.
3
The numbers on the table for H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption include
only receipted petitions. As of July 11, 2006, an estimated 800 I-129
H-1B petitions seeking the Advanced Degree exemption had yet to be
receipted. Several hundred of these petitions were received prior to
July 11, 2006.
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption Cap Count as of 07/06/2006
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption
|
Cap |
Beneficiaries Approved |
Beneficiaries Pending |
Beneficiary Target 1 |
Total |
Date of Last Count |
|
|
H-1B |
58,200 2 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
5/26/2006 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption |
20,000 |
4,881 |
9,368 |
21,000 |
14,249 |
7/6/20063 |
|
H-1B (FY 06) |
58,200 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
8/10/2005 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption (FY 06) |
20,000 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
1/17/2006 |
1
Refers to the estimated numbers of beneficiary applications needed to
reach the cap, with an allowance for denials and revocations. Each
target is subject to revision later in the cap cycle as more petitions
are processed.
2 6,800
visas are set aside during the fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under
the terms of the legislation implementing the U.S.-Chile and
U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreements. Unused numbers in this pool can
be made available for H-1B use with start dates beginning on October 1,
2006, the start of FY 2007. USCIS has added the projected number of
unused H-1B1 Chile/Singapore visas to the FY 2007 H-1B cap as announced
in the H-1B Press Release, dated June 1, 2006.
3
The numbers on the table for H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption include
only receipted petitions. As of July 6, 2006, an estimated 700 I-129
H-1B petitions seeking the Advanced Degree exemption had yet to be
receipted. Several hundred of these petitions were received prior to
July 6, 2006.
New US law could cripple Indian hospitals
Via Rediff.com The irony is that Tamil Nadu is running short of nurses because nursing graduates from the state — and from across India — are bound for greener pastures in the US. In the last few years, nursing has become the easiest route to the US Green Card as American hospitals are frantically scouting for nurses from developing countries, especially India and the Philippines. Every year, India produces more than 30,000 nursing graduates. Nursing school authorities say almost all of these nursing graduates are also training to take the CGFNS (Commission of Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools), TOEFL (Test of English as Foreign Language), TWE (Test of Written English) and TSE (Test of Spoken English) examinations. To be considered for nursing assignments, Indian nurses have to take the above mentioned four tests, and must have valid nursing licences from recognised institutes. In the last one year, scores of American hospitals have put in requests with manpower consulting agencies and nursing schools across India for recruiting nurses. A number of nursing colleges in India are also tying up with hospital groups in America for supplying nurses. As a result, the quality of health services across Indian hospitals is suffering because of shortage of nurses. “Every nursing graduate wants to go abroad. They do not want to serve the country. The rush of Indian nurses to countries like the US is putting our healthcare system in malady,” says Annamma Mathew, a nursing superintendent who earlier worked with St John’s Medical College, Bangalore. Mathew, who now works in a private hospital in Coimbatore, says Tamil Nadu is one of the worst hit by the shortage of nurses. “Last year the Tamil Nadu government advertised for some 1,500 nurses in the primary health centres. But the Health Department did not get enough applications,” says Mathew. “Indian nurses want to go abroad, especially to Europe, the Gulf and the US because the pay packets there are very good compared to the pitiable salaries that Indian hospitals offer to nurses,” Mathew adds. A nurse in an Indian hospital earns a starting salary of less than $2,000 a year. In the US, that figure is at least $36,000. Vineeta Ramachandran, director of Kochi-based nursing recruitment agency Nurses Abroad, says the sad state of Indian hospitals and poor pay are the main reasons for the exodus of Indian nurses abroad. “Added to this, the new Immigration Bill in the US would open throw open the gates to Indian nurses. I am getting 15 applications every day from nurses who want to go abroad,” Ramachandran says. Last month, Kansas Republican Senator Sam Brownback sponsored a proposal in the US Senate that aims to remove the limit on the numbers of nurses who can immigrate to America. Moving the new provision in the Immigration Bill, Brownback said it was needed to help America cope with a growing nursing shortage. Health experts in India say the new, relaxed US immigration provisions for nurses would have an impact on countries like India and the Philippines, which are already sending thousands of nurses to America every year. Says Dr Paul Abraham, who heads a Bangalore-based non-governmental healthcare organisation called Centre for Health and Social Action: “The exodus of nurses from countries like India to the US will surely strain the health systems (in those countries).” “In India, already many hospitals are reeling under severe shortage of nurses. Now I think every Indian nurse would try to go to the US if the new immigration rule comes into force,” Dr Abraham says. He says international standards prescribe the nurse-patient ratio per shift to be 1:5 in a general ward and 1:1 in the intensive care unit. “But in India, the nurse-patient ratio is pitiable. For instance, the J J Hospital in Mumbai has a 1:70 nurse-patient ratio. That is, one nurse is forced to take care of an average of 70 patients who visit the hospital daily,” he says. What is the way out? “(There are) no short cuts,” says Dr Abraham. “The government has to sanction more nursing colleges. And a condition has to be laid down that a nurse should work compulsorily five years in India before she goes abroad,” he says. Agrees Madhu Devan, member, Trained Nurses Association of India: “The pay scales of nurses in India also have to go up. The government should also increase the number of nursing institutes across the country.” Some states are waking up to the crisis. Kerala — that has produced more nurses than any other state in India — now has 85 nursing schools. In 1991, it had only 45. The Maharashtra Nursing Council has granted official recognition to 70 more nursing colleges in the last two years. More and more young men are also opting for a nursing career because of the bright job prospects abroad. Suju Mathew, son of a Kerala school teacher, opted for nursing studies. “I have joined for the three year nursing degree course in a Mangalore college. In my class, there are 10 boys and 30 girls,” he says. Does Suju like to work as a nurse? “Yes, but not in India,” says the 19 year old. “I want to go to America. And nursing is the only solution.”
July 05, 2006
Skilled immigrants wait on Congress
Via Yahoo.com
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The latest fights over immigration have focused on
who should get a place in line for a legal life in the United States.
But the real agony, says Tien Bui, comes when you finally get in line.
Bui, who came to the U.S. as a Vietnamese refugee and is now an
engineer for Boeing Co., can’t take the career-boosting position he’s
been offered because his citizenship application is lodged somewhere
inside the Department of
Homeland Security.
With green card in hand, Bui has waited patiently since 2003 for his
fingerprints to clear background checks, a process that’s become more
involved since Sept. 11.
But if Congress approves a new guest worker program, the overall
waiting period for Bui and the millions of legal immigrants like him
could grow even longer, says a report by the
Government Accountability Office.
President Bush
mandated that by September of this year, the immigration backlog should
be eliminated and DHS should start processing all cases in six months
or less, a deadline the agency is optimistic it can meet.
But a spider web of agencies — including the
Department of Labor,
the Department of State and the Federal Bureau of Investigation — is
also involved in evaluating and approving legal immigration
applications.
If there are more petitions to process, the overall delays could
increase, experts say. At DHS alone, some skilled foreign workers must
wait five years to apply for a green card, something American
engineering companies say is harming their competitive edge.
“I truly think if Albert Einstein were in my office in 2006, he
would be saying ‘I’m going to Canada rather than wait any longer,'”
said Judy Bourdeau, a Kansas City immigration attorney who is filing
employment petitions for several Fortune 500 companies.
‘H-1B Only’ Job Ad Posters Accused of Discrimination
Via eWeek.com
June 20, 2006
The Programmers Guild, an IT worker interest group, has filed 300
discrimination complaints so far this year against companies alleged to
have posted “H-1B visa holders only” ads on job boards.
“Abuse of the H-1B program has become so widespread that
companies apparently feel free to engage openly in the practice. And we
are only reviewing ads for computer programmers,” Programmers Guild
founder John Miano said in a statement June 19.
The actions have been filed with the U.S. Department of
Justice, Office of Special Council for Immigration-Related
discrimination, contending that specific employers have created
“Americans need not apply” job postings on both Monster.com and
Dice.com.
These job ads are accused of disregarding the Immigration and
Nationality Act, which makes it illegal to discriminate against U.S.
workers on the basis of immigration status.
Miano cites examples from postings on Dice.com and Monster.com
in a release, with lines such as “We require candidates for H1B from
India” and “We sponsor GC [green card] and we do prefer H1B holders.”
Several of the ads included free training and interview preparation,
according to the complaint, while others included more flagrantly
illegal maneuvers.
“We have postings for arrangements where the ’employee’ finds
his own work and the ’employer’ takes a cut of the earnings. Many
‘high-tech companies’ obtaining H-1B visas operate out of apartments
and Mailboxes Etc.,” said Miano.
Miano said he considers the offers to teach foreigners particularly offensive in light of the fact that nearly half the money collected from H-1B visa fees is given to training programs to bring U.S. workers’ skills up to speed.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service announced June 1 that the 65,000 H-1B visa supply has been exhausted for the 2007 fiscal year, four months before new ones would be made available.
This news came on the heels of the U.S. Senate passing the immigration reform bill May 25, which included a provision to raise the H-1B visa cap to 115,000 from 65,000.
H-1B Cap Count as of 6/20/2006
|
Cap |
Beneficiaries Approved |
Beneficiaries Pending |
Beneficiary Target 1 |
Total |
Date of Last Count |
|
|
H-1B |
58,200 2 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
5/26/2006 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption |
20,000 |
3,311 |
6,950 |
21,000 |
10,261 |
6/20/20063 |
|
H-1B (FY 06) |
58,200 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
8/10/2005 |
|
H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption (FY 06) |
20,000 |
—— |
—— |
—— |
Cap Reached |
1/17/2006 |
1
Refers to the estimated numbers of beneficiary applications needed to
reach the cap, with an allowance for denials and revocations. Each
target is subject to revision later in the cap cycle as more petitions
are processed.
2 6,800
visas are set aside during the fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under
the terms of the legislation implementing the U.S.-Chile and
U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreements. Unused numbers in this pool can
be made available for H-1B use with start dates beginning on October 1,
2006, the start of FY 2007. USCIS has added the projected number of
unused H-1B1 Chile/Singapore visas to the FY 2007 H-1B cap as announced
in the H-1B Press Release, dated June 1, 2006.
3
The numbers on the chart for H-1B Advanced Degree Exemption include
only receipted petitions. As of 6/20/06, USCIS has identified 500 I-129
H-1B petitions seeking the Advanced Degree exemption and another 1,800
I-129 petitions yet to be sorted.
Celebs bend visa lines like Beckham
Via Miami Herald.com
Accommodating U.S. State Department officials bend over backward to grant visas to elite figures in sports, science, arts, education and business.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – International soccer star David Beckham and wife Victoria, formerly Posh Spice of the Spice Girls, don’t wait months or years to enter the United States legally.
Beckham’s status, bankroll and his attorney see to that. He receives approval for his visa within two weeks. Accommodating U.S. State Department officials grant him after-hours appointments and have asked him to pose for photos.
As an ”alien of extraordinary ability,” Beckham is eligible for an O-1 work visa reserved for elite figures in sports, science, arts, education and business.
These and companion visas for family and support personnel have no caps on the number who can arrive. Their numbers have more than doubled over the past decade.
Meanwhile, specialty workers with four-year degrees can’t always bend the bureaucracy like Beckham. Demand for visas from these workers, with professions such as computer programming, engineering and
accounting, has surged. But the cap, briefly raised a few years ago, remains at 65,000 — what it was in 1992. The 2007 cap was filled May 26, a record four months before the fiscal year begins.
Currently, Congress is debating whether to increase these visas to help relieve the backlog, as well as granting legal status to some of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants.
Immigration ”law is really geared toward helping the rich and famous,” says David Whitlock, a partner who heads immigration practice at Fisher & Phillips in Atlanta.
Most industrialized countries have an immigrant pecking order, notes Alan Gordon, a Charlotte, N.C., immigration lawyer who recently helped a Canadian racing phenom enter the country.
DEPP SKIPPED LOTTERY
”How did Johnny Depp get to live in France? Did he go through a lottery system?” asks Gordon. “No. It’s because he’s spending money.”
Indeed, countries have always welcomed the elite.
”And maybe rightly so,” says Steve Hader, a lawyer with the Charlotte office of Moore & Van Allen who helped set up Beckham’s upcoming visit to the United States. “Maybe you want the best and the brightest.”
The Beckhams stand to make money on their upcoming summer trip, so they are required to secure work visas, not tourist credentials. He launched a youth soccer academy in Los Angeles last year, with the hope
of identifying talent to compete for U.S. teams on the world stage. Victoria has a fragrance and clothing line ”and still performs,” Hader says.
Some 11,960 esteemed scientists, doctors, musicians, professors, athletes and captains of industry and their family and support personnel arrived in 2005, up more than 145 percent since 1995, according to the State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs.
Hader has prepared O-1 visas for A-list singers, actors, actresses, scientists and even a celebrity chef. Client confidentiality precludes him from revealing names. Beckham gave the OK because he wants the
press for his academy.
O-1 applicants must be international superstars in their professions. The State Department recognizes Academy Awards, peer adulation, press coverage in ”major newspapers,” and/or ”a high salary . . . in relation to others in the field,” among other factors.
Beckham plays for the Spanish club Real Madrid and is captain of England’s national team in this year’s World Cup. Beckham was memorialized in the 2002 movie Bend It Like Beckham for his signature long kick, with the ball curving in flight. The fact Beckham is married to one of the Spice Girls is an added bonus, or curse, depending on which side of the paparazzi you’re standing.
US immigration bill rattles Aussies
Via DNAIndia.com
06/19/2006
MELBOURNE:
Australia’s problem of skill workers shortage would take another blow
if the US proposal to increase the migrant intake is implemented,
experts have warned. Australian policy makers and experts have
expressed fears that the US would lure away the best of the skilled
workforce away from the South Pacific country.
The US Senate has recently passed a Bill to increase annual
employment-based migration from 140,000 to a whopping 650,000. If the
proposals are approved by the US lower house, the maximum limit on the
high-skilled H1-B working visas would jump from 65,000 a year to
115,000. This would direct skilled migrants’ movement away from
countries like Australia.
The booming Australian economy is feeling the skills crunch as the
insatiable Chinese demand for its resources is not showing any sign of
petering out in the near future. Indian demand for Australian
resources is also on the rise and would ensure the Australian
economic prosperity for years to come. The Senate Bill to increase the
migrant intake reportedly also includes proposal to allow
international students in the US to be given work and residency rights
after they complete their studies.
These proposals have alarmed Bob Birrell, Director of the Centre for Population and Urban Research at Monash University here.
“There’s already significant competition for skilled migrants,
especially persons who have work experience in skills relevant to an
advanced economy like that of Australia or the United States,” Dr
Birrell told The Age newspaper recently. “There’s already a problem and
if the US upped its level to 600,000, then it would make it
considerably more difficult,” he said. The Age newspaper has also
quoted an American expert in stressing the point that Australian and
the US skill shortage is bound to come worse as the traditional
sources of skilled migrants like India are also keeping their
brightest at home.
“The situation in India has radically changed. It is no longer a
must that to be successful you have to leave India,” the American
expert was quoted as saying.
U.S. said helpless in hiring of aliens
Via The Washington Post
06/19/2006
The federal government is not capable of helping employers determine
whether workers in the U.S. are illegal aliens, a government official
will testify before a Senate subcommittee this afternoon.
Richard M. Stana, director of homeland security and justice
for the Government Accountability Office, said that two decades after
Congress ordered the government to create a program to prevent the
hiring of illegals, such a program still doesn’t exist.
Immigration specialists have “found that the single most
important step that could be taken to reduce unlawful immigration is
the development of a more effective system for verifying work
authorization,” Mr. Stana said in prepared testimony obtained by The
Washington Times.
The U.S. Immigration Law Blog by Ashwin Sharma 
Langberg: Tech visas come with obligation for valley leaders
By Mike Langberg
Via Mercury News
Silicon Valley’s lobbyists in Washington are reviving a touchy topic
that’s been largely dormant since the tech bubble burst in 2001:
whether we need to continue importing thousands of foreign engineers
and other skilled professionals on temporary H-1B visas.
Many U.S. engineers believe the H-1B program is nothing more than a
back door for greedy corporate bosses to get low-cost workers who can
be quickly sent home if they complain.
Employers, on the other hand, say they have lots of jobs they can’t
fill, and argue that U.S. tech companies will lose ground to foreign
competition without H-1B talent or will be forced to move even more
operations overseas.
Whatever the truth about H-1Bs, Silicon Valley companies need to do more to resolve the issues surrounding these visas.
The dispute, meanwhile, is likely to land in the lap of Congress.
Rep. John Shadegg, a Republican from Arizona, is planning to
introduce a bill this week or next that would nearly double the number
of H-1B visas granted every year to 115,000 from 65,000 — a key goal
of lobbying groups including TechNet and AeA, formerly the American
Electronics Association.
This would complement a similar bill introduced in the Senate last month by Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas.
Also in D.C., the H-1B process is getting new scrutiny. The
Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress,
released a report last week criticizing federal agencies for lax
enforcement of H-1B rules.
The IEEE-USA, a group representing engineers, seized on the GAO report as further evidence the H-1B program is a failure.
AeA, meanwhile, added fuel to the H-1B fire last week by sending
every member of Congress a position paper arguing that criticisms of
the H-1B program are “myths,” three of which are worthy of debate.
The first AeA myth is that foreign nationals steal American jobs.
“High-tech companies are increasingly seeking skilled labor to feed
a growing industry and cannot find it,” the position paper says.
“Visit the website of many American technology companies and you will
find thousands of unfilled U.S.-based positions. Foreign nationals are
critical for filling this void.”
Norman S. Matloff, a professor of computer science at UC-Davis and a
longtime H-1B critic, counters that claims of low unemployment among
engineers don’t count underemployment.
For example, many Silicon Valley professionals were driven out of
the tech industry during the downturn from 2001 to 2004. A former
software engineer now working as a teacher or a real estate agent
doesn’t count in the statistics, and may be making significantly less
money.
Current engineering vacancies could reflect employers unwilling to
hire older engineers, even if they’ve retrained themselves, when the
companies can hold out for the alternative of cheaper H-1B labor.
The AFL-CIO, in a February position paper, argued that H-1Bs and
other loopholes allow employers “to turn permanent jobs into temporary
jobs. . . . As a result, working conditions for all professional
workers have suffered: pressures caused by employer exploitation of
professional guest workers coupled with increases in outsourcing
continue to have a chilling effect on any real wage increases for
professionals, even those not directly or immediately impacted.”
AeA’s second myth is that foreign nationals are paid less than U.S. workers.
“The vast majority of companies (hiring H-1B workers) play by the
rules, pay market wages and do not wish to see the integrity of the
program called into question by a minority of infractors,” the
position paper says.
AeA cites several supporting studies, although Matloff and other
critics cite competing studies and even interpret the same studies in
different ways.
It’s impossible to settle the question definitively, in part because
immigration laws don’t require H-1B employers to disclose sufficient
data.
AeA’s third myth is that H-1B employers are bound to their U.S.
employers “and are therefore little more than indentured servants.”
Legally, H-1B visa holders are free to take other jobs in the United
States, and some do. But any H-1B hoping for a “green card,” the
much-sought-after ticket to permanent residence, must restart the
application process if they switch employers. Given the glacial pace of
green-card approvals, this can create a de facto obligation to stay put.
Last week’s report by the GAO said the U.S. Department of Labor
isn’t doing enough to verify even the minimal protections built into
the current H-1B law.
From January 2002 through September 2005, the GAO reported, the
Labor Department approved 99.5 percent of the 960,563 applications it
received for H-1Bs — a suspiciously high number.
“We do not know the true magnitude of the error rate in the certification process,” the GAO report concluded.
Ralph W. Wyndrum Jr., president of the IEEE-USA, issued a statement in response to the GAO’s findings:
“Implementation of the H-1B program fails every test of the
principles its advocates have asserted. Employers can and do give
preference to H-1Bs over U.S. workers. Employers who choose to do so
can easily manipulate the system to pay below-market wages.”
Silicon Valley’s tech leaders have a broader immigration agenda with
some laudable objectives, such as making it easier for bright foreign
students to study at U.S. universities and for those students to remain
when they graduate.
To keep that agenda on track, valley companies should balance their
demand for H-1Bs with a commitment to making the program more
transparent. They should also support clearly visible programs to
retain and retrain their existing employees, so we can accept at face
value their requests for more temporary foreign workers.