Thread: Sec. of Labor changes H-2B visa's

About Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao

Elaine L. Chao is the Nation’s 24th Secretary of Labor and the first Asian American woman appointed to a President's cabinet in U.S. history. Arriving at the age of eight from Asia speaking no English, Secretary Chao's experience transitioning to a new country inspired her to dedicate most of her professional life to ensuring that workers have access to opportunity and the chance to build better lives.

Since her confirmation by the United States Senate on January 29, 2001, she has been dedicated to carrying out the Department's mission of promoting and protecting the health, safety, retirement security, and competitiveness of the nation's workforce.

During her tenure, the Department updated the white collar overtime regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which has been on the agenda of every Administration since 1977. The most significant regulatory tort reform of President Bush's first term, the new regulations provided millions of low-wage vulnerable workers with strengthened overtime protection. In 2003, the Department achieved the first major update of union financial disclosure regulations in more than 40 years, giving rank and file members enhanced information on how their hard-earned dues are spent. The Department has set new worker protection enforcement records, including recovering record back wages for vulnerable low wage immigrant workers. The Department has also launched comprehensive reform of the nation's publicly funded worker training programs, to better serve dislocated and unemployed workers. On August 17, 2006, President Bush signed the Pension Protection Act, which protects the 44 million workers whose retirement security rests upon private sector defined benefit pension plans.

Secretary Chao's career has spanned the public, private and non-profit sectors. As President and Chief Executive Officer of United Way of America, she restored public trust and confidence in one of the nation's largest institutions of private charitable giving after it was tarnished by mismanagement and financial abuse. As Director of the Peace Corps, she established the first Peace Corps programs in the Baltic nations and the newly independent states of the former Soviet Union.

Her government service also includes serving as Deputy Secretary at the U.S. Department of Transportation, Chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission, Deputy Maritime Administrator in the U.S. Department of Transportation and White House Fellow. She has also worked in the private sector as Vice President of Syndications at BankAmerica Capital Markets Group and a banker with Citicorp. Prior to her nomination as Secretary, she was a Distinguished Fellow at The Heritage Foundation.

Secretary Chao received her M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School and her undergraduate degree in economics from Mount Holyoke College. She also studied at M.I.T., Dartmouth College, and Columbia University. Active in many volunteer activities, Secretary Chao has received numerous awards for her professional accomplishments and community service. She is the recipient of 31 honorary doctoral degrees.

The first Kentuckian named to the President's cabinet since 1945, Secretary Chao is married to the United States Senate’s Republican Leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.


U.S. Department of Labor
Frances Perkins Building
200 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20210
1-866-4-USA-DOL
TTY: 1-877-889-5627
Contact Us

email: ofccp-mail@dol-esa.gov

http://www.dol.gov./_sec/aboutosec/chao.htm

I like my name for her better "Chow" but I agree we are going to have to hit this head on....I have already gone after congress....because I was so pissed off...

And redundant in this case is important

Yep hitting head on is necessary...............we are tired but the anger will keep us going!!!!

Debby, thanks for sharing that story. Sadly, I'm reading more and more and more of these type of stories. The thirst for cheap foreign labor is unquenchable.

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Here's a recent story on the indentured servitude, H-2B. Granted, this is from an apparent lefty source, but read it and draw your own conclusions:

5/21/08
pww.org
Indian workers on hunger strike rally at the Capitol
Author: John Wojcik

A group of Indian workers and their supporters in the U.S. labor movement rallied at the U.S. Capitol building May 20 after the workers staged a "water only" strike at the White House that began six days earlier.

The five who staged the hunger strike and almost 500 other pipe fitters and welders were lured from their homes in India all the way to Mississippi where they were told high paying jobs and permanent residency status were waiting for them. Soon after their arrival, they were promised, their families could join them. Signal International, the shipyard company that recruited and hired them with the false promises, charged them as much as $20,000 apiece for the trip to America.

They were forced to pay half their wages to rent filthy, cramped trailers in a section of the shipyard surrounded by barbed wire. Much of their remaining wage was taken to service their $20,000 debt and, with the company holding their passports, they were kept as virtual prison laborers.

[b]When they complained about either their living or working conditions, company supervisors threatened them with firing, which for a “guest workerâ€

Originally Posted by SOSADFORUS

Well if we go by what Mary Peters did with the Mexican truck program and got away with it I'd say we are screwed! congress doesn't give a damn...these people seem to go by their own rules and congress allows it!

No the complacent ,brainwashed,stupid damn sheep of this nation allows it !

I was watching the traitors in action last night on CSpan .Hunter was on there fighting to keep free speech for our troop . Some crazy wild looking woman was on there acting spastic and mental like most liberals with her mans haircut and wild eyes and short skirt that did her no favors .

These are the lunatics who should be put into prison for treasn ,imo. But instead it will probably be people like me and yall who end up there for speaking out .

Let the people keep their mouth shut now but there is coming a time when they won't be able to open it even if they want to .

I know 'EXACTLY' how some of the people felt in Nazi Germany ! I always wondered how so many people could be destroyed by so few . hell they just walked up to the slaughter like the sheep in this nation are doing .

Eli Weisel wrote," To be silent and indifferent is the greatest sin of all ". [Or something like that.]

Note, this article says the changes are "proposed" and "suggested." Perhaps there is still time to stop this?

And note, a local Chamber of Commerce is whining that the cap wasn't lifted:
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Cape Cod Times
Cutting through H-2B visa red tape
By Sarah Shemkus
sshemkus@ capecodonline.com
May 23, 2008 6:00 AM

The U.S. Department of Labor yesterday proposed changes to the regulations governing H-2B visas, the seasonal work authorizations that bring thousands of foreign employees to the Cape each summer.

The suggested modifications to the program are intended to simplify and modernize the application process.

However, some local labor experts said that, without an increase in the number of visas issued, the potential rule changes are unlikely to solve what some are calling a labor crisis on the Cape and Islands.

"It will help a little bit, but it won't necessarily fix our problem," said Wendy Northcross, CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce. "We still need physically more numbers than are allowed in the country — that's the real problem."

The H-2B visa program authorizes foreign workers to enter the country to fill temporary and seasonal positions.

Every year, between 5,000 and 6,000 such workers are employed on the Cape and Islands.

Nationally, the number of H-2B visas that can be issued each year is capped at 66,000. For each of the past few years, however, last-minute legislation has loosened that limit, allowing returning workers to enter the country without counting against the cap.

This year, no such provisions was passed, leaving many of the area's seasonal businesses scrambling to find summer help.

One element of the regulations proposed yesterday would change the way that employers prove that their positions are temporary, that they have sought local employees, and that they are offering the prevailing local wage for the type of work offered.

Currently, this stage of the application process is handled by workforce agencies at the state level; the proposed changes would have employers submit this paperwork directly to the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration.

This modification is intended to eliminate duplicate efforts by state and federal agencies, allowing the application process to proceed more quickly.

Many Cape employers have previously complained about the tortuous application process and local business leaders have worked with area congressmen to propose changes to the system.

"I always chuckle when people say employers use H-2B workers because it's cheap and easy," Northcross said. "There's nothing easy about it and it's a long process."

Nonetheless, the strict imposition of the visa cap is really the area's biggest seasonal labor problem, said Matthew Lee, an immigration lawyer with Tocci, Goss and Lee in Centerville.

The proposed regulations, he said, "have nothing to do with the cap, which is what is preventing people from getting help on the Cape."

Jane Nichols Bishop of Peak Season Workforce, a West Dennis company that pairs foreign workers with seasonal positions, is more optimistic about the potential changes.

The proposed streamlining, she said, could shave 30 days off the application process, a difference that, this year, might have given employers a "fighting chance" to obtain visas before the cap was reached.

"First base is when (the application) goes to the state, second base is when it goes to the Department of Labor," she said, using a baseball analogy. "If we skip first base, and go right to second, it means everybody starts out hitting a double."

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs. ... 05/-1/NEWS

Note, Sen. Mikulski will continue to fight against American workers:

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Senate strips seasonal worker amendment from spending bill
The Associated Press
9:15 AM EDT, May 23, 2008

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Senate has removed an amendment to an emergency spending bill that would have extended an expired program allowing seasonal workers from other countries to return to the U.S. using H-2B visas.

The extension was being pushed by Sen. Barbara Mikulski, on behalf of Maryland businesses that depend on seasonal workers. The move is a setback for seafood processors, hotels and restaurants that have had difficulty finding workers.

Mikulski's spokeswoman, Melissa Schwartz, says the senator will continue to fight for the amendment, which excludes returning non-agricultural workers from the limit on H-2B visas granted by the government.

The Labor Department on Wednesday announced that it would propose changes to streamline the H-2B program, calling the current system too cumbersome for businesses looking for workers.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation ... 0993.story

By the way, Tom Tancredo isn't dead. Along with Bay Buchanan they've formed http://www.teamamericapac.org

The following is an email I've received. They're not dead.

Dear Friend,

I am writing to you today about a matter of critical importance for our immigration reform movement. But before I do, I want to tell you again just how deeply I appreciate your loyalty to our cause, and also your tremendous sacrifices for me during our presidential campaign. Literally, not a day has gone by since I ended my candidacy for the Republican nomination that I have not thought about you and the thousands of Americans who worked so hard, and contributed so generously, to help me force discussion of the illegal immigration crisis on to the presidential campaign stage.

Thank you, again, for all you have done for our cause and for me personally. I owe you a debt of thanks that words alone can never repay. Although our campaign ended, the fight to secure our borders and preserve our national identity has not. Far from it!

Last year "We the people" taught the elites a lesson when we killed the Bush-McCain-Kennedy bill, and the other side has not gained any ground in Congress since then!

But in November, we will elect a new Congress, as well as a new President. Whatever happens in these elections, we must be ready to stop the next effort by the open-borders lobby to jam amnesty for illegals down our throats.

And let's face it: both the major presidential candidates have shown plenty of willingness to respond to pressure of the Hispanic and big business lobbies, and compromise America's security at our borders! So it is imperative that we elect some strong pro-immigration reform, anti-amnesty candidates to Congress this year! And that is why I am writing to you today.

My good friend and conservative activist Bay Buchanan (who headed my presidential campaign) is chairman of the "Team America Political Action Committee." Team America PAC exists for one and only one reason: to support the election to Congress of candidates who share our commitment to supporting full border security, and opposing all amnesty measures for illegal aliens (whether they call it amnesty or not).

In other words, Team America PAC only supports candidates that you and I would support. Team America PAC's endorsement is the "Tancredo Gold Seal of Approval" for congressional candidates who support real immigration reform and oppose amnesty. Now that our presidential campaign is over, Bay is turning her attention to Team America PAC and to the upcoming congressional elections. One great benefit of our presidential campaign is that we helped inspire some really great immigration reform activists to run for office this year... now we need to help them!

Can I count on you to help our cause today with a generous contribution to Team America PAC? Bay and Team America need to raise money immediately to help our candidates, and since I don't know of anyone more committed to this cause than you, I really hope you can help them today.[Click http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001Xe17CTfSIr... color="#0000ff">Here to contribute to Team America PAC]

I know you will do all you can to help Team America. You were always there when I needed you, and our cause needs you today! Thanks so much.

My best to you and your family,
Tom Tancredo
Founding Chairman, Team America PAC

[quote]The hunger strikers spent the first few days sitting peacefully on the grass in Lafayette Park across from the White House. They received immediate encouragement from the 10 million-member AFL-CIO with Jon Hiatt, general counsel for the federation declaring, “We are proud to support the hunger strike by these Signal workers, and their campaign to shed light on the abuses of the U.S. government’s H-2B guest worker program.â€

Originally Posted by SOSADFORUS

Just reported by Lou Dobbs.....

Sec. of Labor Ms.Chao has changed the rules herself today on H-2B visa's from 10 months to 3 year visa's and not only that businesses do not have to prove they need them....

How the hell can she get away with this!

THIS SITUATION IS OUT OF CONTROL AND GETTING MORE CHAOTIC EVERYDAY!

WHAT JUSTIFIES THIS WOMAN MS CHAO TO MAKE CHANGES TO LAWS THAT ARENT APPROVED BY CONGRESS OR THE PEOPLE?

MS. CHAO NEEDS TO BE FIRED. I KNOW BUSH IS BEHIND IT ALL. HE WANTS HIS DREAM TO COME TRUE - AND THAT IS THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR SOVEREIGHNTY AND THE CREATION OF A NEW WORLD RUN BY BIG BUSINESS CONGLOMERATES.

THIS MADNESS NEVER ENDS!

Originally Posted by dragonfire

My My, Who says the government offices aren’t filled with activist. We ave Mary Peters defying congress on Mexican truckers. We have the Hispanic caucus lobbying for open borders. Now we have Sec. of Labor Ms.Chow just changing the rule as she pleases without congressional input. Time for an investigation ya think. Maybe looking into her overstepping her authority.

Don't forget Karl Rove denying his supoena!