More H1-B visas on the way?

By Anne Broache, CNET News.com
Published on ZDNet News: November 3, 2005, 5:09

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.

Some of the TalkBack:

TalkBack 1 of 5: Next message

How much more fraud and abuse?
The stories on this subject are endless. There exists a vast amount of data to indicate that this program is nothing more than a vehicle for companies to import foreign scabs. There is no shortage of IT workers in this country. What congress (both parties) is doing by extending this program is assisting in the elimination of another 100,000 jobs and job opportunities from American citizens in their own country.

To the H1B holders out there, I will state that I have yet to come across a single one of you who possess any special skills that are not available in this country. Many of you have skills that are marginal at best and totally inept at the other end of the scale. I have yet to stumble upon a single H1B holder that I could not replace with an American worker within a week. The simple fact is that H1B holders are scabs. Companies hire them strictly out of corporate greed to pay cheap wages, not out of any need for a skill set that is unavailable here in the US. This program needs to end. We don't need any more foreign scabs with marginal language skills infesting the US job market.
Posted by: thepubba Posted on: 11/04/05

TalkBack 5 of 5: Previous message

The Senate is a joke!
I thought they were all about the protection of the country, among their primary responsibilities there being:

Senate Committee on Foreign Intelligence
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship
Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
Senate Joint Economic Committee

With every Senator being assigned to a few committees, and all the above having some relation to the H1-B visa problem, you'd think there'd be ample opportunity for each of them to be well-informed about the ills that large numbers of such visas present to the concerns that their committee(s) are in charge of.

I.e.
1) When we bring foreign labor here, it gives them the chance to seed this labor pool with people who can penetrate the U.S., not necessarily maliciously even at first (though possibly), but, at least, they learn how things work here at various locations/industries etc. This can lead to an imbalance in intelligence if we don't also have Americans gaining knowledge of these other countries at the same level.
2) This isn't good for the economy, given that many foreign workers have as an objective to send as much of their earnings home, rather than to spend here. Consumer spending is 2/3s of the U.S. GDP.
3) Re. education and labor, this clearly contributes to a disincentive to becoming educated in the fields where the H1-Bs are most prevalent, since there are fewer jobs available and pay declines.

So what is the problem here? The politicians are clearly far to beholden to corporations. But beyond that, there's no accountability because we as the workers in technical fields have let them get away with this...by not organizing, which is necessary to counter-balance the corporate money and unbridled executive aristocracy that has sprung up in this country.
Posted by: techboy Posted on: 11/04/05

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9595_22-5931 ... ag=nl.e589