Thread: Tech Workers Fund Drive To Block H-1B Increase

Tech Workers Fund Drive To Block H-1B Increase

The group is critical of Microsoft chairman Bill Gates in particular for his request that Congress increase the number of so-called H-1B visas available to foreign tech workers.


By Paul McDougall, InformationWeek
May 18, 2007
URL: http://www.informationweek.com/story/sh ... =199602058



A labor group that represents information technology workers has launched a fund raising drive in an effort to block any new legislation that would increase the number of foreign tech workers eligible to work in the United States.

The group, Washington Alliance of Technology Workers (WashTech), an affiliate of Communication Workers of America, is attempting to raise $12,000 to place an ad in Congressional Quarterly condemning such legislation.

The ad the group wants to run criticizes Microsoft chairman Bill Gates in particular for his request that Congress increase the number of so-called H-1B visas available to foreign tech workers. "Gates said that there should be no limit at all on the number of H-1B visas issued," the ad states.

"Thousands of highly educated and skilled U.S. hi-tech professionals have lost jobs and are unable to find new work because companies like Microsoft want to hire cheaper foreign labor," the ad contends.

WashTech's campaign comes at a time when immigration reform is in the spotlight. On Thursday, Senate Republicans and Democrats reached agreement on legislation that would give illegal immigrants in the U.S. a pathway to permanent residency. It would also establish a point system based on education and skill levels to be used in assigning priority to green card applications.

The agreement does not address H-1B numbers specifically, but the tech industry is hopeful that it will create a framework for discussion on the issue. A spokesman for the Information Technology Association of America on Friday said that the group "applauds the Senators for their hard work in reaching a bi-partisan starting point and are pleased that they are addressing business immigration reform."

ITAA members include Microsoft, IBM, Hewlett-Packard and other tech giants, virtually all of which are pressing Congress to increase the number of H-1B visas granted each year. The program is currently capped at 65,000 per year.

Tech worker groups like WashTech and Allliance@IBM--an IBM employee association -- oppose raising the H-1B limit. They argue that the program is causing unemployment among U.S. born tech workers.


http://www.informationweek.com/news/sho ... =199602058

Copyright © 2006 CMP Media LLC

Here's a link to the ad Washtech wants to run: http://washtech.org/images/news/story/ROLLCALLAd.pdf

(P.S. I'm a member)

i'm a member too.

I love the ad. It captures the bleak finality of what happened to many of our careers (and is still happening).

Well Rock on Folks

VICTORY

Just got this from Washtech:

A Big Thanks to Everyone Who Helped!
Total Raised: $12,789

It was a struggle for awhile. After having no donations over the past weekend, some thought we had reached our limit at around $7,800. What would we do to get the rest? But, we didn't give up hope. We asked every day this week, and raised the remaining $4,200 - plus another $800 on top of it; a total of $5,000 in one week! Congratulate yourselves on a job well done (see chart at
http://www.washtech.org/news/inthenews/ ... ntent=5167
for state totals).

Time now for letter writing.

Originally Posted by Coto

Senator Cornyn and presidential candidate Rodham, or their staffs, ought to be on this website "debating" their constituents about why "losing one's job" to non-immigrant H-1B visa holders is "so good for Americans!"

So, who comes to this website to present Cornyn and Hillary's arguments that job destruction is good for us?

Senate staff members? Nope. Not on this website.
Employers of non-immigrant H-1Bs? Nope
The mainstream news media? Nope

So who do they send to this website to argue that losing jobs to foreign nationals is good for America?
They send the non-immigrant H-1Bs themselves to argue for them (or the lobby organizations orchestrate this).

Idiot fool! You have no idea what you're talking about! H-1Bs protect America from unemployment! Without us, you would be nothing - you owe us your jobs!

Well what's to expect from the non-immigrant H-1Bs? They're doing what they do - enjoying the spoils of KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER- being trained by Americans who were fired for their sake. They're picking up on the arrogance from their illegal alien "brothers" from Mexico.

Really strange, though, that of all the pro-job destruction lunatic fringe groups out there, it's the non-immigrant H-1Bs themselves that bring the fight to the very victims of the H-1B visa program.