Thread: Tech workers still looking for immigration change

Tech workers still looking for immigration change

By Juliana Barbassa, Associated Press

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The placards made clear this was not your typical immigrant rights march: "We played by the rules, now it's your turn," read one. "Legal immigrants keep America competitive," read another.
High-tech workers here on federal permits are speaking out — many for the first time — over rules that leave them for years in personal and professional limbo.

After Congress failed to reform immigration laws for the second year in a row, hundreds of the largely India- and China-born workers protested this summer in Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. They were frustrated that the divisive debate over illegal immigration had overwhelmed efforts at comprehensive immigration reform.

"I've never held a banner before, but I don't know what else to do," said Gopal Chauhan, a high-tech employee who has been waiting seven years for a green card. "We usually have better things to do, like invent the next iPod."

Legal immigrants who feel squeezed by limits on the number of green cards issued each year are trying to separate their complaints from the protests by illegal immigrants. And high-tech companies that say they can't fill jobs because of a cap on skilled-worker visas have stepped up their long-standing plea for the cap to be raised.

"It gets too frustrating sometimes," said Sandeep Bhatia, a software engineer from Mumbai who first applied for a green card in 2001.

Since then, Bhatia has completed an MBA, and was joined in the United States by his wife Preeti, who also has an MBA. But he cannot be promoted to a job that would use his new skills, and Preeti can't get a job, until the government finishes processing his green card.

"The Indian and Chinese economies are being fed right now with people who get tired of waiting and go home," Bhatia said.

The green card application system is akin to "indentured servitude," said Kim Berry, president of the Programmers' Guild, a group that opposes current work visa laws. "It takes years for the green card sponsorship to happen, and they can't leave, can't ask for a raise unless they want to lose their place in line."

Applications for work-related green cards — limited to 140,000 each year, about 9,800 per sending country — are backlogged so deep that many immigrants must plod along for years, uncertain about their future in the United States and unable to change jobs while they wait for permanent residence.

And immigration officials resorted to a lottery for H1-B work visas this summer when businesses filed — on just the first day the government was accepting applications — double the number that could be considered the whole year. Three years ago, it took 10 months for businesses to fill the annual quota.

American-born tech workers who criticize the visa system argue the annual influx of 65,000 foreign workers like Bhatia takes jobs from Americans and puts a damper on all salaries.

But the industry is putting its muscle behind its foreign workers.

"They're the smartest in their field, recognized as essential to the companies' growth, yet this immigration system subjects them to second-class status," said Robert Hoffman, a vice president with business software company Oracle Corp. and co-chairman of Compete America, a coalition pushing to increase the number of work visas available. Besides Oracle, its members include such heavyweights as Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corp.

This is why even as lawmakers veered away from the issue, the tech industry tried to keep it alive. Workers staged marches. An online community called Immigration Voice recruited immigrants to reach out to legislators by fax, phone and e-mail. Its members met with some 140 members of Congress or their staffs in September alone, and they continue to hold meetings to attract members across the country.

They are asking Congress to consider limited reform targeting only legal immigrants — more H1-B visas, more green cards — as a more palatable alternative to a bigger bill that also addresses illegal immigration.

Some legislators agree that paring down the issue might increase the chances of success.

"There is a higher degree of likelihood that we can make improvements on legal immigration," said Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a Democrat who represents Silicon Valley. "But everything in immigration is controversial."

What's clear is that many who are here legally say they're suffering under the current system — its delays, its limits, the constraints it puts on their lives. More than 1 million foreign nationals were in line for permanent residency in 2006. More than 500,000 came into the U.S. on H1-Bs, and the rest through family connections.

Microsoft Corp. was the third-largest sponsor of H1-B visas in the last federal fiscal year. But it still didn't get all the foreign workers it wanted into the country. The company's government affairs director said this was one motivation for Microsoft to open a new software development center in Canada.

"We currently do 85% of our development work in the U.S., and we'd like to continue doing that," said Jack Krumholtz. "But if we can't hire the developers we need ... we're going to have to look to other options to get the work done."

About 8% of Mountain View-based Google Inc.'s employees currently work under H1-B visas. This year, the company posted 70 new foreign hires overseas when they couldn't get visas. They'll try again next year.

Smaller companies, which may need only one foreign worker, argue they suffer most under the visa cap because they don't have the flexibility of the giants in the field.

Hypres Inc., a company that develops superconducting integrated circuits in Elmsford, N.Y., operates with 35 highly specialized researchers. An extensive job search recently identified one match — in Sweden.

The company submitted the H1-B request on the first day possible, but it was among the 150,000 requests, and it wasn't picked in the lottery.

"For us, it was a big hit," said Oleg Mukhanov, Hypres' vice president for technology, saying they'd already taken on government contracts counting on the prospective employee's expertise. "We need to be able to compete for such people on a global stage. Or else we just can't compete."

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/techinvest ... kers_N.htm

Comment section at the link. Some great comments that add a new slant to the hiring of tech workers.

The system should be fixed for LEGAL immigrants. Congress should stop wasting time on all the illegal pandering and work to fix the immigration system to people can come here legally. Deport the illegals.

These people who are demonstrating for green cards are mostly folks who came here 2000-2003 when the H-1B yearly cap was raised to nearly 200K (and while there were simultaneously mass layoffs of hundreds of thousands of citizen workers). Now their temporary work visas are expiring, and there are so many of them that the green card process is clogged. However, they took a chance on using a temporary work visa as an immigration visa, and now their luck is running out, so they are demonstrating. Like the illegals, many of them put down roots here and feel entitled to stay.

Yes, and even under an immigration-related [non work] visa, there never has been and still is no right to achieve permanent residency nor citizenship.

They are here by the good graces of the citizens acted through the Federal immigration system - yes, as imperfect and inconvenient as it is. If people have a problem with it, they can leave. They have no right to lobby a government that does not represent them, to change laws to suit their particular [albeit, convenient and narrowly defined] interests.

Originally Posted by PhredE

Yes, and even under an immigration-related [non work] visa, there never has been and still is no right to achieve permanent residency nor citizenship.

They are here by the good graces of the citizens acted through the Federal immigration system - yes, as imperfect and inconvenient as it is. If people have a problem with it, they can leave. They have no right to lobby a government that does not represent them, to change laws to suit their particular [albeit, convenient and narrowly defined] interests.

correct amundo. And this statement really says it about big business wanting to call the shots"


"Microsoft Corp. was the third-largest sponsor of H1-B visas in the last federal fiscal year. But it still didn't get all the foreign workers it wanted into the country. The company's government affairs director said this was one motivation for Microsoft to open a new software development center in Canada. "

These are a few of the responses at the USA Today site. It is a hot discussion.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/techinvest ... kers_N.htm



Austraasia1 wrote: 1h 33m ago
America has the best universities in the world. The top people come here to do their PhDs and postdocs. The IT industry is not only scamming these people, but also the government and the American people. Read Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck and you will understand their ploy. Create a glut of workers and the salaries will fall and the profits will rise. But it is not the fault of the poor and naive Indians, Chinese and Russian who are being hoodwinked. Additionally a lot of the Indians and Chinese OUTSOURCE a lot of the REAL work back to India and China (where they do not respect intellectual property rights, do not allow trade unions, ...). We are also contributing to the exploitation of Indian and Chinese workers back home who are doing a lot of the programming. Since the large markets are in India and China, then maybe many of the American companies should set up offices there. Better yet, maybe some of the young Indians and Chinese should go home and contribute something to the countries and countries' tax payers who provided them with free education. It is called social responsibility. But many of the Indians and Chinese do not want to go home, since the jobs they have in the States are much better than those in back home. Also the human rights issue back home are not much better. But if these people are not willing to go back home and advocate change, like Bhuto has recently done, in returning to Pakistan, how will India and China ever advance. The immigrants from India and China should NOT be treated better than our fellow AMERICANS from Mexico, Latin and South America. We should be filling the high tech visas with fellow American from Mexico, Latin and South America.


Sherry Madison wrote: 1h 7m ago
The blogs that come from Silicon Valley tell another story about another evil that has been imported into the USA via foreign born workers in the High Tech Industry...

Muslim bosses discriminate. Sunnie discriminate against Shiaa or other sects. All Muslim bosses discriminate against Hindu Workers. Hindu bosses discriminate against those of other castes. Generally speaking, the darker the skin color , the lower the caste. So few really dark skinned people work in Silicon Valley. Some suspect this is also why Black Americans cannot buy a job in the High Tech Industries in progressive ??????????? Washington State and progressive California?????????.

If you doubt me, read the account of what happened in India a few months ago when the Indian Govt. tried some very limited affirmative action for the lowest caste Indians in India, those they call the Untouchables. Students of other castes RIOTED for days rather than go to college with their darker skinned native citizens.

So yeah.........................increase those H1b visas. Hillary Clinton has called for tripling the number give to India. She did in during the August recess when she was touring New York State with a representative of TaTA...the biggest purveyor of USA H1b visas to Indians. When a concerned New Yorker asked her...what about American students who would love those jobs? Her laughter tinkled out as she said....Tax the Indians and let American students retrain with that money.

If you think I lie.................google it. It was only two months ago. How anyone in their right mind can even think of voting for a Clinton or a Bush ever again is beyond me. Who in the devil do they think got us in the mess we are in right now? The Easter Bunny?

nouveaupoor these forums or site are a great way to get them aware of Alipac and NumbersUSA. You might use that with these discussions to let them know we are fighting them.

You are right! Let's do it.

I think most people here are more interested in sending them back no matter what then looking at the issue in diverse angles and see the solutions for it. Extreme right and Extreme left wing opnions lead nowhere.

I see sarcasm by many members no matter whether they are commenting on legals or illegals. That may give a psychological satisfaction to some extent but that does not change a thing in the ground realities and the problem at hand.

Originally Posted by toordaal

I think most people here are more interested in sending them back no matter what then looking at the issue in diverse angles and see the solutions for it. Extreme right and Extreme left wing opnions lead nowhere.

I see sarcasm by many members no matter whether they are commenting on legals or illegals. That may give a psychological satisfaction to some extent but that does not change a thing in the ground realities and the problem at hand.

You're probably right. We are so fed up with inaction and untruths that we are looking at the issue through jaundiced eyes. Some of the things that are happening - and not happening - do create distrust and suspicion.

We have to find a way to restore dignity and honor to the process. The Democrats and Republicans are playing a game of gotcha at the expense of all Americans. The laws they pass are foremost designed to advance their political careers. If it happens to be good for the country or for humanity, it is sheer coincidence.

Obviously we can't shame them into acting honorably. Their poll numbers are some of the lowest in history and they appear to be unimpressed.

Does anyone have the answer?