A proposal to expand the number of visas offered to high-tech workers to help corporations broaden their talent pools has divided Senate Republicans, some of whom argue it only makes immigration problems worse, The Hill reported.
A large number of the H1-B visas for foreign workers are given to technical industry companies, but at least two GOP lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee complained that proposed increases — from 65,000 to 115,000 — will be abused as more foreign workers get hired at the expense of U.S. workers, The Hill said.
"It doesn’t close the loopholes or prevent abuse. It doesn’t make sure that American workers are put before foreign workers," Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, said at a hearing Tuesday. "It only increases the supply of cheaper foreign labor."
His colleague, Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, who has spoken out loudly against comprehensive immigration reform, noted a "huge degree" of abuses in the program, The Hill said.
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The problem is the US education system is broken another thing you can thank the democrats for.
ReplyDeleteTHe democrats want us to believe that everyone "deserves" a college education. In order to accommodate everyone they have dumbed down the public education system. So this is what we have because the fact stands not everyone does "deserve" a college education.
Companies now have to go outside the US to find qualified employees.
Any and all democrats need to be voted out. They are a horrid bunch who are solely responsible for every single ill this country is facing.
The labour isn't necessarily "cheap" nor would all these Visa holders be recent graduates.
ReplyDeleteIt has all to do with the "dumbing down" of the US education system and the misguided belief that everyone deserves an education.
Wrong - this is ALL about cheap labor. I've worked with these guys and I know people who lost their jobs to H1-B visa-holders. There are even stories in the industry about American tech workers who have had to train these people in order to get their severance. There are plenty of good people to fill these jobs in the U.S.
ReplyDeleteI think maybe some cheap labor is involved though I personally know of a Spanish national electrical engineer who was recruited by a car manufacturer to come here and work for a 2 year contract at a few hundred thousand a year, all living expenses paid. He worked between Wilmington DE and NC.
ReplyDeleteI also know of a Romanian architect/engineer who was recruited to come to Boston to work at a major international firm.
Both of these people are in their mid 30's.
For a lot of the larger companies it is all about finding high powered talent from the cream of the international colleges and universities.
ReplyDeleteCompanies have whole departments dedicated to this task. They send out "headhunters" world wide in search of qualified employees, at great expense to the company.
Some of it is cream-of-the-crop, but most is just cheap labor.
ReplyDeleteThe 'shortage' of skilled American workers is a fraud.
ALL of the employment gains since about 2008 have gone to FOREIGN-born workers.
That's why so many college graduates are living in their parents' basement.
And we've all dealt with some of those 'high-tech foreign workers' on the phone, haven't we? Oh, yeah..
CHEAP LABOR.
They are paid substantially less, and the employer doesn't have to pay payroll taxes on them; I don't believe they have to pay FICA taxes either, nor worker's comp for them. I doubt they have to provid the "mandatory" health insurance either.
ReplyDeleteIt's greed, plain and simple.