Reduced the number of H-1B visas available for specialty
workers, those jobs which require a four year college degree, many
of which drive the innovation sectors of our economy- health
science, biotech and medical research. In these areas there is a
huge gap between the number of US born graduates with the
necessary skills, and positions available to be filled. As the economy
slowly begins to recover many companies are finding a “skills gap”
between the cutting edge technology skills they require and the
outdated skills possessed by many among the unemployed. Their
skills are often decades old and are not suitable for hire without
extensive retraining. It is estimated that more than 5,000,000 jobs
are available right which cannot be filled due to a lack of qualified
candidates. To limit or curtail the flow of the best or the brightest
into the US to help our economy recover and thrive is not only
short sighted, it is economic suicide.
Increased Fees for H-1B Workers and L-1 Managers and
Specialized Knowledge Employees. Contrary to public perception,
the H-1B program is not a vehicle for the displacement of US
workers through the hiring of cheap foreign labor. Employers must
pay the higher of the prevailing or actual wage for the occupation at
the specific job site. Many of the IT workers are earning six figure
salaries and bring to the US the most cutting edge technology
available in the world. Unfortunately, fewer US students are
choosing to go into science or mathematics, and fewer yet attend
our graduate schools at a time when our economy is becoming
increasingly technology driven. Worldwide our education system
has fallen to 25th in math and science. According to journalist
Tom Friedman, they way to improve our economy long term
is to either improve our school system or import more talented
immigrants. Given the recent budget debate in Washington and
the budget cutting that is occurring nationwide it is highly unlikely
that increased resources will flow to our education system. As
such we should be open to considering the talents of immigrants
to help restore our economy. Among some of the more talented
immigrants who have helped drive our economy over the past
decade are the co-founders of Google, Yahoo and eBay!
Unfortunately, instead of easing the way for business to import
talented and ease the “skills gap” noted above, H-1B and L-1
employers are forced to pay a premium to get these workers here,
up to $10,000 in filing fees, training fees, fraud fees and legal fees.
Self Sponsorship Eliminated for H-1B Visa, Tightened
Adjudication, Higher Bars and Standards. USCIS last
summer reversed a long held policy eliminating the ability of
an entrepreneur to sponsor him or herself for an H-1B. Despite
the fact that immigrants are 30% more likely to start a business,
represent 12.5% of all business owners, and according to the US
Chamber of Commerce generate hundreds of thousands of jobs for
US workers each year, USCIS under pressure from Congress and
the Administration has, at a time when jobs are desperately needed,
succumbed to pressure from restrictionists to limit the number
of “foreigners’ entering the country – whether legal or otherwise.
Through such action the US government is discouraging the
formation of capital and job creation solely because it “immigrant
based.” It is also clear from adjudicatory trends across the board
that there has been a tightening of standards. Clearly approvable
cases are being challenged on a routine basis, evidentiary
requirements have been enhanced and the bar has been raised,
making it more and more difficult for employers and entrepreneurs
to get their cases processed and approved. This has created a less
than hospitable environment for top notch foreign talent which is
increasingly being driven to other countries – Australia, Canada,
the UK, and elsewhere.
This assault on immigration is deeply short-sighted, and fails to
address the significant contribution that immigrants have made
and can continue to make in building our nation’s economy.
Immigration is not the source of our economic woes, but could be
part of the solution, if only our leaders will open their eyes and turn
a deaf ear to the anti-immigrant rhetoric of insecure restrictionists
and isolationists.
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