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Prospects fading for increase in H1-B visas
With little time left in the Congressional calendar, high tech companies are scrambling to get an increase in H-1B visas this year, but the prospects are fading.
“Time is short and it is a bit of a long shot, but the urgency of our situation necessitates us continuing to walk the halls of Congress,” said Robert Hoffman, a vice president for government and public affairs at Oracle and co-chair of Compete America, a coalition of high-tech companies that includes Microsoft Corp. and Google, Inc. “As long as they continue to talk to us, we have reason to be hopeful.”
Hoffman said he is in discussions with House leaders and other key lawmakers, hoping to attach an H-1B amendment to a larger measure. But the task is difficult because Congress is facing a heavy agenda in the final weeks of the year, including 11 “must-pass” spending bills to fund various government agencies.
Lawmakers who strongly support expanding the visas also said there is still hope for legislation.
“There’s always a chance,” said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. “It makes no sense to educate foreign students at our flagship universities in critical skills and training areas and then to send them away … and have them compete with us from their native lands.”
Critics say, however, that the H-1B program depresses wages for American workers and has many flaws, including limited enforcement mechanisms.
Legislation designed to protect American workers from being displaced by foreign H-1B employees has also stalled in Congress.
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By odd1
December 4, 2007 11:53 PM | Link to this
said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. “It makes no sense to educate foreign students at our flagship universities in critical skills and training areas and then to send them away … and have them compete with us from their native lands.” But it makes perfect sense to Sen, Cornyn to allow US citizens to pile up student loan debt and be denied employment upon graduation. It makes perfect sense to Sen. Cornyn to flood the labor pool with foreign labor willing to work for less wages, replacing American citizens.
By jj
December 5, 2007 2:19 AM | Link to this
Eunice Moscoso does not understand the history of the H-1B. With little time left the prospects of an H-1B increase are much increased. At least that is the history of H-1B increases. A Harris Poll in 1998 found that 82% of those surveyed were opposed to the H-1B expansion bill. Backers adopted a stealth strategy to pass the increase. A favored method is to attach H-1B increases to “must pass” thus avoiding public comment from a public that does not approve. Prospects for an H-1B increase are better now than ever. Stab American workers in the back when no one is looking.
By yo!
December 5, 2007 8:55 AM | Link to this
good deal man! i dont think stabbing in the back is the right phrase as this employment act can benefit america in the long run. definitely an increase in h1b will not only add more skilled workers, but those same innovative entrepreneurs will hire more americans..
By yo!
December 5, 2007 8:55 AM | Link to this
good deal man! i dont think stabbing in the back is the right phrase as this employment act can benefit america in the long run. definitely an increase in h1b will not only add more skilled workers, but those same innovative entrepreneurs will hire more americans..
By ya ya
December 5, 2007 9:06 AM | Link to this
Consider these situations: 1) America going in recession in 2008. 2) American companies going down cuz not getting good skill workers.(H1-B limitation)
Combined effect will have multiple things which will not be good for America 1) American companies will open more offices in Europe and Asia to oversome this. 2) American recession will extend to 2009 or 2010.
By jj
December 5, 2007 2:28 PM | Link to this
There is no shortage of skilled Americans for these jobs. See http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0711/13/ldt.01.html We are producing more qualified workers (Americans) than industry is producing jobs. From both ends of the political spectrum thinkers reject the H-1B. On the right Nobel economist Milton Friedman called the H-1B a subsidy: “There is no doubt,” he said, “that the [H-1B] program is a benefit to their employers, enabling them to get workers at a lower wage, and to that extent, it is a subsidy.” On the left socialist Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) says: “What many of us have come to understand is that these H-1B visas are not being used to supplement the American workforce where we have shortages but, rather, H1-B visas are being used to replace American workers with lower cost foreign workers.”
By Gary
December 5, 2007 3:47 PM | Link to this
Lou Dobbs is a known anti-immigrant. He openly criticizes illegal immigration, and derogatorily calls family immigration as “chain migration”.
If you oppose both illegal AND legal immigration, are you not anti-immigrant.
Quotes from Dobbs show don’t impress me at all
By jj
December 7, 2007 5:41 PM | Link to this
At this moment there is a major lobbying effort on Capital Hill to get a visa increase. They want Congress to hide an H-1B increase in one of the pending bills. Groups that are working the Hill include Compete America, the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), Information Technology Industry Council (ITIC), International Franchise Association (IFA), American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA), and Save Small Business (SSB).