catlover3

Interesting (depressing) reading.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/01/30/technology/trump-h1b-visa-immigration-reform/index.html?sr=twcnni013117trump-h1b-visa-immigration-reform0145AMVODtopPhoto&linkId=33949901

robin1234

Shouldn't be a problem though, Betsy DeVos will improve the US education system so that those white kids from the rust belt states are well qualified for the high tech jobs.

Rete

Why is this depressing news? I've read about it at:

Trump’s Next Immigration Move to Hit Closer to Home for Tech

and frankly, it sounds like it is something that should have been done years ago.

Pulaski

Everything Donald Trump proposes is necessarily "depressing".

tom169

Given the huge amount of constant over-subscription to H-1B I do feel some amount of reform was always required - whether that would have been from Trump or Clinton.

My understanding of how it works is that a tech firm (for example) will want to fill 100 vacancies with staff sourced from overseas; so to do so they'll send out 400 job offers and then petitions, so that statistically they will meet the 100 vacancies.

mrken30

Or they just use L-1 visas, place them in an office overseas for a few months and then bring them to the US on an L-1. Especially true for companies like TCS and iGate

Pulaski

FIFY

Jack8602

Interested to see if this goes on to affect the L1 visa, which i'm currently here on.

Phyzz

But this is what generates the over subscription. If everyone asked for what they need then there would be a lot less applications and increased chance of success. It does generate extra costs in filing all of the applications.

The bigger issue is the abuse of the system to obtain cheaper labour by using non-US workers.

Pulaski

Indeed, and the suggestion that it is necessary to import tens of thousands of entry level tech/coders from India every year is patronizing and insulting to US college graduates. ..... I am not saying there should be none but the scale of the numbers of H-1B visas going to tech/coders every year is mind blowing.

petitefrancaise

Well, you're kind of right and kind of wrong...
according to this study from UPenn Wharton school of business
The Effects of Immigration on the United States’ Economy — Penn Wharton Budget Model

"Moreover, immigrants are often imperfect substitutes for native-born workers in U.S. labor markets. That means they do not compete for the same jobs and put minimal downward pressure on natives’ wages. This might explain why competition from new immigrants has mostly affected earlier immigrants, who experienced significant reductions in wages from the surge in immigration. In contrast, studies find that immigration has actually raised average wages of native-born workers during the last few decades."

tom169

I agree. It's completely perpetual!

Phyzz

I was thinking more in lines of [URL="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/26/us/lawsuit-claims-disney-colluded-to-replace-us-workers-with-immigrants.html?_r=0"]

petitefrancaise

ah yes...
I've got a very unpleasant story regarding a friend of mine and their employment practices. Doesn't surprise me and I hope that they got their asses sued off about it.

scrubbedexpat099

There is a gross disparity in Labour costs between the US and most other countries, how do you expect US companies to compete?

There is obviously a massive demand to bring in more cost effective labour.