Whoever thinks this will open the floodgates to cheap labor has got it backwards: the current situation is creating a class of employees who are one step above indentured servitude.
Not all H1Bs are created equal either. Some don't allow multiple reentry (or reentry beyond a 6-24 month period) due to some arcane reciprocity issue. So once here it can be a risk for many to even visit other countries and in the very least it's a hassle.
Many come to the US with the intent of moving here permanently if they're able to. Frankly, considering some of the countries they come from, I can't really blame them. They simply want a better life for themselves and their families. In doing so they may end up separating themselves from their families for a significant period of time.
The current process of getting a temporary wrok visa (specifically, an H1B) just creates artificial hoops to jump through of "proving" you can't find someone locally. This system is already completely compromised and has been thoroughly gamed. Now it simply enrichens lawyers who specialize in it.
But the payoff for many temporary workers is immigration and here is where the indentured servitude comes in. For high-demand countries (China, India, Mexico and the Phillipines IIRC) the delay between making an application and getting approved is years. 6+ on EB3, 4+ years on EB2.
The problem is that employers know this and can (and do) hold people hostage with artificially low wages (because the "prevailing wage" is far removed from reality) and those workers simply have to put up with it.
I suspect most of these employers aren't startups but are corporate bodyshops who don't really care about the quality of their employees. They simply want someone to fill a seat because, hey, charging a huge markup on their labor to some contractor further up the line anyway. Large corporate outsourcing and particularly outsourcing from the government seems to be the main cause for this particularly racket.
If someone is willing to employ them, then that largely should be the barrier that has to be met. It isn't quite that simple however as this could be used to bring people over with true indentured servitude much like what happens with illegal immigrants. People smugglers bring in people who then have to pay back the debt with much of their take home pay for years (this is how people smuggling into Australia works).
So you have to somehow verify that the employment is legitimate and the worker isn't being exploited. The simplest way to do this is:
1. Make work authorization easily transferable;
2. Make such transfers not reset the immigration process (the current system does this; the new employer has to start again); and
3. Make immigration automatic after some period of time, say 3-6 years so people can't be held hostage with it.
All this talk of "they're stealing our jobs" is horribly misguided and ill-informed about the reality of the incentives created by the current system.
Would you support a change in US immigration policy that would grant a green card to everyone who wishes to come here with good intentions (ie., with nothing but the desire for a better life for themselves and their families)?
The US does currently accept about 1.2 million immigrants legally into the country every year. Obviously, that's not enough to meet demand. Do you feel that 1.2 million is far too low? If so, how do you feel generally about the notion of an upper limit - or would you support unlimited immigration to the US?
> the current situation is creating a class of employees who are one step above indentured servitude.
Hear, hear.
Because permanent status is years away (or not attainable) your home and your health are in the hands of the employer. The step above is, above, but not by much.
Comments
Whoever thinks this will open the floodgates to cheap labor has got it backwards: the current situation is creating a class of employees who are one step above indentured servitude.
Not all H1Bs are created equal either. Some don't allow multiple reentry (or reentry beyond a 6-24 month period) due to some arcane reciprocity issue. So once here it can be a risk for many to even visit other countries and in the very least it's a hassle.
Many come to the US with the intent of moving here permanently if they're able to. Frankly, considering some of the countries they come from, I can't really blame them. They simply want a better life for themselves and their families. In doing so they may end up separating themselves from their families for a significant period of time.
The current process of getting a temporary wrok visa (specifically, an H1B) just creates artificial hoops to jump through of "proving" you can't find someone locally. This system is already completely compromised and has been thoroughly gamed. Now it simply enrichens lawyers who specialize in it.
But the payoff for many temporary workers is immigration and here is where the indentured servitude comes in. For high-demand countries (China, India, Mexico and the Phillipines IIRC) the delay between making an application and getting approved is years. 6+ on EB3, 4+ years on EB2.
The problem is that employers know this and can (and do) hold people hostage with artificially low wages (because the "prevailing wage" is far removed from reality) and those workers simply have to put up with it.
I suspect most of these employers aren't startups but are corporate bodyshops who don't really care about the quality of their employees. They simply want someone to fill a seat because, hey, charging a huge markup on their labor to some contractor further up the line anyway. Large corporate outsourcing and particularly outsourcing from the government seems to be the main cause for this particularly racket.
If someone is willing to employ them, then that largely should be the barrier that has to be met. It isn't quite that simple however as this could be used to bring people over with true indentured servitude much like what happens with illegal immigrants. People smugglers bring in people who then have to pay back the debt with much of their take home pay for years (this is how people smuggling into Australia works).
So you have to somehow verify that the employment is legitimate and the worker isn't being exploited. The simplest way to do this is:
1. Make work authorization easily transferable;
2. Make such transfers not reset the immigration process (the current system does this; the new employer has to start again); and
3. Make immigration automatic after some period of time, say 3-6 years so people can't be held hostage with it.
All this talk of "they're stealing our jobs" is horribly misguided and ill-informed about the reality of the incentives created by the current system.
Would you support a change in US immigration policy that would grant a green card to everyone who wishes to come here with good intentions (ie., with nothing but the desire for a better life for themselves and their families)?
The US does currently accept about 1.2 million immigrants legally into the country every year. Obviously, that's not enough to meet demand. Do you feel that 1.2 million is far too low? If so, how do you feel generally about the notion of an upper limit - or would you support unlimited immigration to the US?
> the current situation is creating a class of employees who are one step above indentured servitude.
Hear, hear.
Because permanent status is years away (or not attainable) your home and your health are in the hands of the employer. The step above is, above, but not by much.