Since past few years, many senators and think tanks in the US have been grumpy over the abuse of H-1B Visas by the multinational IT firms. After the US President Donald Trump came up with the ‘Buy American, Hire American’ initiative, many IT companies are being forced to hire American talent.
As a part of Trump’s election promises, the US is reportedly trying to bring some prominent changes in regulations, aiming to prevent the misuse of H1B visas. Earlier, there was a debate regarding the cut-down of H1 B visas and unofficial statistics from last few months show the sign of fall in H1B filings by US organizations.
The new proposal which is likely to become act, targets employees with H1B visas staying in the US after getting their visas renewed for maximum number of times (upto six years) and getting ‘indefinite renewals’ after that with their ‘pending Green card status’. The proposal prevents granting extension for them after six year term and also for those who already have a green card.
If it is accepted by the DHS and approved in the Senate, thousands of immigrants are bound to leave the US. For many decades, the US IT companies hired Indian workers and paid them less. With this law into practice, these IT companies would be forced to hire American workers, over immigrant Indians in the coming future.
Effect on Indian Immigrants
Tens of thousands of employees are hired by the US companies from countries like India and China annually. The US companies claim that they cannot find the ‘talent pool’ in the nation [the US], given the academic structure and other factors. But think tanks and pro-nationals have been long arguing about the low wages, which the US companies get away paying to the immigrant workers.
The H-1B Visa is a non-immigrant visa. Under the Obama administration, the USCIS (the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) issued EAD to qualified H4 Visa holders. Under the new regulations, a non-US citizen is temporarily allowed to work in the US. But, Donald Trump stated that he is looking to repeal the H4 Visa EAD, thus effecting employment of thousands of H1B Visa dependents working in the US.
Over a million green card applications are in pending for over a decade with the US DHS. Nearly half of them belongs to Indians who are currently working in the US on an H-1B Visa. This move is being made to ensure the immigrants ‘self-deport’ themselves, thereby creating a vacuum of IT jobs in the US. The unemployment rate is likely to come down, with the US companies being forced to recruit local talent.
What are the US Firms are saying?
The US IT firms have been highly vocal in rejecting the proposal from Trump. The US companies usually hire Indian immigrants paying them lower wages [by at least 30%], in comparison to an average Amercian, for the same job. Employing an American employee, not only burdens the company’s net profit but also impacts the workload, forcing them to hire more employees.
Leon Frasco, former Deputy Assistant General for the Justice Department, in the Obama Administration termed the recent happenings as ‘catastrophic developments’.
Frasco added, ‘there are thousands of people who are waiting for the approval of their green card. They have US citizen children, an own car and an own home’.
With the current proposal underway, Donald Trump might look like a hero to the US citizens, and as a Villan to the US IT firms. His move might reduce the unemployment rates in the US, which have been at an all-time high since last two years, but this move is more or less likely to cause more troubles to the Indian immigrant workers in the US.
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