Posted on 03/14/2006 8:24:36 PM PST by nickcarraway
US Congress is likely to take up a giant immigration bill this month, which recommends nearly doubling the number of H-1B skilled-worker temporary visas to 115,000.
The measures include not just increasing the number of visas but also add an option of raising the cap 20 per cent more each year.
If passed, the provisions buried in the Senate's giant immigration bill, would open the country's doors to highly skilled immigrants for science, math, technology and engineering jobs.
The provisions were sought by Silicon Valley tech companies and enjoy significant bipartisan support amid concern that the United States might lose its lead in technology.
They would broaden avenues to legal immigration for foreign tech workers and would put those with advanced degrees on an automatic path to permanent residence should they want it, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
H-1B visas were highly controversial in the Bay Area when their numbers reached a peak of 195,000 in 2003.
The new skilled immigration measures are part of a controversial 300-page bill by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa, now being rewritten by the committee with the goal of reaching the Senate floor by the end of the month.
Other provisions include a new F-4 visa category for students pursuing advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics.
These students would be granted permanent residence if they find a job in their field and pay a $1,000 fee toward scholarships and training of US workers.
Congress had increased the visas during the late 1990s dot-com boom, when Silicon Valley complained of tech-worker shortages, although native-born engineers complained that their wages were undermined by cheap labour from India and China.
With the tech crash and the revelation that some of the September 11, 2001, hijackers had entered the country on student visas, the political climate for foreign workers darkened, and Congress quietly allowed the number of H-1B visas to plummet back to 65,000 a year.
The cap was reached in August -- in effect turning off the tap of the visas for 14 months. A special exemption of 20,000 visas for workers with advanced degrees was reached in January.
"We're in a bad crunch right now," said Laura Reiff, head of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition, a business umbrella group backing more immigration. "We are totally jammed on immigrant visas, the green card category, and totally jammed on H-1B visas. You can't bring in tech workers right now."
The provisions for highly skilled workers enjoy support in both parties in the Senate and in the Bush administration after a raft of high-profile studies have warned that the United States is not producing enough math and science students and is in danger of losing its global edge in innovation to India and China.
However, opponents of broadening immigration for skilled workers said doing so would defeat efforts to get more Americans interested in science, math, engineering and other technological fields.
Whatever happened to Invest in America (and Americans)?
Every H1-B visa is an opportunity for a skilled high-wage job a US citizen doesn't get.
Oh don't worry. Those high paying, secure jobs are "jobs Americans won't do!"
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Whose gosh-dammed fault is that? The same Congre$$ that sits on its dead arse while we are invaded across 2 borders constantly, yet rewards all comers with benefits and then wonders why it can't teach Johnny to read as it cares for a fifth of Mexico's and other countries donor "migrants" to the US ? It's called Priorities.. this country needs to get some before it has no options left... nor any elected officials willing to go to bat for America FiRst and not the global vision thing.
Our politicians SUCK! EVERY FARKIN ONE OF EM!
I think the Dems are right. Big Business and their country own and run this country, NOT, "We The People". We don't count for squat!
The flip side:
Every H1-B visa is an opportunity for an American business to bring a product to service to market at a lower cost with a better chance of success.
Duh! "and their MONEY", not country
Oh no! Words like this may upset socialists on this board. The next thing you are going to say that capitalism works. Then we both are going to be in trouble.
FYI, some recent immigrants include Jerry Yang (Taiwan) co founder of Yahoo and worth 2 billion, Sergei Brin (russia) co founder of Google and worth 12 billion, and Rupert Murdoch, founder of fox news.
None of these guys had anything to do with your parents legacy. In fact, I think they improved on it.
And maybe we get to keep the H-1B worker if he gets his green card, and maybe even gets naturalized as a citizen. We're not talking about produce-pickers, after all.
And who, pray tell, is going to have the money to be able to purchase said product? Not Americans, and Indians/Chinese etc. don't care about the American economy.
Why would anyone in this country want to become skilled anymore if the jobs are going to be given out to cheaper skilled workers from another country?
Laugh. If you think this is typical, you're a fool.
Maybe you can get a job detailing their cars...
Wait a minute. Are these guys paid well enough to have their cars detailed, or not?
My point, somewhat obliquely stated, was that this is America. The smartest and most aggressive wins. You shouldn't count on a legacy, which is just another word for the arrogance of sense of entitlement.
Lazy students who don't want to take on the challenge of math and science courses and instead go on to major in women's studies and sociology, that's whose fault it is.
That's right: THE US DOESN'T GRADUATE ENOUGH MATH AND SCIENCE STUDENTS BECAUSE THE STUDENTS DON'T WANT TO TAKE THEM AND DON'T WANT THE CHALLENGE. They're used to entitlement, they're used to getting something for nothing, and they sure as heck don't want to hit the books when they can have more time to party, and besides they don't want to be seen as nerds. And that is their perogative.
But don't demand inflated wages just to get a few more Americans interested, when US companies are trying to compete globally. It's the union mentality all over again. Make jobs in the US as high-paying as possible until they all disappear because we're at a competitive disadvantage.
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