Posted on 10/06/2004 2:27:43 PM PDT by JesseHousman
The U.S. used up its supply of 65,000 temporary visas for skilled foreign workers in a single day. Advocates for raising the quota said that bolstered their case.
South Florida businesses that rely on talented foreign workers to fill technical positions are out of luck until next October -- unless they have an applicant already in the pipeline.
Federal officials closed the 2005 application window for highly coveted foreign professional visas just hours after it opened.
The unprecedented rush for temporary visas for those skilled foreign workers demonstrates U.S. companies' pent-up demand for candidates in such technical fields as engineering, mathematics and research. And, South Florida experts say, it increases the likelihood that companies will outsource jobs overseas.
''It means, unfortunately, that employers here will have less options in terms of hiring,'' Deborah Vazquez, chief executive of the Miami-Dade and Broward County recruiting firm Protech, told The Herald. ``We will have fewer candidates, [less] talent in a situation in which demand very much outstrips supply.''
The quota of 65,000 ''H-1B'' visas was filled Friday, the first day of the 2005 fiscal year, meaning that U.S. companies must wait until October 2005 to hire more foreign workers under the visas.
Until two years ago, the government issued 195,000 of the visas annually. The allotment was slashed because of increased restrictions on immigration following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Job losses in the computer and high-tech sectors have made legislators reluctant to reinstate the bigger quota, even though U.S. companies have argued that most of the jobs filled are outside those sectors.
''It was a real wake-up call when these numbers were issued,'' said Sandra Boyd, who chairs Compete America, a corporate coalition pushing for more H-1B visas. ``I don't think anyone believes it's acceptable that a whole year can now go by without any access to these people.''
The H-1B visas have been popular with U.S. companies, which maintain that they cannot find enough American workers with advanced scientific and engineering degrees to fill critical jobs. Last year, the 65,000-worker cap was hit in February 2004, about five months into the fiscal year.
Tammy Fox-Isicoff, a Miami immigration attorney who helps foreign professionals get H-1Bs, said lawmakers must raise the visa cap again or ''carve out exceptions'' for disaster areas like Florida after the hurricanes or for professions with employee shortages such as teachers or healthcare professionals.
''This situation is terrible that when the doors open to H-1Bs, it swings shut on the same day,'' Fox-Isicoff said in an interview with The Herald. ``It's not good for American business.''
Companies were allowed to submit applications against this year's quota in April.
Theodore Ruthizer, who heads the business immigration practice at Kramer Levin, a New York law firm, predicted that the scarcity of slots will worsen unless Congress expands the program.
''It just proves the numbers are inadequate,'' he told The Financial Times.
U.S. companies have been urging Congress to adopt an interim measure by exempting from the quota any foreign national holding an advanced degree from a U.S. school. That would add about 20,000 positions a year.
About two-thirds of students taking advanced mathematics and engineering degrees at U.S. schools are foreign born. U.S. companies say they will be at a disadvantage should those students go to work for overseas competitors.
And immigrant-rich South Florida has a large share of that talent.
''We have so many universities here with foreign students who come and graduate and look for jobs in the area,'' Andrew Koerner, a partner with the Leaf Koerner law firm in Miami, told The Herald. ``It's just sad to see these small-business owners suddenly stopped from being able to grow their businesses.''
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© 2004 Herald.com and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved. http://www.miami.com
Maybe not cheaper. I've met some in IT who migrated here around 6 years ago and at that time they were earning $70K or more a year.
In this age relocation has become a staple of employment. It's always worked for me.
This is such a crock. There is no demand - pent-up or otherwise - for engineers in the United States right now, and hasn't been for about fifteen years.
But there are no jobs for us Americans here.
Do what I did when I couldn't find a job in my home state: MOVE!
Reminds me of when a former neighbor, who is a manager of a tech firm and made about $80K by his own admission, boasted that engineers and technicians are getting what they deserved, and that you'll see these wages down in the 20K range. I told him that they are they lifeblood of his organization..."they are replaceable, I am not" was his reply. When I asked him how people in California can live on wages like that, he said that wasn't his problem.
Last time I ever talked to him. He did eventually take a job out of state though, though I don't know what the reason was.
"There is no such thing as a "shortage of labor", there is only a lack of willingness to pay an attractive wage"
- I can't remember
(AAADD - Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder)
I don't mind relocating, but not for $10 per hour (the going rate for powerplant engineers with ten years experience).
I have been looking for engineering work since 1995, and there are no jobs available which pay even half what I was making in the eighties.
Please don't bother advising me to retrain, either. I already know more than I will ever be able to use.
Excellent point!
In general, if you are in a small area and jobs dry up, moving has a higher priority. But if people living in established areas can't find jobs (recession, outsourcing/offshoring, whatever) and moving becomes more of the norm, repetitively, then what does that say about the quality of life? Do families constantly have to keep pulling up roots?
This post hit a sore nerve with me. Twice in the last several years, I knew people who were laid off due to the company getting an H-1 Visa for a guy from India. One of the people laid off was my brother in law. He got the "your good, but __________ is cheaper" speech, and "we have a duty to our stockholders".
I only see this getting worse under a Democratic administration.
"I worked with eritreans" Are they any relation to Elbonians?
Errrrr.... and how many of those immigrants do you think posses an H1-B Visa?
I think you're correlating two very unrelated issues.
Engineers include more than just IT though.
True, but at the end of the Visa, back to where they came from, if the visa is not renewed.
When my mother and her family immigrated to the US from Italy in the 50s they had to have a sponsor and a job waiting to ensure they would not become dependent on the government. How times have changed.
I forgot to add, it was very difficult to come to the US. Many wanted to but not all were allowed in. The quotas were much more restrictive.
At what point does protectionism become a positive direction?
For example, the US Constitution forbids a naturalized foreign-born person from becoming the president. This is a variety of protectionism preventing our loss of national sovereignty.
It is a safe assumption that there are many foreign born engineers who will work for less money than our citizens would.
Why not have pure open borders and permit open bidding for the available jobs?
When does being an American citizen become a benefit in one's own country?
BS...My husband and I own a local oilfield trucking company. We have 4 driver positions available and have been trying to fill them for over 6 months. It may not be an engineering job, but our employees have some really good benefits and their pay ain't too shabby either.
I have advertised in all the area newspapers to no avail. There are gobs of truck driver jobs available around here, but no one to fill them.
So don't say there are no jobs for Americans, cause I'll argue with you every minute of the day over that statement.
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