Biden Lets Trump's H-1B Visa Ban Expire

[DEAD7]

Biden Lets Trump's H-1B Visa Ban Expire

In an update on Thursday, the US Department of State said visa applicants who were previously refused due to Trump's freeze may reapply by submitting a new application. Visa applicants who have not yet been interviewed will have their applications prioritized and processed under the State Department's phased resumption plan. The Trump administration in June 2020 stopped the government issuing H-1B visas through an an executive order linked to the coronavirus pandemic. In October, Trump then placed new restrictions on H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers -- rules that were struck down by a federal judge in December who said the administration failed to show "good cause" for issuing the rules on an emergency basis.

Bloomberg adds:
Biden's decision will please business groups from Silicon Valley giants to India's IT services leaders, which had pressured the administration to lift the ban ever since the new president took office. Executives have grown frustrated that the directive was not immediately revoked, arguing it hurt U.S. companies. American tech firms, from Facebook to Google, rely on foreign talent to shore up domestic workforces. Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services traditionally dispatch Indian software engineers to work in tandem with their American clients, which include some of the largest Wall Street banks and technology corporations. It remains unclear whether Biden will ease visa restrictions in general, reversing curbs imposed by the former Trump administration.

 

[null]

Biden Lets Trump's H-1B Visa Ban Expire

In an update on Thursday, the US Department of State said visa applicants who were previously refused due to Trump's freeze may reapply by submitting a new application. Visa applicants who have not yet been interviewed will have their applications prioritized and processed under the State Department's phased resumption plan. The Trump administration in June 2020 stopped the government issuing H-1B visas through an an executive order linked to the coronavirus pandemic. In October, Trump then placed new restrictions on H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers -- rules that were struck down by a federal judge in December who said the administration failed to show "good cause" for issuing the rules on an emergency basis.

Bloomberg adds:
Biden's decision will please business groups from Silicon Valley giants to India's IT services leaders, which had pressured the administration to lift the ban ever since the new president took office. Executives have grown frustrated that the directive was not immediately revoked, arguing it hurt U.S. companies. American tech firms, from Facebook to Google, rely on foreign talent to shore up domestic workforces. Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services traditionally dispatch Indian software engineers to work in tandem with their American clients, which include some of the largest Wall Street banks and technology corporations. It remains unclear whether Biden will ease visa restrictions in general, reversing curbs imposed by the former Trump administration.

"shore up domestic workforces"

 

[Dr. Acula]

"shore up domestic workforces"

It is bullshyt. If it was not for Trump's horrible handling of the coronavirus, I was ready to not vote for president. I still stand by that despite all the bullshyt with Trump because, and this is what will kill Democrats in the future if its not addressed, the left has allowed itself to become manipulated by corporations as it relates to racial and social justice issues. See, this issue can easily be spun as being racially blind or culturally blind hiring based on merit when a lot of its done only because its saves companies money. Companies would not bother with the process of sponsoring these people if there wasn't something financially that benefitted them.

There is not a shortage of STEM workers in the US. These corporations instead prefer to hire H1Bs when they can to save cost and also as a way to have more power over the workers. Trump and a lot of conservatives have a lot of the right ideas as it relates to H1B visa abuse and its one thing I find myself agreeing with them on. Hell, Ted Cruz had one of the best ideas about it a few years ago where he recommended upping the minimum salaries for H1B hires from 60k to 100k or at the very least it has to match exactly to the market rate for a position in the area the hire takes place.

My girlfriend has an engineering degree and currently doing work not related to her degree and the job hunt in her field for her is brutal despite having a good GPA. If there was a shortage, she should be working as an engineer right now.

 

[MushroomX]

The H-1B is one of those things that while started off with good intentions, has spiraled into something that is abused. It's something that shouldn't be taken away completely, but you really need to force companies to hire American workers but that won't happen because that would mean salaries and benefits.

 

[null]

It is bullshyt. If it was not for Trump's horrible handling of the coronavirus, I was ready to not vote for president. I still stand by that despite all the bullshyt with Trump because, and this is what will kill Democrats in the future if its not addressed, the left has allowed itself to become manipulated by corporations as it relates to racial and social justice issues. See, this issue can easily be spun as being racially blind or culturally blind hiring based on merit when a lot of its done only because its saves companies money. Companies would not bother with the process of sponsoring these people if there wasn't something financially that benefitted them.

There is not a shortage of STEM workers in the US. These corporations instead prefer to hire H1Bs when they can to save cost and also as a way to have more power over the workers. Trump and a lot of conservatives have a lot of the right ideas as it relates to H1B visa abuse and its one thing I find myself agreeing with them on. Hell, Ted Cruz had one of the best ideas about it a few years ago where he recommended upping the minimum salaries for H1B hires from 60k to 100k or at the very least it has to match exactly to the market rate for a position in the area the hire takes place.

My girlfriend has an engineering degree and currently doing work not related to her degree and the job hunt in her field for her is brutal despite having a good GPA. If there was a shortage, she should be working as an engineer right now.

I think for locals (and I am not one) they want a good school + good gpa (3.2+) + track record + individual match before they pay the big bucks and invest money.

Otherwise they prefer to avoid the long-term costs of full-time staff.

In the UK it is even worse but it's disappointing to note that the same thing is happening in the USA.

Don't these larger US based companies have to hire people from all groups?

 

[Dr. Acula]

I think for locals (and I am not one) they want a good school + good gpa (3.2+) + track record + individual match before they pay the big bucks and invest money.

Otherwise they prefer to avoid the long-term costs of full-time staff.

In the UK it is even worse but it's disappointing to note that the same thing is happening in the USA.

Don't these larger US based companies have to hire people from all groups?

My understanding of the law as it is right now is all they have to do is show they made SOME effort to hire Americans first. However, it is an open secret that they can put a job posting out there, which is enough to show "effort" and then claim the applicants didn't meet the qualifications and then immediately look into hiring H1B. It could be something as small as just they can claim you asked for too high a salary on the application and don't even have to give you the option to negotiate a different salary before looking for outside hires.

I would say where H1B is used as intended 100% is probably the medical field. Its justified and the pay isn't below market value for those people often. In that case, you do have doctors who prefer to work in desireable places to live for example. So, its hard to get someone to work in some small town in the middle of nowhere and the only thing in the town worth going to is Walmart and this is where medical H1Bs are utilized to cover a legit deficit. But in IT, Engineering, and Computer Science particularly, it's a financial or business decision instead of lack of supply.

 

[DEAD7]

The H-1B is one of those things that while started off with good intentions, has spiraled into something that is abused. It's something that shouldn't be taken away completely, but you really need to force companies to hire American workers but that won't happen because that would mean salaries and benefits.