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Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

realclearpolitics.com

61–70 of 73 posts

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#61
post #36
post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

L1, H1B1, O1, etc.

Unless you already work at the company you can't get a L1. And H1B1s are for Singaporean and Chileans only. Hardly a meaningful impact on the US immigration system. TN for Canadians & Mexicans are not visa and don't allow immigration intent. Getting an O1 visa is non-trivial (otherwise all the people who don't get H1B's would get one) The wait for getting a green card based on a job application is very long - practic…

Also:

- L1 is non-transferable

- H1B1 also does not lead to a green card. To get a green card you need to switch to H1B

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#62
Economy follows the path of least resistance and cheaper labor through H-1B is that path now.

But taking away visas does not mean everyone will happily employ local computer science graduates. This is what is more likely to happen:

- Coding camps have lower requirements (notably cost), graduate people faster, and are proliferating quickly. Those will drive wages down.

- Investment will start going to other countries.

If one company doesn't do it, another one does and prevails in the market.

As an engineer, the only way to stay competitive is to demonstrate added technical value or actual technical leadership.

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#63
post #6

As an american (born and raised) I dislike what has come of the HB1 program for many of the reasons that the author points out. I have quite a few friends on HB1 who have a hard path to citizenship, we need to make it easier for these talented people to get out from under the HB1 thumb and stay here as well. Attracting and keeping talent needs to be a bigger priority than it is.

You lost me at HB1.

It's H1B, not HB1, bruh.

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#64
post #6

As an american (born and raised) I dislike what has come of the HB1 program for many of the reasons that the author points out. I have quite a few friends on HB1 who have a hard path to citizenship, we need to make it easier for these talented people to get out from under the HB1 thumb and stay here as well. Attracting and keeping talent needs to be a bigger priority than it is.

You lost me at HB1. It's H1B, not HB1, bruh.

[deleted]

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#65
> Those are the federal waivers handed out to highly trained workers in fields such as technology who don’t plan to immigrate here.

Actually large numbers of people on the H-1B do immigrate. It's a dual intent visa, you can start the green card process while on it.

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#66
post #32

The H1B program needs to be ended immediately. It's an outrageous giveaway to corporations. It represents deliberate attempt to reduce the relative price of labor in the American economy.

Amen. People say there is a shortage of skilled labor. I just came out of a prestigious public CA university and can't find a job that pays a living wage. If coming out of a CS program with internships and I still don't have the skills maybe these companies should invest in training me as an entry level worker.

> If coming out of a CS program with internships and I still don't have the skills maybe these companies should invest in training me as an entry level worker.

I came out of an unknown school with no internships and got a big company to give me an entry level job at 100k+/year. I don't say this to be rude, but maybe the problem is you and you should look at what you can do to fix things.

If you aren't getting interviews maybe it is your resume, if you aren't passing interviews maybe it's your interview skills (I'm going through this now, as mine have rusted a lot and it really does suck).

Again, I don't mean to pick on you. I really have no idea what the actual situation is. Good luck.

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#67
post #60
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But that hasn't happened. Tech jobs have only increased in value. We still need more tech workers, and can't train them fast enough. Instead, we should be forcing citizenship on workers, encouraging them to stay here, start a family, etc. These are among the smartest and well-educated people in their former countries, and we have space for them.

I find it odd that "we" can't train them fast enough but India can. (Ignoring other countries, as India is by far the biggest share here). What is so magical about a developing nation with a billion people living in poverty that allows them to solve them problem and prevents us from solving it too? Further, why is nobody asking this question, instead of just saying we can't do it?

Because corporations are absolutely servile to the bottom line. They have no concept of national pride or taking care of the nation's workforce. They just want to pad shareholder wallets: and they don't give a flying fuck about the quality or nationality of the code.

"But we just need so many workers" is the classic bourgeoisie line uttered a thousand times before. Globalization is ugly, H1B Visas are ugly and it should be ended immediately.

Invest in Americans first. Always.

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#68
post #18
post #10

The H1-B visa program sucks. It indentures the immigrant to their employer. If their job sucks their options are really limited.

You can change jobs on an H1B, if you're planning on working in the US it's probably your best option unless you can quality for an O1. I can tell you most people on an E2, an L1 or comparable visa would give their left arm to be on an H1B if they have any intent to stay in the US.

I realize it's the best option right now, but it's terrible. That's my point. The system is awful.

Theoretically you can change jobs but only to another employer who is in a position to sponsor your H1B. Which really limits your options, and doesn't likely move you into a better scenario because the new employer still has a distinct advantage over you (they are the one allowing you to stay in the country.)

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#69
post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Amen. People say there is a shortage of skilled labor. I just came out of a prestigious public CA university and can't find a job that pays a living wage. If coming out of a CS program with internships and I still don't have the skills maybe these companies should invest in training me as an entry level worker.

> If coming out of a CS program with internships and I still don't have the skills maybe these companies should invest in training me as an entry level worker. I came out of an unknown school with no internships and got a big company to give me an entry level job at 100k+/year. I don't say this to be rude, but maybe the problem is you and you should look at what you can do to fix things. If you aren't getting intervi…

I second this and if you are in the Bay Area and not getting a job, you seriously need to look at what's wrong in your approach.

Re: Don't Give Silicon Valley More H1B Visas

#70
post #34

I don't understand H1B visa program. Shouldn't we be forcing the H1B grantees to become citizens? Instead, we're training them on how to be a modern tech worker, and then shipping them back to where they came once the job is over (assuming that they can't line up another company to foot the legal bills of taking over their visa). Why? We have 700,000 new citizens every year. Let's make H1B part of the path-to-citizen…

So, what the author of the article gets wrong is how many H1Bs want to be citizens and how hard it is to become one. Currently for anyone who starts their immigration process, it takes anywhere between 7-15 years to get a green card if you are a citizen of India or China and are already employed here.
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