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Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

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Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#31
post #25

This is bullshit. Here's actual data: http://www.businessweek.com/table/08/0305_h1b.htm More (I don't know the source, but seems correct): http://www.myvisajobs.com/Top_Visa_Sponsors.aspx Lookit, a lot of the H1-B slots are being taken up by consulting firms. We don't have a shortage of H1-Bs; we just allocate them poorly. That's what we need to fix. As to the (what I consider a minor) founding issue, that's pretty s…

I agree. This is like trying to fix the high rate of injuries by getting more band-aids. To me it seems the article is advocating changing the legislation to make it more convenient for immigrant workers. That is of course followed by a stern warning to us 'xenophobes' that if we don't our economy will be ruined. They should instead advocate for punishing large corporations for gaming the system, underpaying H1-B emp…

Consider this, though. Even the most qualified H1-B candidate can end up getting paid less than they should simply because of the way the green card application process works.

Once an H1-B holder has filed for a GC, they can't be switch employers or be promoted. Since most companies have pay caps based on job title, this means the H1-B holder can't get raises past a certain point. The end result of all this is you have H1-B "junior engineers" who've worked at the same company for 5+ years really doing the job of a intermediate/senior engineer.

The joke is that the company is not "gaming the system" at all. By not promoting someone with an outstanding GC application, they're doing exactly what the law requires of them.

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#32
post #20
post #3

> Hundreds of thousands of mostly very smart and highly educated workers who could be starting companies are not. Alright, but millions of Americans could be starting companies as well, but are not. In fact, America is _not_ as an entrepreneurial country with lots of little small business owners as we'd like to think. That is the propaganda bullshit we get fed on every election cycle "we got help America's small busi…

> (from the article) I have a suggestion for our President on how to boost economic growth without spending a penny: Really? What about the additional man power needed to process the "millions" of pending applications?

Reassign the people now enforcing/renewing H1-Bs? (If I understand the proposal correctly, all existing H1-Bs become green cards by fiat, obviating a lot paper-pushing.)

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#33
post #2

This is a very biased article. The author neglects to mention that a very large portion of income generated by foreign born workers is sent home by those workers. The money doesn't stay in America to benefit the American economy. It also doesn't benefit the case to call those opposed to more immigration Xenophobes . They aren't xenophobes, they are rationally aware of the situation. Also, what he says is not true acc…

The reality is that very, very few highly skilled technical people, even people like Jerry Yang or Sergey Brin would have qualified for O-1 visas if they had needed to try. It's also indisputable that Yahoo! and Google have each generated a lot of jobs an a lot of tax revenues for the US.

The following is from Wikipedia:

Generally, to qualify for O-1 classification, aliens of extraordinary ability in the sciences, education, business, or athletics must demonstrate sustained national or international acclaim and recognition for achievements in the field of expertise by providing evidence of:

Receipt of a major, internationally recognized award, such as the Nobel Prize; or at least three of the following forms of documentation:

   1. Documentation of the alien's receipt of nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence in the field of endeavor;
   2. Documentation of the alien's membership in associations in the field for which classification is sought, which require outstanding achievements of their members, as judged by recognized national or international experts in their disciplines or fields;
   3. Published material in professional or major trade publications or major media about the alien, relating to the alien's work in the field for which classification is sought, which shall include the title, date, and author of such published material, and any necessary translation;
   4. Evidence of the alien's participation on a panel, or individually, as a judge of the work of others in the same or in an allied field of specialization to that for which classification is sought;
   5. Evidence of the alien's original scientific, scholarly, or business-related contributions of major significance in the field;
   6. Evidence of the alien's authorship of scholarly articles in the field, in professional journals, or other major media;
   7. Evidence that the alien has been employed in a critical or essential capacity for organizations and establishments that have a distinguished reputation;
   8. Evidence that the alien has either commanded a high salary or will command a high salary or other remuneration for services, evidenced by contracts or other reliable evidence.

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#34
To protect their populations against internal and external threats and revolts, Sparta - the ancient Greek city-state made a few decisions.

1. Every Spartan citizen has to join the army and train since childhood to become the best fighter possible. Weaklings are killed at birth.

2. The currency of Spartans was changed to heavy iron bars. Prevented folks from other neighbouring city-states from doing business with Spartans.

This made Sparta very independent. And their citizens became the best fighters the world had ever seen. People looked up to them in awe. Poems are written about them.

But these same protectionist rules that made Sparta glorious for little time, led to Sparta decline in the long run.

Populations declines. Wealth declines. Progress declines.

Moral of the story has always been: protectionism brings short term benefits but long term doom.

But yet we'll always see the majority of the people rooting for protectionism for short term progress.

(I'm pretty sure I'll be slammed for this post because there is no direct relation or parallels between Spartan policies and American policies. Time was different. Threats were different. Rules were different. But I had to write it to make a point against general protectionism. And not against any specific American policy including the one being talked about here - restricting H1-Bs.)

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#35
post #11
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's two issues here -- one is that there's a brain drain in the United States. The best and the brightest are leaving. They can't stay, because we won't let them. The fix is letting them, by reforming H1B policies. Second is H1B abuse by large corporations. This is a legit problem -- some IT firms bring in people they shouldn't (sometimes thousands at a time), and this takes up H1B's from talented people who shou…

i don't buy the brain drain issue, sure there are probably some geniuses in the millions of H1B people, but majority are not that much better than the average American worker. So out of those few geniuses, what tiny percentage leaves? They aren't leaving for the sake of leaving, they are leaving to exploit the opportunities in their home countries

The emigration of even a "tiny percentage" of geniuses is a great loss -- they're geniuses!

And if the "majority" are "not that much better than the average American worker" -- but still just a little better -- why can't they stay? Everyone above average brings up the average -- why not have them producing great stuff here rather than elsewhere?

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#36
post #26
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All economies depend on trade and division of labors to be prosperous. So money going back to India and other countries may help increase global trade.

It's nice to help India's economy, or China or Russia. Unfortunately, US is not in the charitable business of helping developing economies.

You did not clearly understood the implication of "trade" part.

If trade is central to the wealth of society, then more trading with other economies of the world will lead to increased wealth in the US.

In fact, we have the largest free trade zone right here in the US. Goods and services in the US, for the most part, move freely.

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#37

This is bullshit. Here's actual data: http://www.businessweek.com/table/08/0305_h1b.htm More (I don't know the source, but seems correct): http://www.myvisajobs.com/Top_Visa_Sponsors.aspx Lookit, a lot of the H1-B slots are being taken up by consulting firms. We don't have a shortage of H1-Bs; we just allocate them poorly. That's what we need to fix. As to the (what I consider a minor) founding issue, that's pretty s…

Did you read the article? He's not saying to increase the number of H1-B's, he's saying to increase the speed at which they can convert to permanent residents with green cards.

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#38
This article and all others on the topic seem to confuse two different trends: 1> That there is a real incentive for the very best to return to India and China because they are self-confident and know that they can thrive anywhere, and 2> That the current H1-B regime (read indentured labor) is abused by corporations, especially IT outsourcers to bring in bodies. In my case, after a PhD at a top 5 engineering school and a 7 year wait at a Fortune 500 company, I finally got a Green card. I started a company within a month of that, we have over 100 employees (all in the US) and we are hiring today. The generation of PhD's before me used to get their Green Cards in three months. I see a lot of my friends now contemplating a return to India and China. I think this is bad for the US and bad for Silicon Valley. It basically comes down to this, in intellectual fields, the most productive workers are 10X better than the median. Multiple that with a 10X tolerance for risk (which a lot of immigrants with much lower fixed costs and lower expectations from life tend to have) and you are talking about losing someone who is 100X more valuable (in economic terms) than the average worker. If we don't figure out who these people are and insist on having them wait in the H1B line along with everyone else, we are doing ourselves a great disservice. BTW my cofounder is American, also falls in the 100X category - so this is not a statement about "all Chinese/Indians are superior to all Americans". His daughters are learning Chinese as a backup plan. By mixing legal with illegal immigration (due to the relative strength of some of the lobbies) and uber-skilled with somewhat skilled immigration, we are creating a mess.

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#39
post #34

To protect their populations against internal and external threats and revolts, Sparta - the ancient Greek city-state made a few decisions. 1. Every Spartan citizen has to join the army and train since childhood to become the best fighter possible. Weaklings are killed at birth. 2. The currency of Spartans was changed to heavy iron bars. Prevented folks from other neighbouring city-states from doing business with Spa…

But these same protectionist rules that made Sparta glorious for little time, led to Sparta decline in the long run.

What did for the Spartans was all dying glorious deaths before having enough kids. The Spartan economy, operated by the Perioikoi and Helots, was strong enough, but it relied on there being a critical mass of adult male Spartans to maintain it. Protectionism was little to do with the fall - the Perioikoi could trade with whomever they pleased.

Re: Free the H-1Bs, Free the Economy

#40
post #39
post #34

To protect their populations against internal and external threats and revolts, Sparta - the ancient Greek city-state made a few decisions. 1. Every Spartan citizen has to join the army and train since childhood to become the best fighter possible. Weaklings are killed at birth. 2. The currency of Spartans was changed to heavy iron bars. Prevented folks from other neighbouring city-states from doing business with Spa…

But these same protectionist rules that made Sparta glorious for little time, led to Sparta decline in the long run. What did for the Spartans was all dying glorious deaths before having enough kids. The Spartan economy, operated by the Perioikoi and Helots, was strong enough, but it relied on there being a critical mass of adult male Spartans to maintain it. Protectionism was little to do with the fall - the Perioik…

1. Yes but Spartan rules of being killer fighters made immigration impossible.

2. The Perioikoi could trade with whomever they pleased - but - but no one wanted to trade with them because of the iron slabs being used as currency of exchange.

Dig a little deeper into the motives as to why such rules were made by the Spartans and you will see that it was pure protectionism.

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