The H-1B skilled-worker program, bringing in talent or displacing Americans?
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are championing the use of the H-1B skilled-worker visa programs to bring in talent. One argument they advanced is that we are competing against other countries in artificial intelligence development and in other technology arenas. To be able to compete with these other countries, one of the things we need to do is to bring in legal immigrants for skilled technology related professions. However, those who oppose this argument point to abuses of this program to bring in unskilled or mediocre skilled foreigners to do the jobs Americans are qualified to do.
From The Washington Post:
As Trump previews a hard-line immigration policy including militarized mass deportation of illegal immigrants, many in the tech industry are pushing him to expand legal immigration for high-skilled workers. Some argue the shift is necessary for the United States to remain competitive with China.
High-skilled immigration emerged as one of the top flash points between Trump and Silicon Valley during his first presidency. Although Trump at times acknowledged the need for American companies to recruit top talent, his administration limited the H-1B program. Stephen Miller, who helped craft some immigration policies during the first Trump administration, is returning to the White House as Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser.
The online debate reverberated among Washington lawmakers, who have long pursued ways to improve the H-1B program. Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat who represents Silicon Valley, defended Krishnan and said he supported reforming the H-1B program.
“We should celebrate that immigrants like Elon Musk, Jensen Huang and Sriram Krishnan choose to come to the United States,” he told The Washington Post. “This has fueled our economic and technology preeminence. I am glad Sriram is being appointed.”
The restrictions of H-1B visas during Trump’s first term faced fierce opposition from major tech companies. During the pandemic, Trump temporarily froze H-1B visas in a move the administration said would help Americans experiencing job loss. That same year, the Trump administration also introduced new rules tightening eligibility for H-1B visas and requiring companies to offer higher salaries to people on the visas. A federal judge later rejected some of the rules, including the salary provision.
Additional Reading:
Verma, P. & Zakrewski, C. (2024, December 27). A MAGA ‘Civil War’ on X between Musk and the far right over H-1B visas. The Washington Post. Link.
Category: Economy, Science and Technology, Society
I have no real issue with LEGAL immigration for people that want to come here, become Americans, and work for a living. I am a little curious if the push for these type Visas are to get “qualified” workers or just a mass of people that are willing to work for less pay.
H-1B skilled-worker visa programs is supposed to bring in workers that companies cannot find an American worker, anywhere, and NOT just what the company wants to pay.
This. It’s a double edged sword. If it’s used to bring in skilled people you can’t get otherwise, fantastic. If it’s used to bring in skilled people who will do the job cheaper, not so good. Didn’t Disney pull some shit like that a few years back? Replaced most of their IT people with H-1B immigrants?
How about offering training to American people who want to learn the job. I’m sure there are plenty of people who may have the background but not been offered the opportunity to expand their skill sets. Start there first.
I’m good with that.
Not in this current crop of maladroits we have to deal with. They cannot handle the idea of having to work at all for the most part.
THIS. They want to come in at 8:30 and leave ay 4:00.
I work with a lot of young folks – in tech, I do see some come in at 9 and leave at 4. But then I see them doing work at midnight, on weekends, and everywhere in-between too.
We should judge people by modern standards; folks want, and can have, flexibility. If they get their work done, I don’t care if it’s at 9:05am from an office, or 3am from a ski lodge in the Alps.
The cases are legion where large American companies brought in H-1B visa emigrants to take jobs that were being performed by higher paid US citizens. Many in Silicon Valley found they were being tasked with training their Indian replacements to take over their jobs just before they were fired. It was a great cost saver for the companies doing so.
In Vermont Bernie and the gang sold EB-5 visas to CHINA for a $500.000 investment in Vermont. We still have people in jail for it,
It can be both, obviously.
The tech companies definitely abuse the system to bring in cheap labor who are largely beholden to their employer.
And anyone who says the foreign-born talent is leaps and bounds better than American folks in tech is simply lying – there are good people everywhere… and bad people everywhere. I’ve been on interviews where a foreign candidate with a great looking resume was answering every question we had by reading a response to said question from ChatGPT.
If HR is fooled by seeing tons of foreign-born applicants claiming 20+ years of experience with a technology that’s existed for 10 years, that’s not because Americans are behind, it’s because that HR department is full of idiots, or complicit in a drive to lower personnel costs at all costs, including taking jobs from Americans.
Let’s definitely bring in exceptional people, but let’s also not claim there are none here.
Phil Monkress of All Points Logistics is all in for this visa program. For the last ten years he has had no luck in finding American workers willing to go on to military blogs and attack anyone questioning his claims of being a US Navy SEAL.