Can the recent H-1B visa crackdown impact Local Real Estate? (China: salary, to live)

[UnfairPark]

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

The H1B program should be eliminated for low and mid-level tech workers, that's for sure. We are producing more than enough of our own people to fill those positions.

Agreed.

[ea0337]

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

The H1B program should be eliminated for low and mid-level tech workers, that's for sure. We are producing more than enough of our own people to fill those positions.

^ I sincerely hope the current H1B overhaul addresses this.

[lifofifo]

While eliminating mid-level (not sure how you define that) tech workers seem like a good idea on the surface, having more skilled tech workers only fuels the innovation. People on H1Bs only receive about 6% of the annual green cards. Most of the rest go to non-skilled categories - family, diversity etc. So instead of "eliminating" mid-level tech workers, it'd be better to give more green cards to skilled people.

H1B is not perfect. But it's certainly fixable. Currently, tons of people on H1B (1M+ if you count the families) are stuck in a green card backlog. People who've been here for 10+ years. Changing jobs is very difficult while you're in that situation and this ends up driving down the wage and promoting further abuse. Employers are incentivized with "loyal" employees who can't leave and they don't even have to give them any pay rise.

If H1Bs received more than 6% of the green cards, that'd result in higher wages for all as the workforce will be further mobilized. Employers won't have any incentive to bring over low paid workers if those workers could easily switch to a higher paying job.

[ea0337]

Originally Posted by lifofifo

While eliminating mid-level (not sure how you define that) tech workers seem like a good idea on the surface, having more skilled tech workers only fuels the innovation. People on H1Bs only receive about 6% of the annual green cards. Most of the rest go to non-skilled categories - family, diversity etc. So instead of "eliminating" mid-level tech workers, it'd be better to give more green cards to skilled people.

H1B is not perfect. But it's certainly fixable. Currently, tons of people on H1B (1M+ if you count the families) are stuck in a green card backlog. People who've been here for 10+ years. Changing jobs is very difficult while you're in that situation and this ends up driving down the wage and promoting further abuse. Employers are incentivized with "loyal" employees who can't leave and they don't even have to give them any pay rise.

If H1Bs received more than 6% of the green cards, that'd result in higher wages for all as the workforce will be further mobilized. Employers won't have any incentive to bring over low paid workers if those workers could easily switch to a higher paying job.

Stopping the flood of cheap, low-skilled tech labor from India, China will also save the labor pool from further dilution.

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by ea0337

^ I sincerely hope the current H1B overhaul addresses this.

It won't. They'll figure out a way around it very easily.

Originally Posted by lifofifo

While eliminating mid-level (not sure how you define that) tech workers seem like a good idea on the surface, having more skilled tech workers only fuels the innovation. People on H1Bs only receive about 6% of the annual green cards. Most of the rest go to non-skilled categories - family, diversity etc. So instead of "eliminating" mid-level tech workers, it'd be better to give more green cards to skilled people.

H1B is not perfect. But it's certainly fixable. Currently, tons of people on H1B (1M+ if you count the families) are stuck in a green card backlog. People who've been here for 10+ years. Changing jobs is very difficult while you're in that situation and this ends up driving down the wage and promoting further abuse. Employers are incentivized with "loyal" employees who can't leave and they don't even have to give them any pay rise.

If H1Bs received more than 6% of the green cards, that'd result in higher wages for all as the workforce will be further mobilized. Employers won't have any incentive to bring over low paid workers if those workers could easily switch to a higher paying job.

I don't think you understand what an H1B actually is. It's a non-immigrant visa. People on an H1B may eventually apply for a green card, or they may not.

Green cards have NOTHING whatsoever to do with H1B visas. Nobody said anything about eliminating or reducing green cards (another conversation for another forum). We're only talking about H1B visas.

FWIW, I don't care about anyone stuck in the green card backlog who isn't the spouse of a US citizen or the minor child of a US citizen...and they generally don't get stuck in the backlog because they do not have to wait for a visa number (look it up) in order to have their application processed.

So yeah...don't care about the backlog. USCIS is self-funding. If they want to hire more people, they have to raise visa processing fees. American taxpayers should not pay for immigrants to get visas. Ever.

[lifofifo]

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

I don't think you understand what an H1B actually is. It's a non-immigrant visa. People on an H1B may eventually apply for a green card, or they may not.

On the contrary, I know way more about H1B than you do. While it's a non-immigrant visa, it's a dual intent visa. Go look it up. And H1B -> EB2/EB3 is by the far the most common way skilled people immigrate to the US. Even those with the masters degree.

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

Green cards have NOTHING whatsoever to do with H1B visas. Nobody said anything about eliminating or reducing green cards (another conversation for another forum). We're only talking about H1B visas.

If you think green cards have nothing to do with H1Bs, you either have your head buried in the sand or you are being intellectually dishonest. On one hand, you argued that a lot of people come to study in the US only to immigrate here. On the other hand, you have absolutely no idea how they actually do it (F1 -> OPT -> H1B -> EB2).

[lifofifo]

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

So yeah...don't care about the backlog. USCIS is self-funding. If they want to hire more people, they have to raise visa processing fees. American taxpayers should not pay for immigrants to get visas. Ever.

The green card backlog also has NOTHING to do with USCIS's ability to process the visa. Please do yourself a favor and read up on green card chargeability. Might help you explain your ignorance a little better.

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by lifofifo

On the contrary, I know way more about H1B than you do. While it's a non-immigrant visa, it's a dual intent visa. Go look it up. And H1B -> EB2/EB3 is by the far the most common way skilled people immigrate to the US. Even those with the masters degree.



If you think green cards have nothing to do with H1Bs, you either have your head buried in the sand or you are being intellectually dishonest. On one hand, you argued that a lot of people come to study in the US only to immigrate here. On the other hand, you have absolutely no idea how they actually do it (F1 -> OPT -> H1B -> EB2).

Originally Posted by lifofifo

The green card backlog also has NOTHING to do with USCIS's ability to process the visa. Please do yourself a favor and read up on green card chargeability. Might help you explain your ignorance a little better.

I know exactly what an H1B is, I don't need an education from you.

I know how students get here.

You stated that the USCIS has a backlog of green card applications to process, implication being that it's bad. It isn't.

I know how long it takes people on H1Bs to get green cards and that wait times vary for nationals of different countries.

I also don't care.

We don't owe anyone a visa and I don't feel sympathy for people trying to immigrate here. Our system is far more generous and permissive than in many western nations. Our nationality laws are especially unusual.

If you're trying to change minds, you're failing at it. Hard.

[lifofifo]

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

I know exactly what an H1B is, I don't need an education from you.

Your lack of knowledge on the subject, contradictory arguments and incoherence suggested otherwise.

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

If you're trying to change minds, you're failing at it. Hard.

I'm not.

[Bp25]

While I appreciate BigDGeek's opinion on general matters around DFW, I am having a hard time with these comments. US is not just another western country, almost everyone or their ancestors immigrated here at some point. I don't think it's now fair to say that since we are already here, let's pretend further legal immigration is a bad thing.