This thread is so full of misinformation and half truths that I feel compelled to write a response.
It is such a strange thing to see a group that one belongs to be vilified online, its made stranger by the fact that not one person I meet on a day to day basis has made me feel like I did not belong as a legal immigrant to the US, but not a day goes by that I don't read a criticism/vilification of the H1B visa program and holder
Usually do not post on this forum (though I've been here both on this forum and in the Triangle for almost a decade), and steer clear of immigration related threads/topics for fear of doxxing myself and also cause these issues are so so close and personal to my life (I am a dreaded H1B holder). But the mis-information from posters who I otherwise find myself agreeing with was just too much for me to read.
Firstly, is there H1B fraud/abuse, yes. Is it a problem that needs legislative attention to tighten the screws on abuse, absolutely. But there is also fraud in social security, medicare (or any private health insurance for that matter), that does not mean any those programs need to be completely scrapped.
Secondly I agree, this particular instance of abuse, is terrible and deserves harsh punishment.
The reality of the legal immigration system (of which H1B is a part) is so complex that it would be impossible for me to do justice to it completely, but I will try to address some of the most common myths that I see quoted here regularly (and elsewhere in public/online discourse).
1. There are (roughly) two types of companies that employ H1B holders, outsourcing "services" based companies and american "product based" ones. The salaries, work and even the kind of employee these two types of companies hire is worlds apart. The average american including those posting here can't (or refuse to) tell the difference. Here is 2018's
Top H1B employers.. In the interest of full disclosure I work for one of the (non outsourcing) employers on that list.
2. The outsourcing companies that get vilified the most, perhaps rightly so, they usually do not file for green-cards/permanent-residency for their employees (or file them after many years) who are usually brought "on-site" directly from India (or other lower cost countries). These companies usually follow the law in letter (if not always in spirit), they oppose any immigration reform (the current slow/deadlocked legal immigration system works great for them and their business model). Their business revolves around lowering costs for the parent company (like Disney, or Bank of America) that hires them, providing those companies with a fluid and lower-cost work-force.
3. Despite all their problems, what most folks do not seem to understand is that if you eliminate these companies, it will not magically bring those jobs back to the USA. It will just make the pace of outsourcing faster, it will mean larger back-offices in India, China, Vietnam etc and every client meeting done over video-conferencing.
4. The product based american companies are looking to hire the best employees they can get their hands on (typically from top american universities), innovation and technical chops are integral to their business model.
5. They do not underpay H1B workers, and file for permanent residency for foreign workers immediately or within a year (and those benefits are part of the employment agreement).
6. It costs such a company more to have an immigrant worker than an american citizen (for example my employer spends roughly $10K/year on immigration lawyer costs on my behalf).
7. I have been on hiring committees for the last 5 years at my employer, the bar is SIGNIFICANTLY lower (as it should be) if you are an american citizen/resident who does not need immigration help. When hiring american citizens the requirement is just "can this person learn" . The bar for a visa holder is "has this person already learnt" (this is from my experiences at two different employers on that list)
8. Lastly, due to the
unfair and arbitrary caps on employment based green cards. American immigrants born in India (~10-20 years) and China (~3-6 years) have incredibly long wait times for permanent residency, whereas those born in other counties get residency within a year roughly. Leaving us stuck in a perennial "H1B visa" state, instead of allowing us to transition smoothly into permanent residency.
I've been waiting for my residency petition to get approved for 6 years now, and will likely wait another 5 at a minimum. Whilst graduate school friends from Iran, Sri-Lanka, Saudi-Arabia, Lebanon and even China have become permanent residents in same time and are beginning the process to become full citizens.
9. The current administration has made the life of H1B visa holders (at both types of companies) miserable. It has become impossible to change jobs, or even continue to get one's visa approved. This actually has the potential of adversely affecting wages (as H1B holders decide not to risk changing jobs). It has led my employer to relocate all (~10) affected employees to the office of their choice (most have headed to Canada some to India/China). The end result of this is just a loss to the American economy and tax payer.
10. Go to any university and you will find professors from India and China, look at upper echelons of top tech companies ( Microsoft and Google for example) you are looking at folks who were once H1B holders. If you want to eliminate this program those are also the kind of people you are closing America's doors to.
If you want to admit it or not, legal immigration is one part of the secret sauce of America. The system needs improvement, perhaps a change to a more merit based system. I'm more than willing to acknowledge and discuss that, but this random vilification of the program and visa holders, that seems pointless and short sighted.
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