As a Human Resources professional, I see first hand how the H-1B visa and employment based green card programs actually work together to drive U.S. white collar workers from their jobs and even from their careers. To begin with, there is virtually nothing in the law that prevents employers from hiring H-1Bers for open positions even if qualified Americans are available and willing to do the work. Americans are routinely laid off and replaced with lower paid H-1Bers also. In these cases, Americans have practically no legal recourse available under current law.

H-1B is also a dual intent visa, so an employer may sponsor an H-1Ber for an EB green card for legal permanent resident status. When a company seeks to sponsor a foreign worker for an EB green card, they are required by law to demonstrate a good faith effort to recruit Americans first. This process is called labor certification. But employers routinely game the labor certification process for green card sponsorship to defraud even well qualified citizen job applicants in favor of low wage foreigners. They use fake job ads and/or bad faith interviews of American citizens to convince the federal government that they tried to find American workers first. These practices are common in high tech and even in some non-tech industries, but HR people are told to keep quiet about it or lose their jobs.

I would be in favor of a program that issues a small number of self-sponsoring green cards for truly innovative foreign nationals on a competitive basis. But very few of the H-1Bers or green card applicants that I have seen in 10 years even come close to being truly innovative. Most are just practitioners with skills that are actually quite common among the domestic workforce. The only thing special about these foreigners is that they will work for substantially less than Americans in order to have a chance to become legal permanent residents. Thus they are used by management to sweeten corporate balance sheets.

The prevailing wage regulations are supposed to insure that foreign nationals are paid the same as their American counterparts in the same job functions, but these regulations are so riddled with loopholes that they are a bad joke.

Since my work allows me to have access to salary records, I can tell you that the labor cost savings for H-1Bers and green card applicants is substantially greater than the costs of filing the applications with the government.

Citizens should demand that both the H-1B and employment based green card programs be abolished in their current form.

Answer: Rupert Murdoch! See, I remember from ‘in the day’ when migrants asked to come in, spent 7 years and THEN had to take a test to show they understood the American way. But ‘that was then, this is now’ and I haven’t researched now/there for myself.

Anyways, I emigrated to Australia in 1974, expecting to stay a couple of years maybe. And still here. Having a preferred occupation at the time [television engineering) I was given permanent residency without even asking.

Oh … and as far as ‘keyboards haven’t changed in all this time’ … maybe a mixed blessing. Since the Dvorak keyboard (1943) was suggested but not adopted, we are all working with a 19th century implementation actually designed to slow typists down, so they would not jam the keys! Dvorak layout was not all that different but much more ergonomic. So it goes.

Just out of curiosity, for all who support open immigration … suppose I walk into your domicile, help myself to beer, wine, camomile tea, and commandeer the TV remote control … how is that different?

Thank you David for your insight.

Splitting a family unit not only destabalizes the family, but the community as well. And having laws that immediately cast people as criminals just for existing, just for looking for opportunity is bizarre. I am glad I don’t have to be the one who enforces these laws, because I couldn’t ethically justify it.

I don’t think it’s racism either, I think some people are truely assholes to anyone and will find any reason in the world to belittle them, whether they are gay, mexican, smart, dumb, rich, poor, white, etc etc etc.

Thank you.

Hey Loo Hoo – did we ever get a synopsis of your visit with Issa?

Helen, yes, shorthand version!

Ralph got a standing ovation at the end.
But one thing that caught my eye: Amy Goodman seemed unenthused. In the last minutes, Goodman was sitting back, arms folded, and looking grim. If she was reacting to something he said, I don’t know what it was. But Ralph was being Ralph.

This was broadcast as

Interview
Controlling Corporations
Center for the Study of Responsive Law
Amy Goodman , Pacifica Radio
Ralph Nader , Citizen Works

Bob in HI

Late night is late tonight.

You spoke too soon, Pach, is up at bat!!!

Ooh, lets hear it for ancient technology!

and dare I mention……record players?

Yea, phonographs, as I can remember my father calling them.

Remember how the lowest record would miraculously drop down from the pile of five (or was it six?) and then the little arm would move itself over and rest precisely on the first groove…..and then would come the crackling sound…..and THEN, at last, the music.

Sure do! Kids still need to learn keyboarding skills since the keyboard has not changed in all these years. I find that fascinating!