Nova Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 I recently read an article which was an interesting read on why H1/L1 job category was created by the US government. Link: http://www.wvwnews.net/story.php?id=1638 The salient points of the article pertaining to my question: 1. Computer engineering and scientific jobs were initially ALL filled by European americans, and the money earned through employee stock options made them rich. Lot of these people got interested in entering US politics and create their own lobby of scientists and engineers. At this point, the US government was full of lawyers and they were worried of the influx of scientists and engineers in mainstream politics. So to counteract this trend, the H1/L1 visa category was created so that there would not be much unity in the field of computers/science because the group would be more multi-cultural making it less homogenous. Well this is some of the past history. 2. It is a myth that local americans were not smart enough to occupy these jobs. The H1/L1 workers get low wages for the same amount of work or if the wages are at par then they get substantial tax breaks. This gives H1/L1 candidates a competitive edge over local americans when it comes to hiring practices. Also I read that H1/L1 visa holders do not tend to protest against their employees because they don't want to lose the visa status. All these factors combined contribute to the fact that H1/L1 workers are preferred so that the employers can fill their own pockets. That is why we see a lot of lobbying from companies like Microsoft to increase the H1/L1 quota. I have a question. Are the above points a fact, speculation or unsubstantiated ideas? What are the other reasons that make the employers hire more Indians or Pakistanis for such jobs? Thanks for any input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Online Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 Pakistanis :hysterical: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punjabi_khota Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 Pakistanis don't work on H1-b. Their level of work usually starts at Gas stations and ends at dunkin donuts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celeste Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 Pakistanis don't work on H1-b. Their level of work usually starts at Gas stations and ends at dunkin donuts. Most Indians on H1-b are doing the same type of work these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punjabi_khota Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 Most Indians on H1-b are doing the same type of work these days. OMG really ? H1-b for working at dunkin donuts ? :hysterical: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celeste Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 OMG really ? H1-b for working at dunkin donuts ? :hysterical: No,working at those places to survive because of down turn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flamy Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 OMG really ? H1-b for working at dunkin donuts ? :hysterical: :hysterical::hysterical::hysterical: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ludhianvi Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 Pakistanis don't work on H1-b. Their level of work usually starts at Gas stations and ends at dunkin donuts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punjabi_khota Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 No' date='working at those places to survive because of down turn.[/quote'] Most Indians ? No sir. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gunner Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 :hmmmm: wassup ludh, forgot you afternoon chai? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punjabi_khota Posted October 6, 2009 Share Posted October 6, 2009 Lahori chup kar ja tu. :eyedance: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidcooper Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 B-> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yoda Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 Seems like a very far fetched theory. I don't know much about L1s, but H1s have been used extensively by US companies to hire tech talent which otherwise they just can't get locally enough of. I am not talking just software engineers with BS degrees who come from India, I am mainly referring to the Masters and PHD students in CS and other engineering fields and also MBAs from top schools like Wharton and Harvard. These are not low paying jobs. Many of these folks hold the top jobs in the country and many of them have started their own companies giving jobs to many Americans and to other H1s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ram Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 1. Computer engineering and scientific jobs were initially ALL filled by European americans, and the money earned through employee stock options made them rich. Lot of these people got interested in entering US politics and create their own lobby of scientists and engineers. At this point, the US government was full of lawyers and they were worried of the influx of scientists and engineers in mainstream politics. So to counteract this trend, the H1/L1 visa category was created so that there would not be much unity in the field of computers/science because the group would be more multi-cultural making it less homogenous. Well this is some of the past history. The politicians who were lawyers did not want scientists to come into politics!? Huh..What kind of ridiculous conspiracy theory is this! Seems to be straight out of Zaid Hamid’s Lahori school of mullah logic. 2. It is a myth that local americans were not smart enough to occupy these jobs. The H1/L1 workers get low wages for the same amount of work or if the wages are at par then they get substantial tax breaks. This gives H1/L1 candidates a competitive edge over local americans when it comes to hiring practices. Also I read that H1/L1 visa holders do not tend to protest against their employees because they don't want to lose the visa status. All these factors combined contribute to the fact that H1/L1 workers are preferred so that the employers can fill their own pockets. That is why we see a lot of lobbying from companies like Microsoft to increase the H1/L1 quota. The tech jobs that H1-B visa holders get are some of the highest paying jobs in the country. Obviously, not all of them pay lucrative salaries, but by and large, H1-B visa holders get to work in some of the best jobs in the best companies of America. Btw, why did America introduce this non-immigrant visa program? Simple – to maintain America’s stranglehold in the world of technological and engineering innovation. Obviously, not every immigrant visa holder does cutting edge work that is worth patenting. If anything, I actually sometimes feel that what we’re seeing now is the 21st century manifestation of bonded labor. Just like immigrants were brought from Africa to do manual labor in plantations and farms in centuries previous, skilled workers from all over the world are now being brought into the US to sustain its technological superiority, while the American bosses of the company profit from their hard-work and sometimes, innovation. Somewhere in the past, Americans realized that the world has now transitioned from a period when manufacturing was the main driver for wealth creation, to a period when intellectual capital is at the forefront of both economic and technological might. So, all they do nowadays is use some of their brightest graduates that come out some of the best schools in the US to fabricate crazier and wackier engineering and financial products and solutions, while the poor Asians work long hours to implement their solutions, both in the US and in their back offices in Asia. The Americans get to keep their grip over world of technology, while the Asians get to earn money they never did before. It’s a win-win for all. However, conservatives are now beginning to question the long-term effects of these worker-visa programs, since a big proportion of these H1-B visa holders first become permanent residents and then citizens, making an absolute mockery of the term ‘non-immigrant visas’ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nova Posted October 7, 2009 Author Share Posted October 7, 2009 ^ I agree. Nice post. What is your opinion on this - is it a myth that local americans are not smart enough for these jobs or is there just shortage or both? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jf1gp_1 Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 Also I read that H1/L1 visa holders do not tend to protest against their employees because they don't want to lose the visa status. . same is the case in Indian private comapnies; you really think anyone at say a reliance or ICICI or Infosys has the balls to protest against people being fired around them ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ram Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 ^ I agree. Nice post. What is your opinion on this - is it a myth that local americans are not smart enough for these jobs or is there just shortage or both? Not smart enough? Do you think these guys would be no.1 if they werent smart enough? Of course they're sharp. There simply are not enough resources in the labor pool to fill in all the requirements in the tech industry, mainly because the tech sector (especially IT) is quite nascent. Back in the 80s, there were hardly any sophisticated IT applications that we are so used to having now. So, it was not taught extensively in the local schools here, much like anywhere else. However, in the 90s, all the countries started including software and application development as part of their academic curriculum and India, with its strong heritage for robust degree education and english proficiency, produced more engineering and computer science graduates than any other country, which is why we are the no.1 beneficiaries of the H1-B visa program, which is mainly meant for skilled workers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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