Bill Adds Hurdles for Foreign Hires - 海外工作

Bill Adds Hurdles for Foreign Hires

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123517509078737427.html

By JOHN D. MCKINNON

WASHINGTON -- A little-noticed provision in the stimulus package discourages
banks that receive federal bailouts from hiring skilled foreign workers, and
it likely foreshadows broader efforts to restrict work-related visa programs
this year.

The provision imposes higher government scrutiny on banks and other
businesses getting federal bailouts if they use the H-1B visa program to hire
skilled workers. The program generally grants temporary visas to at least
85,000 workers a year, often more.

Supporters say the program is needed to help companies obtain the most
qualified workers, particularly in fields such as engineering. They say the
program is designed with stringent protections, requiring employers to attest
they aren't replacing U.S. workers and to pay prevailing wages to foreign
workers.

But critics say the program, initiated in 1990, undermines U.S. workers by
encouraging companies to hire temporary workers. They also say many of the
protections built into the H-1B law don't work as intended, allowing U.S.
employers to pass over American workers and hire cheaper foreign ones.
Lawmakers are concerned that the program is being abused by some companies
that exploit loopholes to cheat their foreign workers.

"While we are suffering through the worst economic crisis since the Great
Depression, the very least we can do is to make sure that banks receiving a
taxpayer bailout are not allowed to import cheaper labor from overseas while
they are throwing American workers out on the street," said Sen. Bernie
Sanders, a Vermont independent who pushed for the restriction.

Mr. Sanders's office estimates that major U.S. banks employed at least 1,200
foreign workers under the program in 2006. Other critics say the total number
hired in recent years is likely several times higher. A list of companies
receiving H-1B visa approvals in 2007 included J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (236)
and Goldman Sachs & Co. (224) among the top 30, and Lehman Brothers Inc.
(135), Merrill Lynch & Co. (131) and Morgan Stanley & Co. (119) among the top
100. The visas typically are for three years but can be extended to six.

Another sponsor of the restriction for bailed-out banks, veteran Sen. Charles
Grassley (R., Iowa), is planning further legislation to tighten up the H-1B
visa program as well as other visa programs for temporary workers. He is
working with Sen. Richard Durbin (D., Ill.). A spokesman for Sen. Durbin said
the intent isn't to reduce the number of H-1B provisions, but to shut down
abuses.

One big concern for critics of the H-1B program is the practice of some
companies that function as temporary-employment agencies, bringing employees
to the U.S. and putting them to work for other companies. Sen. Grassley says
these employers can locate in areas of the country such as his home state,
where prevailing wages are low, and then underpay workers they assign to
California's Silicon Valley or other high-wage regions.

But concern over the H-1B program itself appears to be rising. Sen. Sanders
is considering additional legislation that would prevent companies engaged in
mass layoffs of U.S. workers from importing cheaper labor from abroad through
temporary guest-worker programs, a spokesman said Friday.

As originally proposed, the stimulus bill's provision would have barred
bailout recipients from hiring foreign H-1B workers altogether. But it was
watered-down in last-minute negotiations, amid protests by businesses.

Business advocates argued that in 2007, less than 1% of the workers at major
U.S. financial institutions were H-1B visa holders. "At a time when the
economy is striving to rebound, barring U.S. companies access to the most
qualified job applicants...will hinder recovery," the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce argued in a letter to senators on Feb. 5.

Instead of barring H-1B workers, the stimulus law temporarily increases the
number of procedural hurdles that banks and other bailout recipients must
clear. It also gives the government much greater ability to scrutinize
companies' hiring practices when it comes to the foreign workers.

Despite that partial victory, proponents of the H-1B program foresee more
struggles ahead, particularly given the recession.

"There will be more attempts to tighten not only H-1B but all the temporary
worker programs," said Bob Sakaniwa, a business immigration advocate at the
American Immigration Lawyers Association. "Especially with Democrats in
charge on the Hill who have legitimate concerns for U.S. workers and are
listening to labor's concerns...we'd be kidding ourselves if we thought more
tightening and enforcement weren't in the wings."

Supporters of the H-1B program concede some abuses and are hoping to focus
the legislative efforts on addressing those, "while at the same time keeping
the programs viable for legitimate uses," Mr. Sakaniwa said. He noted that
many H-1B workers in the banking field are expensive. The program also
requires employers to pay application fees and in some cases travel, he said.

The stimulus bill's restriction already is drawing criticism in foreign
media, and from some foreign officials. Angelo Amador, the U.S. Chamber's
director of immigration policy, said he heard that Indian officials were
complaining this week to U.S. visitors about the new restrictions.

"At some point there has to be a realization that we're not in this alone,"
Mr. Amador said.

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