Communications of the ACM
With Fewer .s. Opportunities, Home Looks Appealing to Expats
Regina McAnally returned to Germany with her 15-year-old son Josh after 22 years in the U.S. after her opportunities for advancement were limited. She now tells friends to consider making the same move.
Credit: Alexa Vachon / The Wall Street Journal
With U.S. unemployment at 10 percent, foreign-born professionals who came to the United States in search of better job opportunities and prosperity are now returning overseas. Foreign-based companies, particularly in Asia, are using slowing U.S. economic growth as a means to lure former residents home. Frustrations about the lack of career advancement in the U.S., where salary and promotion freezes have become the norm, are playing a significant role. A recent survey found that 23 percent of U.S.-based expats are considering returning home, compared with 15 percent elsewhere in the world. Using examples of foreign nationals in the U.S. returning back home, the workers describe why they perceive better opportunities in other parts of the world.
Often, foreign nationals with H-1B visas are choosing to return back home because organizations do not value them as highly as they once did. Faced with declining career prospects and lower salary increases, foreign workers with H-1B work visas find themselves with no options other than returning home. At the same time, many foreign countries have made significant economic strides in the past decade, making them more appealing to expats living in the U.S. When people arrived in America a decade ago from India and China, they left behind opportunities that aren't nearly what they are today. By some estimates, more than 100,000 expats will return to India in the next five years. Recruiters say in most cases, salaries will be equivalent to or better than what the employees were making in the U.S., although adjusted for the living costs in the new country.
From The Wall Street Journal
View Full ArticleNo entries found