Communications of the ACM
Why Has H-1b Visa Demand Plummeted?
Vivek Wadhwa, visiting scholar at the University of California, Berkeleys School of Information and co-author of a study on why Indian and Chinese tech entrepreneurs are returning home.
In April, about 8,000 petitioners sought H-1B visas from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. But a year earlier, that number stood at more than twice that — about 16,500. And in 2009, requests for H-1B visas topped 45,000, almost six times this year’s figures.
Clearly, the once-coveted paperwork that enables skilled non-citizens to work legally in the U.S. is not the prize it once was. What’s happened?
According to a study of Indian and Chinese tech entrepreneurs who once worked in the States, opportunities abound in their homelands and seem more favorable to them than do working conditions in the U.S.
“The best and the brightest used to flock here from all over the world because there were no opportunities for them elsewhere,” says Vivek Wadhwa, visiting scholar at University of California, Berkeley’s School of Information, a co-author of the study. “But IT grads can now get better jobs at home in India or China. They may make a little less money, but they have a higher quality of life.”
As a result, he says, not only can’t U.S. tech firms fill jobs, but America is losing talent and companies.
“Salaries are shooting through the roof in Silicon Valley,” he says, “which some say is a good thing. But that makes building a company here so much more expensive that it’s now more economical for U.S. tech firms to outsource or even build their companies in Delhi or Shanghai.”
Wadhwa says he is “absolutely sounding a warning” that something needs to be done—and quickly.
Wadhwa’s co-author—AnnaLee Saxenian, dean of University of California, Berkeley’s School of Information—agrees that more immigrants are returning home than in the past. “But this is not about visas. Only 9% of the survey respondents ranked visa issues as important reasons for returning home,” she says, “whereas a majority ranked the availability of economic opportunities, access to local markets, and family ties as important reasons.”
Unlike her co-author, Saxenian believes the U.S. and emerging economies like China and India benefit from what she calls “brain circulation.”
“These returnees remain well-connected to the U.S.,” she explains. “They travel back often, share information about markets and technology, collaborate, and co-invest with U.S. businesses. They also create new markets and complementary technologies.”
But what Saxenian calls “brain circulation,” Wadhwa calls “brain hemorrhage.”
“When I came to America in 1980, it took me 18 months to get a green card,” he recalls. “Now, because of flawed immigration policies and the visa backlog, it could take my students 20-30 years to get a green card after they graduate. I have no doubt that if we fix the backlog, far fewer will return home.”
His “quick fix” recommendation is to retain the highly educated, legal immigrants already in the U.S. by accelerating the process of giving them the green cards they require to live and work here permanently.
Saxenian supports this measure, but doesn’t believe it will halt the return of entrepreneurs seeking to return to their fast-growing home economies. “They know that there is great wealth to be made in China and India today.”
Paul Hyman was editor-in-chief of several hi-tech publications at CMP Media, including Electronic Buyers’ News.
Comments
Anonymous
Title 8, Section 1182 - INADMISSIBLE ALIENS.
Demand enforcement.
Anonymous
>>But a year earlier, that number stood at more than twice that about 16,500. And in 2009, requests for H-1B visas topped 45,000, almost six times this years figures.
For the real numbers: http://h1bistro.com/trends.aspx
Anonymous
For jobs in the tech field, there are essentially three main tiers for employer-sponsored green cards. These tiers are known as EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3. These tiers are ranked by level of talent, as codified in the law:
* EB-1 is for "foreign nationals of "extraordinary ability" and for "outstanding professors"
* EB-2 is for those who are either of "exceptional ability" or possess an "advanced degree"
* EB-3 is for those with "bachelor's degrees"
The point is that "the best and the brightest," i.e. EB-1, have to wait only a few months. The MAJOR backlog is with the EB-3 category - those with only a bachelor's degree.
The latest US GAO report regarding H-1B visas discusses at some length the point that the vast majority of H-1Bs are hired into very low-level positions. In fact, most are at Level I, officially defined by the DOL as needing a "basic understanding of duties and perform routine tasks requiring limited judgment."
I recently came across an application for an H-1B visa for a job as a programmer/analyst in the State of Michigan. The application was approved by the US Dept. of Labor and the salary for this position was $33,000 - well below the national average. One would think that for such "highly skilled" people, an H-1B visa beneficiary in the high-tech field would command a salary that at least slightly above the national average.
Anonymous
All this proves is that US salaries are no longer world-competitive. STEM salaries have fallen 75% since the H-1Bs arrived in 1991. Follow the money.
Anonymous
As the Vivek Wadhwa fraud unravels, count on Wadhwa to circle the US to spread his propaganda to import more cheap entry level workers from his mother country, India.
But you should be aware, that Wadhwa will not bother to tell anyone that only 53% of US graduates if US universities and colleges since 2006 have been able to locate full time employment.
Wadhwa will not bother to tell you about the recent GAO report that tells us that over half of the H1B visas are granted to cheap entry level workers from his mother country, India, and Communist China. Wadhwa will not tell you that only 7% of the people awarded with an H1B visa are compensated at levels customary for high performing scientists and engineers.
Wadhwa will tell you that only 65,000 or 85,000 H1B visas are granted each year, but the outfit that grants H1B visas, the USCIS, will tell you that they grant around 250,000 H1B visas each year. Wadhwa will not tell you that the H1B visa is only the tip of the work visa iceberg. Wadhwa will not tell you about L1 visas, or B1 visas, or OPT visas. Wadhwa will not tell you that the true number of cheap entry level workers from the third world stealing US jobs is really closer to 500,000.
As the Vivek Wadhwa fraud continues to unravel, perhaps ultimately US STEM workers will begin to find their way back into the workforce as these bogus visas hopefully begin to decline.
Anonymous
To pick a random example, I heard that 25% of Qualcomm employees are of Indian origin. Do the folks here really think that Qualcomm is hiring the wrong people?
I'm amazed some folks want to scrap the H1B program and deport H1B holders. My suggestion is, if you really believe this, please write to your congressman and PLEASE GET IT DONE. The fillip you'll be giving to Indian and Chinese industries will just be WAY, WAY better THAN ANYTHING the respective governments could do.
Anonymous
None of you guys were complaining when the U.S. economy was booming, your home equity values were increasing and the job market was doing well until 2007. I guess its just that reality is hard to accept for some in a changing global scenario. I am sure it is hard to accept that someone can work harder or smarter than you. Dont blame the player, blame the game. Also, H1B is not only used by "indian IT" but also by many post graduates who come to the U.S. for further studies. I would imagine that if someone is coming to the US to study it would help the economy woudn't it? Get real.. adapt to the new environment and stop cribbing and complaining..
Anonymous
Work harder or smarter? Yeah right... who are you trying to convince?
Blame the game, indeed. The new 'environment' that we are burdened with was built on misinformation, fraud and lies. Big difference.
Anonymous
It's quite an interesting idea to get rid of all foreigners, I also remember someone suggesting expelling all the Muslims out of the country after 9/11...
What do you think the immediate consequence is going to be? I bet, this will accelerate the push of US companies abroad.
An example close to home: we had a small company here, developing a real-time operating system. Guess what. Fed up with inability to bring workers in, they moved to Vancouver.
In the global world, what increasingly matters are the personal skill sets, not the country of origin. And your next job may be not in Silicon Valley, but in Madras, Shanghai and elsewhere.
Anonymous
I could not agree more with the above posts dismissing the usefulness of H1B and other visas to our economy. Most of the H1Bs jobs can be done by the American kids with little training. I think we should make an attempt to form a platform (like may be Tea Party!!) to stop H1B and all forms of guest worker programs and make it as visible as possible with an ultimatum to the politicians that they have to publicly denounce such programs to retain their position.
Anonymous
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