In the News
Washington – Acknowledging that there are problems with the guest worker visa program, the Trump administration on Monday began enforcing tighter norms on issuance of H-1B visas, while suggesting that previous US administrations had been lax in the matter.
While the smackdown on alleged misuse of the H-1B program came from the White House podium, the Justice Department issued a stern statement cautioning employers petitioning for H-1B visas not to discriminate against American workers.
"The Justice Department will not tolerate employers misusing the H-1B visa process to discriminate against US workers,'' said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tom Wheeler of the Civil Rights Division. ''U.S. workers should not be placed in a disfavored status, and the department is wholeheartedly committed to investigating and vigorously prosecuting these claims.''
Separately, USCIS, the agency involved in the visa issuance, issued a notification tightening bureaucratic norms in deciding H1B petitions. The notification essentially calls for more evidence and paperwork from applicants to show that they are qualified for a particular job rather than merely presenting their degrees.
Although laws calling for such scrutiny have been in the statute for nearly two decades, current administration officials suggested they have been loosely interpreted and poorly enforced over the years, allowing rampant misuse by petitioners who are not really qualified or have the skill set to take up the jobs they are aiming for.
The Trump administration's crackdown on the alleged misuse of the H-1B visas came on the opening day of the application season on April 3 when USCIS begins accepting H-1B petitions for the upcoming fiscal year. Indian IT workers typically snag more than 50 per cent of the 85,000 H-1B visas that are up for grabs, with petitions usually outnumbering the quota available by more than three to one.
On Monday, US postal workers serving zip codes where USCIS offices that accept H-1B petitions reported massive loads as lawyers for tech companies rush to petition for visas on behalf of thousands of workers from across the world, mainly from the tech sector.
The H-1B rush began even as nativist pressure groups, which contest the American tech companies' claims that there is a shortage of skilled workers in the US and foreign workers are needed, began a fervid online campaign to stem the inflow for the year.
"April 3rd Sad day for America. 85,000 H-1B visa foreigners allowed to take American jobs," one US campaigner wrote on social media. Another added: "Still waiting for H-1B reform. It is incredible what a stranglehold these H-1B shops have here. It is a farm of cheap labor inside USA."
The Trump White House responded to the concerns, with Presidential spokesman Sean Spicer acknowledging from the daily briefing lectern that there were problems with the H-1B visa program and pledging that the administration would not allow misuse while fixing it.
Spicer said that there are problems with the H-1B Visa program and Trump will enforce the laws on the books.
In January, a US lawmaker introduced a bill in the US Congress to mandate companies who employ workers with H-1B visa to double the pay from $60,000 to $130,000 a year. Another proposal, the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act, requires that employers first offer a vacant position to an equally or better qualified American worker before seeking an H-1B holder.
Under the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform, the Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security will have additional oversight authority to investigate fraud and abuse and also to increase penalties for companies that violate the bill's requirements. There hasn't been an executive order on it yet, but its reverberations are echoing across both the US and India, which accounts for over 70 per cent of the H-1B visas issued every year.
A 2015 policy brief by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) analysed data which revealed that the denial rate for L-1B petitions – the L-1B visa is used by an employer to transfer an existing employee from an office anywhere in the world to its American office – was 56 per cent for the financial years 2010 to 2014 compared to the average denial rate of 13 per cent to transfer employees from all other countries during the same period. For instance, only 4 per cent of Canadian nationals were denied L-1B petitions.
L-1 visas to transfer employees and H-1B visas to hire international students and others are generally the only two practical means by which high-skilled foreign nationals can work long-term in the United States for American employers.
While the smackdown on alleged misuse of the H-1B program came from the White House podium, the Justice Department issued a stern statement cautioning employers petitioning for H-1B visas not to discriminate against American workers.
"The Justice Department will not tolerate employers misusing the H-1B visa process to discriminate against US workers,'' said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tom Wheeler of the Civil Rights Division. ''U.S. workers should not be placed in a disfavored status, and the department is wholeheartedly committed to investigating and vigorously prosecuting these claims.''
Separately, USCIS, the agency involved in the visa issuance, issued a notification tightening bureaucratic norms in deciding H1B petitions. The notification essentially calls for more evidence and paperwork from applicants to show that they are qualified for a particular job rather than merely presenting their degrees.
Although laws calling for such scrutiny have been in the statute for nearly two decades, current administration officials suggested they have been loosely interpreted and poorly enforced over the years, allowing rampant misuse by petitioners who are not really qualified or have the skill set to take up the jobs they are aiming for.
The Trump administration's crackdown on the alleged misuse of the H-1B visas came on the opening day of the application season on April 3 when USCIS begins accepting H-1B petitions for the upcoming fiscal year. Indian IT workers typically snag more than 50 per cent of the 85,000 H-1B visas that are up for grabs, with petitions usually outnumbering the quota available by more than three to one.
On Monday, US postal workers serving zip codes where USCIS offices that accept H-1B petitions reported massive loads as lawyers for tech companies rush to petition for visas on behalf of thousands of workers from across the world, mainly from the tech sector.
The H-1B rush began even as nativist pressure groups, which contest the American tech companies' claims that there is a shortage of skilled workers in the US and foreign workers are needed, began a fervid online campaign to stem the inflow for the year.
"April 3rd Sad day for America. 85,000 H-1B visa foreigners allowed to take American jobs," one US campaigner wrote on social media. Another added: "Still waiting for H-1B reform. It is incredible what a stranglehold these H-1B shops have here. It is a farm of cheap labor inside USA."
The Trump White House responded to the concerns, with Presidential spokesman Sean Spicer acknowledging from the daily briefing lectern that there were problems with the H-1B visa program and pledging that the administration would not allow misuse while fixing it.
Spicer said that there are problems with the H-1B Visa program and Trump will enforce the laws on the books.
In January, a US lawmaker introduced a bill in the US Congress to mandate companies who employ workers with H-1B visa to double the pay from $60,000 to $130,000 a year. Another proposal, the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act, requires that employers first offer a vacant position to an equally or better qualified American worker before seeking an H-1B holder.
Under the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform, the Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security will have additional oversight authority to investigate fraud and abuse and also to increase penalties for companies that violate the bill's requirements. There hasn't been an executive order on it yet, but its reverberations are echoing across both the US and India, which accounts for over 70 per cent of the H-1B visas issued every year.
A 2015 policy brief by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) analysed data which revealed that the denial rate for L-1B petitions – the L-1B visa is used by an employer to transfer an existing employee from an office anywhere in the world to its American office – was 56 per cent for the financial years 2010 to 2014 compared to the average denial rate of 13 per cent to transfer employees from all other countries during the same period. For instance, only 4 per cent of Canadian nationals were denied L-1B petitions.
L-1 visas to transfer employees and H-1B visas to hire international students and others are generally the only two practical means by which high-skilled foreign nationals can work long-term in the United States for American employers.
Canada hopes its new global skills strategy will attract highly specialised professionals from India and elsewhere who will contribute to the growth of Canadian companies, according to a senior Canadian minister.
Canada has launched the Global Skills Strategy aimed at facilitating faster access to top global talent for the firms committed to bring new skills to the country and create jobs.
"We are very proud of our thriving Indian community in Canada...We have a thriving Indian community in Canada that is widespread across all provinces and they contribute in many different ways so we anticipate that this will be no different," Canadian Minister of Employment, Workforce Development & Labour Patty Hajdu told PTI.
Hajdu said she anticipates companies in her country will be able to recruit talent from India under the new strategy if the professionals meet the requirements of the firms and will help contribute to their growth.
"Certainly if companies find an employee in India that fits the specifications of what they need, we anticipate that more Indian people will come to Canada," she added.
She said if companies in the technology sector and other sectors are able to get professionals with very specialised skills, they will go on to create more Canadian jobs.
The initiative by Canada to draw global talent comes at a time when the US is tightening its immigration policies under the "America First" priority of the Trump administration.
Hajdu said Canada has always valued the contribution of immigrants to the country.
"We are a country that values diversity because we know that diversity actually creates strong cohesive societies and creates economic growth and that diversity is critical for innovation," she said.
"We know that when we remain open to possibilities of reaching into other countries for talent and finding individuals that want to come to Canada and then companies use that talent to create great jobs for Canadians, this is a win win situation," she said.
Under the new initiative, once the company will identify specific persons or positions it needs to fill, it will work closely with Canadian authorities, she said, adding that her agency is committed to ensuring that immigration gives the work permit within 10 days, much faster than the previous 7-10 months depending on the situation.
Canada has launched the Global Skills Strategy aimed at facilitating faster access to top global talent for the firms committed to bring new skills to the country and create jobs.
"We are very proud of our thriving Indian community in Canada...We have a thriving Indian community in Canada that is widespread across all provinces and they contribute in many different ways so we anticipate that this will be no different," Canadian Minister of Employment, Workforce Development & Labour Patty Hajdu told PTI.
Hajdu said she anticipates companies in her country will be able to recruit talent from India under the new strategy if the professionals meet the requirements of the firms and will help contribute to their growth.
"Certainly if companies find an employee in India that fits the specifications of what they need, we anticipate that more Indian people will come to Canada," she added.
She said if companies in the technology sector and other sectors are able to get professionals with very specialised skills, they will go on to create more Canadian jobs.
The initiative by Canada to draw global talent comes at a time when the US is tightening its immigration policies under the "America First" priority of the Trump administration.
Hajdu said Canada has always valued the contribution of immigrants to the country.
"We are a country that values diversity because we know that diversity actually creates strong cohesive societies and creates economic growth and that diversity is critical for innovation," she said.
"We know that when we remain open to possibilities of reaching into other countries for talent and finding individuals that want to come to Canada and then companies use that talent to create great jobs for Canadians, this is a win win situation," she said.
Under the new initiative, once the company will identify specific persons or positions it needs to fill, it will work closely with Canadian authorities, she said, adding that her agency is committed to ensuring that immigration gives the work permit within 10 days, much faster than the previous 7-10 months depending on the situation.
United Nations – US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley has said she discussed becoming secretary of state with Donald Trump after his election but the US president ultimately did not offer her the job.
Haley, a rising star in the Trump administration, told a news conference on Monday she had no ambition beyond her current post at the United Nations, for the time being.
"Every position I've ever had, people have assumed that I am looking toward something bigger, when in reality I am the daughter of Indian parents who said to me 'whatever you do, be great at it and make sure people remember you for it.'"
"That is all I have ever known how to be is to try and just do my job to the best of my ability and if that comes out blunt and if that comes out strong – I'm one of two brothers and a sister – my parents raised us all to be strong," she said.
Haley was born Nimrata Randhawa to Ajit Singh Randhawa and mother Raj Kaur Randhawa, who had emigrated from Punjab to Canada and then to the US in the 1960s.
Her father had been a professor at the Punjab Agricultural University, and her mother had received her law degree from the University of Delhi.
Haley, earlier this year, scripted history by becoming the first-ever Indian-American to be appointed to a cabinet-level post in any US administration.
Asked about reports that she had turned down the post of secretary of state in November, Haley made clear that Trump had not offered her the position.
"The original call that I received to go to Trump Tower was to discuss secretary of state," she said. "No, he did not offer it."
"It was the discussion that we were having at the time. So, when we went in, that was the position that we were discussing."
Politico reported that Haley had turned down president-elect Trump's offer to become secretary of state during a November 17 meeting, telling him that she lacked the foreign policy experience.
A former governor of South Carolina, Haley is seen as a skilled politician whose stint at the United Nations could serve as a springboard to a more powerful role in US politics.
Haley has been a leading voice on the US administration's foreign policy, in contrast to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who has held a low profile.
The US ambassador dismissed a suggestion that she was outshining Tillerson, describing the US chief diplomat as a "great partner" and stressing "we work well together."
Haley, a rising star in the Trump administration, told a news conference on Monday she had no ambition beyond her current post at the United Nations, for the time being.
"Every position I've ever had, people have assumed that I am looking toward something bigger, when in reality I am the daughter of Indian parents who said to me 'whatever you do, be great at it and make sure people remember you for it.'"
"That is all I have ever known how to be is to try and just do my job to the best of my ability and if that comes out blunt and if that comes out strong – I'm one of two brothers and a sister – my parents raised us all to be strong," she said.
Haley was born Nimrata Randhawa to Ajit Singh Randhawa and mother Raj Kaur Randhawa, who had emigrated from Punjab to Canada and then to the US in the 1960s.
Her father had been a professor at the Punjab Agricultural University, and her mother had received her law degree from the University of Delhi.
Haley, earlier this year, scripted history by becoming the first-ever Indian-American to be appointed to a cabinet-level post in any US administration.
Asked about reports that she had turned down the post of secretary of state in November, Haley made clear that Trump had not offered her the position.
"The original call that I received to go to Trump Tower was to discuss secretary of state," she said. "No, he did not offer it."
"It was the discussion that we were having at the time. So, when we went in, that was the position that we were discussing."
Politico reported that Haley had turned down president-elect Trump's offer to become secretary of state during a November 17 meeting, telling him that she lacked the foreign policy experience.
A former governor of South Carolina, Haley is seen as a skilled politician whose stint at the United Nations could serve as a springboard to a more powerful role in US politics.
Haley has been a leading voice on the US administration's foreign policy, in contrast to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who has held a low profile.
The US ambassador dismissed a suggestion that she was outshining Tillerson, describing the US chief diplomat as a "great partner" and stressing "we work well together."
Canadian Immigrant magazine has opened the online voting phase for its ninth annual RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Awards. The award recognizes and celebrates the stories of immigrants who have made a significant contribution to Canada – all the more poignant this year as we celebrate Canada 150. The public can now vote for up to three of their favourite finalists online at www.canadianimmigrant.ca/rbctop25 until May 22, 2017.
Past winners have been examples of true nation builders, from entrepreneurs to artists, academics, community volunteers, sports heroes, philanthropists, inventors and visionaries, from across Canada. Their reasons, circumstances and timing for coming to Canada are as varied as their backgrounds – some fled strife in their home countries, while others chose to gain higher education; some arrived as young children, while others arrived as adults with only a few dollars in their pocket.
The award winners will be announced on June 27, 2017. They will be recognized on www.canadianimmigrant.ca and in Canadian Immigrant magazine. Winners will also receive a commemorative plaque and $500 toward a charity of their choice provided by RBC.
Past winners have been examples of true nation builders, from entrepreneurs to artists, academics, community volunteers, sports heroes, philanthropists, inventors and visionaries, from across Canada. Their reasons, circumstances and timing for coming to Canada are as varied as their backgrounds – some fled strife in their home countries, while others chose to gain higher education; some arrived as young children, while others arrived as adults with only a few dollars in their pocket.
The award winners will be announced on June 27, 2017. They will be recognized on www.canadianimmigrant.ca and in Canadian Immigrant magazine. Winners will also receive a commemorative plaque and $500 toward a charity of their choice provided by RBC.
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