H-1B visas used by firm to create low-cost workforce, U.S. alleges

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

29. Can you back up your assertion that companies with H-1B workers bend the rules?

The original post includes excerpts from an article where the U.S. government fined and held liable a company that abused the system. Companies that are third-party outfits like Infosys and Tata are now held to much stricter standards thanks to President Obama's recent directive which places more regulatory burdens on these outfits.

Are there some who take advantage of the program? Sure. Are they the majority? Absolutely not. I can back this up by my own professional experience. In the past 14 years I have worked on thousands of H-1B visas for a variety of industries - including IT - and never once were the rules bent in any way, nor were the employees paid less than other workers.

Can you back up the claim that H-1B workers are sometimes housed in dormitories? Housing is not a benefit. If workers choose to live together to save money, it's up to them. Employers are not required to provide housing unless housing is a benefit granted to other employees.

Here is some real data: according to USCIS (http://www.uscis.gov/USCIS/Resources/Reports%20and%20Studies/H-1B/h1b-fy-11-characteristics.pdf), for Fiscal Year 2011 (the most recent year for which data is available):

-Approximately 58 percent of all H-1B petitions approved in FY 2011 were for workers born in India. This means the remainder of workers were not born in India.

-Forty-one percent of H-1B petitions approved in FY 2011 were for workers with a bachelor’s degree, forty-two percent had a master’s degree, eleven percent had a doctorate, and 5 percent were for workers with a professional degree. This is because the H-1B category also includes fashion models who are not required to have any education at all.

-About 51 percent of H-1B petitions approved in FY 2011 were for workers in computer-related occupations. The other 49% obviously are not for computer-related occupations. The assumption that H-1B visa workers are all IT workers is false.

-The median salary of beneficiaries of approved petitions increased to $70,000 in FY 2011, $2,000 more than in FY 2010. Considering that the median income for a U.S. family of four is near $50,000, you can't argue that H-1B workers are paid less than everyone else.

The nationalities of H-1B workers span the globe, unlike the assumption by many on DU that it is an Indians-only visa. While those born in India make up the largest contingent, there is a wide representation of nationalities. Here are the best represented nationalities, in order of quantity:

1. India
2. China, People's Republic
3. Canada
4. Philippines
5. South Korea
6. United Kingdom
7. Mexico
8. Japan
9. Taiwan
10. France
11. Pakistan
12. Germany
13. Turkey
14. Brazil
15. Colombia
16. Venezuela
17. Nepal
18. Russia
19. Italy
20. Spain