New Hampshire Politicians on H-1B

Date: Sunday, February 16, 2003 4:20 PM

H-1B and JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER

www.ZaZona.com

This rather long article reiterates some of the standard arguments in
favor of H-1B we constantly hear. New Hampshire residents might have
more interest in this article since politicians such as Rep. Charles
Bass, Rep. Jeb Bradley, and Rep. John E. Sununu justify why they voted
in favor of H-1B in 2000.

Rep. Charles Bass said that he would favor an increase in the number of
H-1B visas for nurses and other health-care professionals.

http://www.theunionleader.com/articles_show.html?article=17895

Worker visas declining
By JERRY MILLER
Sunday News Correspondent

Theyre called H-1B visas and their intent is simple: to allow
American companies to hire foreign workers.

To retain a worker under the H-1B program, a company must demonstrate
an inability to recruit and hire an American worker with the requisite
skills.

The H-1B hiring process can be costly, especially for a small business.
For each worker sought, the prospective employer must petition the
Immigration and Naturalization Service and pay a per worker application
fee of $1,130. For an additional fee of $1,000, the application is
expedited and processed within 15 days, otherwise it could take months.

During the height of the H-1B frenzy, the waiting period was as long as
nine months and seldom less than six, according to Paul Houle,
president of the New Hampshire High Technology Council.

In some cases, legal assistance might be needed, significantly
increasing the costs.

The employer must also assure the INS that the worker is fully
qualified to do the job and has a minimum of a baccalaureate degree and
in most cases significantly more education.

If some corporate bean counter thinks he can hire a worker on the cheap
by going overseas, hed better think again. A person hired under the
H-1B visa program must, under law, be paid no less than the prevailing
wage that would be paid to an American worker doing the same job. And,
the company must certify, in writing, to the state employment security
department, its compliance with the law.

You can not legally pay these workers less, said Robin Vermette,
immigration services manager for Orr & Reno, a Concord-based law firm.
The U.S Department of Labor will come down on a company if it pays a
foreign worker less money.

Vermette also refutes the frequently heard allegation that H-1B workers
have taken jobs from U.S. citizens.

No. Its all economy driven. When information technology was moving,
there were a lot of available positions and not enough qualified U.S.
workers to fill them. I had employers tell me they didnt care where
the workers came from, as long as they were qualified.

Its not a giveaway program, said Francis Morrissey, the foreign
labor certification program specialist, with the New Hampshire
Department of Employment Security in Concord, responding to the another
frequently heard contention that foreign workers will simply work for
less.

The hiring company must also make a written declaration to the U.S.
Department of Labor, certifying that the foreign worker is not being
hired as a result of a strike or lock out.

Finally, an employer must certify that, in order to recruit a U.S.
worker, the position had been posted in this country and suitable
candidates could not be found.
Skills were needed

Why do all of this? Given the economic boom that characterized much of
the 90s, American workers were hard to find, especially in high
technology.

During the decade of the 1990s, foreign immigration reached an all-time
high, thanks, in large measure, to the high-tech led economic boom.

While no one knows the exact number, according to a Northeastern
University study, done by the schools Center for Labor Market
Studies for the international Business Roundtable, during those 10
years, between 13 and 14 million foreign immigrants flowed into the
country. Those immigrants accounted for 40 percent of the net growth in
population over the decade.

Between 1990 and 2001, new immigrants made up more than 50 percent of
the growth of the nations entire civilian workforce.

But, according to the study, the recent arrivals are significantly
different from earlier immigrants, who held mostly low-paying jobs, No
longer relegated to lower-level service and manufacturing jobs, new
immigrants increasingly made up large portions of those who worked in .
. . high tech, personal and professional services.

At no point during the past century did new immigrants ever contribute
so substantially to the labor market growth of this country, said
Andrew Sum, the centers director and one of the authors of the
study.

The role of new immigrants in contributing to the 1990s job boom, in
both sheer magnitude and breadth, can no longer be ignored.

The impact of the new immigrants on private sector job growth was
particularly striking during the 1990s, Sum said. Without their active
participation, major shortages in the labor market would have likely
cropped up, including many highly skilled occupations.

While still under-represented in management and high-level sales
position, these new workers are well represented in every other worker
category, including engineering, scientific and skilled craft
positions, according to Paul Harrington, the centers associate
director.
Educational deficit

The decade of the 90s made one harsh reality abundantly clear to
corporate America. Unlike much of Europe and Asia, this country had
failed to educate enough of its young in the sciences and related
fields to meet the demands of industry.

The growing educational gaps between younger men and women, combined
with the human capital deficits of older males . . . have contributed
to the substantially increased reliance on immigrant male workers,
according to Harrington.

It was the growing educational gap and the lack of qualified U.S.
workers that led members of New Hampshires all-Republican
Congressional delegation to actively support the H-1B program.

I am generally in favor of increasing H-1B visas, when regions of the
country, including New Hampshire, are experiencing a shortage of high
technology workers and the supplies cannot fill the necessary
positions, said U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg.

The states senior senator said that was certainly the case in 2000,
when, in response to the high-tech demand for qualified information and
technology workers, Congress passed the Immigration and Nationality
Act. The law upped the annual number of H-1B visas from 115,000 to
195,000 through 2002.

I strongly supported the enactment of this law, he said.
Shifting priorities

In the post-9/11 period, Gregg said, there is a need to take a closer
look at immigration issues, as part of our commitment to homeland
security.

As a member of the House of Representatives, John E. Sununu
co-sponsored H.R. 3983, a bill titled Helping To Improve Technology
Education and Achievement Act of 2000. That legislation called for
increasing the number of H-1B visas for fiscal years 2001 through 2003.

Today Sununu, now the states junior senator, said, As Americas
high-technology economy struggles to regain its footing, my first
priority is to ensure that all qualified American workers . . . are the
first to access employment in this sector.

In 2000, U.S. Rep. Charles Bass also supported an increase in the
number of H-1B visas. As for today, Bass said, I would be reluctant to
raise the caps again at this time. The temporary increase was designed
to be a short-term fix . . . the recent economic downturn in the
information technology sector has diminished the demand for H-1B visas
. . . however, I may consider an increase in the number of H-1B visas
for nurses and other health-care professionals.

Freshman U.S. Rep. Jeb Bradley said given todays economy, the
current cap of 195,000 visas should not be raised and may need to be
lowered.

In a dampened economy, however, gone is the need for foreign workers.

There has been a marked slowdown from last year to now, due largely to
the economy, Morrissey said. The program is being used with much more
discretion.

The situation is so bad, especially in high technology, which continues
to tank, that many H-1B visas will go begging this year and for the
foreseeable future.

Nationally, nearly 50 percent of the years 195,000-visa quota will
be unused.

And New Hampshire will not be the exception to the rule, according to
Morrissey. While information technology workers were once fought over,
today there is virtually no demand for them.

Today there is an excess of high-tech labor, said Houle.

The use of H-1B visas is not an issue today, as it was a year ago.

But there is still an in-state demand for mechanical, electrical and
manufacturing engineers, as well as professionals with Ph.D. level
research and medical skills, including biochemists and cancer
researchers. While some of this demand comes from private industry,
much of it emanates from state colleges and universities.

In some cases, foreign workers having experience as presidents and vice
presidents in international business are being sought by Granite State
companies.

Some doctors, especially family practitioners, are being sought for New
Hampshires North Country, which, like other rural areas, has
experienced a shortage of physicians.
One firms example

The president and CEO of G.T Equipment and G.T Solar Technologies has,
in the last four years, hired five advanced degree foreign workers and
contends they represent some of the best hiring decision hes made.

Weve had a lot of problems locating qualified domestic workers, said
Kedar Gupta, who, eight years ago, began the Merrimack-based company
with a partner and $1,000 between them.

Today the firm realizes 70 percent of its $22 million in revenue from
international sales, which means his employees must not only be
conversant with the technology, but must understand international
markets and be able quickly acclimate themselves to those cultures.

Guptas hires include a German scientist, who was put in charge of
that market. We needed someone who could immediately address the German
market. Thats was the ultimate job for him.

As he expands to the Pacific Rim, Gupta also hopes to hire someone who
understands that diverse culture.

Hiring scientists from overseas is a great way for us to expand. They
not only fill a technical void, they help with the culture, Gupta said.
They create a strong and immediate link with the countries. They not
only know the environment, they know the language. We wouldnt have
grown as we have, without these people.

While the need for high-tech workers has diminished, many firms have
refocused their efforts on keeping their H-1B workers in the United
States. A growing number of companies are taking steps to help their
foreign workers convert their H-1B visas to either permanent residence
status or citizenship and the reason is pretty simple.

Many H-1B workers have been with the same company for as long as six
years, the maximum time allowed under law. Management understands that
to lose them, when their visas expire, is to lose a significant
resource, in which they have made major time and dollar investments.

As for the future, Vermette contends an upswing in the economy,
especially high technology, could again lead to an influx of H-1B
workers.

The Orr & Reno staffer said shes already getting more requests for
H-1B people, especially electrical and mechanical engineers, as well as
biotech scientists.

Its all related to how the economy is doing.

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