[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 50 (Wednesday, April 29, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H2598-H2600]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
H-1B VISAS: THE STEALTH WAY OF TAKING U.S. JOBS FROM WORKERS PROGRAM
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Klink) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. KLINK. Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight, I understand the hour is
late, but I think this is a very important issue.
We have a program which many Members of Congress are not familiar
with. It is called the H-1B visa program. This program allows
industries from this Nation to bring over mostly high-tech workers from
other countries, 65,000 workers a year right now, for temporary jobs.
They can stay here for 6 years.
This was a program that was established back in 1990 because we were
being told that we had an anticipated shortage of scientists and of
engineers. By the time this program was in place, the Berlin Wall had
fallen and we did not have as much of a need in the defense industry
for this kind of technical expertise.
But what ended up happening was many countries found out that they
could go overseas, they could bring over computer programmers or
reprogrammers rather than train American workers, and we have seen
throughout this country a propensity of what I would refer to as job
shops, that is companies that are providing computer programmers to our
industries. And our industries are laying off unbelievable numbers of
American workers, and they are being replaced by these temporary
foreign workers.
I think we are really headed down a tragic highway in this country. I
would just want to point out to the Members of the House that, as the
technical and high-tech industry is beating the drum saying we have
need to import workers, that we have really thousands upon thousands of
students that are graduating from college every year, and we are just
debating here on the floor of the House how we deal with the student
loan program.
These students are graduating from college. They have large amounts
of student loans to pay back and, in many instances, they find
themselves waiting on tables because they cannot get jobs. They could
be trained to take these jobs. They could be trained to do computer
programming.
And, at the same time, we are hearing from the computer industry and
many others that they have this high-tech labor shortage. The headlines
across the Nation in our papers are telling a different story.
Let me just read something from the Wall Street Journal that just
said, a steady drumbeat of layoff announcements in industry sectors
that until recently have complained about personnel shortages. In the
Silicon Valley, layoffs have occurred at Seagate Technology
Incorporated, Silicon Graphics, Netscape Communications Corporation,
Apple Computer Incorporated, Sybase Incorporated and others. Some firms
have cut hiring plans; help wanted advertising has slumped since the
start of the year. Elsewhere, high-tech giants are shedding staff.
Last week, again, according to the Wall Street Journal, Xerox
Corporation announced the layoff of 9,000 people. Yet we want to import
up to 95,000 workers a year from other countries and give them these
jobs.
Something is wrong in America today. We have not had a debate as to
the need for this.
The other difficulty is that here is a high-tech industry which
prides itself on identifying and quantifying problems, yet they have
not proven, according to the GAO, that, in fact, there is a shortage.
The gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) and myself asked the GAO to
look into these claims, and we found out that the material that they
are using to justify this claim is faulty.
Also, last week in the San Francisco Examiner, they ran an
unprecedented series of letters from readers that are concerned about
the alleged shortage of information technology workers. Their
conclusion is that we are seeing age discrimination that is pushing
into this high-tech sector, pushing many qualified American workers out
of the marketplace. The employers want cheaper, more exploitable
foreign workers.
And I would like to quote at length from some of these letters,
because I think we here in Congress are too busy as we rush through our
legislative schedule and we have not heard from these workers.
An older computer consultant has said, ``At job fairs, many older
people, including myself, are rudely treated by young recruiters from
human resources. In one blatant case, I saw a recruiter from a major
local computer manufacturer and software firm refuse to talk to anyone
who looked like they were over 35. Resumes from older people were
tossed in one pile, resumes from younger people were put on another
pile with attached notes from a mini interview.''
I would also like to talk about one worker who said he was being
brought back to his former employer to do what
[[Page H2599]]
he called really retroactive--he actually called it mentoring a foreign
engineer who now does his job. So they laid him off, brought over
foreign workers, and he had to train them to do his job.
There is a problem in America, Mr. Speaker, and we in Congress have
to address it.
Mr. Speaker, I am also providing for the Record more detailed
information regarding the H-1B program, which follows herewith:
H-1B Program
Origin of H-1B Program: It was established in 1990 to
alleviate an anticipated shortage of scientists and
engineers, particularly at the Ph.D level. By the time it was
in place, however, the Berlin Wall had fallen, there was an
economic downturn, and downsizing was rampant in defense and
other industries using these people. The main proponents of
the program were the universities, the National Science
Foundation and some industry groups.
Supposed to be a Temporary Program: The program is a high-
tech guestworker program. It allows 65,000 persons in
``specialty'' occupations to enter the U.S. for three years
with one renewal for a total of six years to respond to
``temporary'' shortages. Then they are supposed to return
home. Many, many H-1Bs are used by foreign students trying to
stay in the country. Their employers use H-1Bs as a way to
see if they want to sponsor the person permanently. So a
large, large number of these people never go back home.
Approval is Quick and Easy: The employer certifies to the
Labor Department that it needs a worker in a certain
occupation (names are not required) and will pay the
prevailing wage. There is no requirement to show that there
is an actual shortage in that occupation. After the
certification is received, a person's name is attached and
INS and the State Department process the visa. Three years
ago, this entire process could be done in about a month so
employers loved it.
Misuse of H-1B: While in the H-1B status, however, they are
indentured servants to their employers. The job they hold is
for an occupation, not a certain person. They can be
underpaid, forced to work seven days a week, etc., until they
can obtain their green card or have to go back home.
Layoffs: In the meantime, another sub-industry of temporary
workers developed in the information technology industry.
Numerous temporary employment companies appeared which hired
almost exclusively H-1Bs from India, Taiwan and the
Philippines, paid them less than American workers and used
them to replace American workers, particularly computer
programmers. Three years ago, the Senate Judiciary Committee
held hearings at which laid-off U.S. programmers appeared.
Most had lost their jobs to foreign H-1Bs.
65,000 Limit: Until last year, the 65,000 limit was never
reached. Then, suddenly, last year, it was reached at the end
of August, and the cries of pain from the high-tech industry
for raising the cap. There has been no analysis of why this
happened.
``Shortage'' of Information Technology Workers
There is no universally accepted definition of information
technology (IT) workers or what training is required for the
jobs. So industry defined IT worker broadly when trying to
demonstrate a demand for IT workers and defined the training
required very narrowly.
Demand for IT Workers: The Information Technology
Association of America (ITAA) and Commerce reports found that
between 1996-2006 the US will require 1.3 million job
openings because of growth and net replacements (1.1 million
of which is for growth alone). That is a 14.5% increase.
``Shortage:'' ITAA and Commerce defined the pool of
qualified IT workers as those who have obtained a Bachelor's
degree in computer and information science. They did not
consider degrees and certifications in computer and
information science other than a B.A., degrees in other
areas, or workers who could be retrained. In 1993, only 25%
of those employed in IT actually had a B.A. in computer and
information science. Other workers had degrees in business,
social sciences, math, engineering, psychology, economics,
and education.
Basis for ITAA's and Commerce's Conclusions and Response:
(1) Wages for IT workers are going up, but no more than in
any other professional field (the labor supply always
tightens in a good economy), (2) there are unfilled jobs, but
a response of only 14% of those surveyed is not sufficient to
conclude that this is a nationwide problem (need at least 75%
response to be credible), and (3) there is offshore
recruiting occurring, but no information as to the extent or
magnitude.
Response to survey: ITAA sent out a random sample of 2,000
large-sized, mid-sized, and non-IT companies, but only heard
from 271 (14%). A 75% response is required to make credible
extrapolations, or nationwide generalizations. Also, there is
no information on these reported vacancies such as how long
the jobs were open, wage being offered, and how the company
is attempting to fill them.
Decrease in computer Science B.A. Candidates: There has
been a decline since 1986 but that was the peak year. There
had been a steady increase from 1970s and it has remained
stable in the 1990s.
H-1-B Visas: The Stealth Way of Taking U.S. Jobs From U.S. Workers
Do you remember when we were promised that by passing NAFTA
and GATT, Americans might lose low-wage jobs, but would
definitely gain high-wage jobs? Well, they are changing their
story . . . again.
The high technology industry is telling us that there is a
shortage of information technology workers in the U.S. and an
inability to ever meet the demand. The High Tech Industry
wants to open the doors to temporary foreign professional
workers by issuing something called H-1-B visas. Currently we
issue up to 65,000 H-1-B visas per year. Increasing the
number of these visas issued could quickly result in surplus
labor and rapidly dropping wages.
A little over two years ago this same industry was laying
off U.S. computer programmers by the hundreds and replacing
them with cheaper foreign workers. Their story was Americans
got paid too much and temporary foreign workers should be
used to keep down wages or else the work would go abroad.
Some jobs did go abroad, but the high technology industry is
still unsatisfied. Our country's most highly skilled, sought-
after, domestic technology workers have realized how valuable
their knowledge is and have started shopping around for the
best available wage packages. The industry, unwilling to pay
the going wage for U.S. workers, has declared a labor
shortage and is demanding more H-1-B visas to keep wages
down.
High-Tech Corporate America would be the winner: it could
make more money and continue to treat its workers with
disdain, dumping them in every temporary downturn in the
economy and refusing to invest in job training. The losers
will be our young people who are looking for jobs in
technology, older workers who may need retraining, and
taxpayers who will pay to train U.S. workers only to have
them become surplus labor.
There may be a lot of posturing and panic, but there is no
evidence of a shortage. Though industry and the Commerce
Department have produced studies claiming there is a
shortage, the General Accounting Office found that ``serious
analytical and methodological weaknesses'' undermine the
Commerce report's credibility. Every year, this country
produces approximately 650,000 bachelor's degrees in science
and engineering; 120,000 master's degrees; and 40,000
doctorates for a total of 810,000. Any one of these degrees
could be used to develop a career in information technology.
However, a degree is not absolutely necessary to succeed in
this field. After all, Bill Gates dropped out of college and
then created Microsoft.
Furthermore, an employer does not have to look for a U.S.
worker before applying for an H-1-B worker. So even if there
are hundreds of talented U.S. workers available, an employer
can apply to hire a temporary foreign worker without any
negative consequences.
It is too risky to raise temporary foreign worker quotas
before anyone has clearly defined and quantified a problem.
Once H-1-B visas are increased, it will be very hard to bring
the number back down again. These temporary programs quickly
become permanent ones that send negative signals to our own
workers. They say--you can train, but we will still import
our workers.
The technology industry appears to be booming and has been
posting record earnings for several years. Let's allow
America's most skilled workers to ``boom'' with it.
INFO Tech Worker Shortage? Where's the Evidence?
Dear Colleague: For months we have been bombarded with
stories from the information technology industry about a
terrible shortage of skilled professionals. They argue that
Congress must expand the temporary foreign worker program to
meet their needs. Three studies have been cited to prove the
case--one by the Commerce Department and two by the
Information Technology Association of America. Based on these
reports, legislation to increase the number of foreign
technical workers has already been introduced in the Senate
and is expected soon in the House.
The problem is the reports are wrong.
Claim #1: The Commerce Department found a shortage of
information technology workers based on the (flawed) ITAA
studies and its own back-of-the-envelope calculation that
there will be 95,000 new jobs created annually in industry
with only 25,000 new computer science college graduates each
year.
Response: The General Accounting Office noted that
``serious analytical and methodological weaknesses''
undermine the Commerce report's credibility. Only 29% of IT
workers have come from computer science with graduates in
math, science, social science, education and business filling
the remaining positions.
Claim #2: In 1997, ITAA claimed 190,000 unfilled IT jobs.
In January, ITAA claimed 346,000 unfilled jobs based on
another survey--a claim that also got widespread press
attention.
Response: GAO states that ``to make sound generalizations,
the effective response rate should usually be at least 75
percent.'' Because the first ITAA survey had only a 14
percent response rate, GAO found it ``is inadequate to form a
basis for a nationwide estimate of unfilled IT jobs.'' This
second survey was done by a self-described marketing
researcher with no experience in labor studies. Further, ITAA
has never released the study so we can't evaluate the
methodology. However, we know that the newest ITAA study
[[Page H2600]]
had a response rate of 36%--far too low for accurate
projections.
Claim #3: The demand for IT workers will double in the next
10 years and there will not be enough of a supply of U.S.
workers to meet it.
Response: Who says we can't meet it? The demand for IT
workers doubled over the last 10 years and it was satisfied
right here in the U.S. by people from a wide variety of
educational backgrounds. At least half of the jobs require a
two-year college degree or less. Let the demand double again.
With well-planned policies of training and education and the
natural market response of Americans looking for good jobs
that pay well, we will meet that demand again.
What is the ITAA's excuse for these bad numbers? Their only
response is to stop ``arguing over methodology'' so we can
fix a problem that they can't even document. Could it be that
foreign workers are cheaper, and they are trying to pull one
over on Congress so they can cut their costs?
Before we invite thousands of foreign workers in to take
American jobs, the industry owes us some straight answers.
Ron Klink.
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