[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 132 (Monday, September 28, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1841]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


            WORKFORCE IMPROVEMENT AND PROTECTION ACT OF 1998

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. LOUIS STOKES

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 24, 1998

  Mr. STOKES. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to the 
``Workforce Improvement and Protection Act of 1998,'' H.R. 3736, which 
is designed to increase the number of H-1B visas. This bill is 
especially detrimental to American workers in the computer programming, 
engineering and other skilled worker fields. This negative jobs bill 
takes critical jobs out of the hands of American workers and 
compromises the economic stability of American families.
  High-tech companies complain they cannot find the numbers of 
technologically skilled employees that they need among the United 
States workforce. Yet, reports abound about widespread abuses where 
U.S. workers, in the information technology industry, have been laid 
off and replaced by nonimmigrant workers. These high-tech companies 
would rather bring in H-1B workers than invest in the American 
workforce.
  While it is true that our Nation's workforce is experiencing critical 
skills gaps, the answer is not to take jobs out of the hands of our 
existing and future American work forces. Nor is it to ignore the fact 
that many of the 6.2 million--or 4.5 percent of the U.S. population--
who remain unemployed need critical opportunities for job training and 
education. We cannot afford to abandon that segment of our population 
for short-sighted profit-making motives that put our Nation's long-term 
economic security at risk.
  Mr. Speaker, we already know how this ends. Just consider what 
happened to our Nation's economy when we handed over our industrial-
based jobs to the cheaper labor-force overseas. Many of our cities are 
still struggling to overcome the impact of that action.
  While I am very concerned about ensuring that our Nation's high-tech 
industries have the most qualified workforce available in our labor 
market, I do not believe that simply raising the cap on H-1Bs will 
effectively address the long-term problem of the perceived labor 
shortage.
  We must work together to increase U.S. enrollments in computer 
science and engineering programs. We must work together to ensure 
continuing education and training for U.S. workers as well as sustained 
efforts to prepare unskilled labor to compete in the technologically 
advanced workforce. And, we must work together to provide our Nation's 
current workforce with employment protections to ensure that they are 
not displaced by cheaper foreign workers. These are the components of a 
serious long-term strategy to address workforce shortages.
  It is for these reasons that I urge my colleagues to join me in 
opposing H.R. 3736.

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