[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 185 (Friday, December 18, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1834]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AND VETERANS AFFAIRS AND RELATED AGENCIES 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2016

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                               speech of

                            HON. GENE GREEN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 17, 2015

  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the H-
2B riders included in the FY2016 Appropriations Omnibus. These 
provisions, which were included without debate or advanced warning, 
would more than triple the number of H-2B foreign worker visas 
available for the coming year, negatively impacting working families in 
districts like my own in Houston and Harris County, Texas.
  The H-2B Program was created by Congress to provide temporary, 
nonagricultural workers for American companies when there were no 
qualified American workers available to fill a position. The Program, 
unfortunately, is not working as intended. Instead, it is being used by 
some employers to hire cheaper, foreign workers, leaving too many 
highly-skilled American workers out of a job.
  Mr. Speaker, this is simply wrong and a terrible holiday surprise for 
the thousands of working families in our country who will be left out 
of a job next year by the expansion of the H-2B Program. These anti-
worker provisions in this legislation will degrade wages and conditions 
for workers in hazardous industries and gut standards that ensure that 
U.S. workers can fairly compete for jobs.
  I call on my colleagues to join me to protect American workers from 
unfair foreign worker competition and eliminate the expansion of the H-
2B Program.

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