Quote from BBC
"The president-elect, once a critic, now supports the 34-year-old programme, while tech billionaire Elon Musk defends it as key to securing top engineering talent."
16 replies (most recent on top)
i have multiple young MBA H1 visa kiddies in my department..my role was given to one of them and I got moved. to to death row? not a STEM role
Any H1-B worker isn’t worth the investment. They might hold an education degree at masters or higher because that’s the only way they can stay in the country legally and they’d rather die than go back to their home country. H1-B visa holders are also willing to work for less but companies aren’t investing in them because they have to sponsor them.
We have enough US citizens without jobs we don’t need albeit 2% more of the workforce unemployed. Get Americans jobs.
Elon musk is just after cost reduction.
With regard to my earlier post (UK skilled visa occupations). I was wrong about Dell not being in the list of approved employers - they are in the list (but you need to download the full list to find the entry).
If you think that the US H-1B scheme is unfair on US citizens, you should check out the list of occupations that can apply for UK "skilled" worker visa: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skilled-worker-visa-eligible-occupations/skilled-worker-visa-eligible-occupations-and-codes.
Almost anyone can apply. If you then look at the list of approved employers https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/677fb787d721a08c006655ef/2025-01-09_-_Worker_and_Temporary_Worker.csv/preview, you will see that the likes of taxi firms, pizza and kebab shops are included. You couldn't make it up. Surprisingly Dell are not listed.
highly qualified workers from abroad—individuals who often possess qualifications and expertise that surpass those of the average U.S. worker
They’re not competing with the average US worker, they’re competing with STEM educated top talent who can’t find jobs in this economy. Many other companies hire Americans first abiding by the laws around H1B. Only some of the really big tech companies like Dell and Tesla abuse the system for profit. The majority of H1B aren’t winning a fair competition. The company hires lawyers to twist words and spin it like they tried and couldn’t possibly fill the role with anyone but this random Indian dude, whose cousin works at the same company, for half the pay. Make companies disclose how much they pay them and insist it is market rate for the US and you would see them hire far fewer H1B.
Munches popcorn…
“ Nearly 60% of H-1B visa holders possess a Master's degree or higher in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) field. ”
Source? I’ve not seen this, at least at Dell. Dell must hire from the rejects of everyone else because the H1Bs I’ve seen are incompetent id--ts that don’t know the first thing about engineering. “Quality” Usenet something that they are interested in. They just do the bare minimum to keep their jobs and stay in the US.
Most of their pedigrees are bunk or grossly exaggerated. Besides, how would Joann from HR even begin to verify some 3rd world college?
Temp agencies are not bringing over the best and brightest.
I am glad a lot of this is now opened for public debate freely. We are now saying out-loud what many of us are secretly thinking.
The whole H1B thing has been a lie of epic proportion.
I work with few H1B's and they all seem to have horrible work ethics and limited technical knowledge. It seems most of them have fake degree and experience they buy prior to coming over to united states.
Nearly 60% of H-1B visa holders possess a Master's degree or higher in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) field. Consider the educational qualifications of your American colleagues—how many of them hold advanced degrees in a STEM discipline? The answer is likely to be considerably less than 5%.
Now, if you were presented with a choice between a "Data Scientist" with a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and a candidate holding a PhD in Mathematics, which would you select?
This highlights a fundamental reason why technology companies are eager to continue bringing in highly qualified workers from abroad—individuals who often possess qualifications and expertise that surpass those of the average U.S. worker. This discussion does not even touch upon work ethic, which is another factor to consider.
If you find yourself disagreeing with this perspective, I encourage you to reflect honestly: Do you hold a graduate degree? Are you familiar with key concepts such as "RAG," "fine-tuning," and "grounding"? Do you understand what these terms mean, or do you merely claim to be knowledgeable about AI without grasping the significance of these concepts?
“ The weird thing is why is India not building out the Google, Meta, etc with all this high powered local brainiacs?”
This. If these H1bs are so smart why do they have to come to the US to innovate? Fact is they are cheap, indentured servants. Not “ highly educated skilled workers.” I have yet to meet an H1b that can do anything that a new US grad cannot.
No innovation comes from India. Meta, Google, Dell, Amazon, HP, Uber, and the list goes on, all originated from the US. H1Bs and offshoring is simply cheap labor to undercut the American worker.
It's just the weirdest thing how American workers build and grow these American companies, which are subsidized by tax incentives and infrastructure funded and built by American communities in the American economy. Suddenly, when it comes time to squeeze a few extra dollars of opex out of the PNL, American workers just are too stupid and these poor companies are forced to do this.
"company not hire more qualified and skilled workers for less?"
The weird thing is why is India not building out the Google, Meta, etc with all this high powered local brainiacs?
That said, none is complaining about bringing over top tier talent. It's simply not what's coming. instead cheap, mediocre hires by agencies gaming the system.
H1Bs are a result of the failing education system in the US. Why would a company not hire more qualified and skilled workers for less? Americans like to think they are so great, but statistically are one of the least educated populations on the planet. Looking at it from a factual micro political perspective, there is a reason why all red states and cities are funded by blue cities an states. Blue cities and state populations are more educated, have better paying jobs and generate exponential amounts of benefit in comparison when talking GDP, tax revenue etc. Red states and cities would collapse into ruin if they were not propped up by blue money.
If you want to compete, get advanced degrees in mathematics and data science or niche emerging technologies. That's what they do and that's why they are being hired and preferred. It's not just about the money.
who knows, I expect we'll have more. I'm in ISG, so that is all we see anyhow. Nothing new here.