News Article Thread - 3 [Archive] - Page 2

gcnirvana

08-03-2007, 04:58 PM

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/archives/2007/08/02/americas_immigration_rules_stop_blackhat_conferenc e_speaker.html

The US immigration authorities stopped one of the speakers from attending the BlackHat security conference in Las Vegas
August 2, 2007 1:00 PM

The US immigration authorities are well known for arbitrarily bizarre decisions, and they've just stopped Thomas Dullien (aka Halvar Flake) from talking at the BlackHat security conference in Las Vegas, where "he's been a popular speaker for the past seven years".

BlackHat's BlackPage says "he was detained by immigration officials upon entry to the US, interviewed by said officials for 4.5 hours, and finally denied entry into the US and returned to Germany." It says:

In the process of checking his luggage, some portion of his printed materials for his training were discovered. This triggered a series of questions about his business and his immigration status, with the US officials finally settling on the position that if he was going to profit as an individual speaker at Black Hat, he was a de facto employee of the conference and could not enter the States without qualifying for and obtaining an H1B visa.

An H1B to talk at a conference? That's insane.

On his blog, Halvar writes:

Had there been an agreement between my company and Blackhat, then my entry to the US would've been "German-company-sends-guy-to-US-to-perform-services", and everything would've been fine. The real problem is that the agreement was still between me as a person and Blackhat.

Technically, he shouldn't have been travelling under the visa waiver programme (being squeaky clean, I don't use it myself, and no journalist should*) and now he won't be able to use it at all. However, surely somebody in the US must realise that the hostile legalistic approach to legitimate visitors is extremely damaging to US interests. It discourages people from going, damages trade and commerce, and encourages people to do more business outside the US.

It's damaging even when people don't suffer from it, because they read about it.

* A particularly fine example concerned Elena Lappin, who wrote about it for The Guardian. She was handcuffed, imprisoned, and deported for using the visa waiver form with her British passport. The great thing about the story is that her husband is a US citizen, her daughter was born in New York, and she had lived in the US as a permanent resident

breddy2000

08-04-2007, 01:37 PM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070730/immig...pf=real-estate

With rising purchasing power, the nation's growing number of foreign-born residents are keeping the bottom from falling out. And amid slow demand from an aging and slow-growing native population, immigrants are fueling predictions of a rebound.

Assuming Congress doesn't impose further restrictions, immigrants -- both legal and illegal -- and their native-born children are forecast to provide the bulk of coming years' growth in homebuying demand, nudging the market back up and aiding the broader economy.

Hope atleast they understand what Immigrants can do to the economy. The buying power of the Legal Immigrants is much more than the Illegals and it adds fuel to the recovery of Housing Market slump.

siravi

08-05-2007, 06:15 PM

Anti-Immigrant Legislators Challenge Health Coverage for Vulnerable Legal Immigrant Children and Pregnant Women

Over the past few weeks, anti-immigrant legislators in the U.S. Congress are misrepresenting the issues, and attempting to undercut legal immigrants’ access to programs that address health, education, housing, and even hunger. Instead of fixing the broken immigration system when they had the chance, these legislators are pursuing a path that would harm immigrant families – taking health care away from children.

During the debate on the immigration bill, these legislators were claiming that their concern was with undocumented immigrants, not those here legally. But now they seek to prohibit legal immigrants families from accessing critical programs in times of need.

Click below for the article:
http://capwiz.com/nclr/callalert/index.tt?alertid=10128771

drirshad

08-07-2007, 07:03 PM

http://pubweb.fdbl.com/news1.nsf/9abe5d703b986cff86256e310080943a/1c73be61f49e22158525732c00651a90?OpenDocument

Texas to Institute Employment Authorization Law

08/03/2007

Effective September 1, 2007, any business applying for a public subsidy in Texas must provide a written statement certifying that the applicant does not and will not knowingly employ unauthorized foreign national workers. The business must also confirm that none of its branches, divisions or departments employs unauthorized workers. The State has not yet issued specific guidance on the exact information the statement should contain.

Under Texas law, a public subsidy is defined as a public program, public benefit or assistance of any type that facilitates economic development. It includes grants, loans, loan guarantees, benefits relating to an enterprise or empowerment zone, fee waivers, land price subsidies, infrastructure development and improvements designed to principally benefit a single business or defined group of businesses, matching funds, tax refunds, tax rebates, and tax abatements.

Recipients of public subsidies that are found to employ unauthorized workers will be required to repay the full amount of the subsidy with interest. This law will only apply to applicants and recipients of public subsidies on or after the effective date of September 1, 2007.

cjain

08-09-2007, 05:15 PM

USCIS Changes More than 50 Immigration Forms - Law Firms and Technology Companies Respond Immediately

NewswireToday - /newswire/ - San Ramon, CA, United States, 08/02/2007 - Earlier this week, USCIS changed fifty immigration forms, including substantial changes made to key business immigration forms. Immigration lawyers and their technology providers responded immediately to keep business immigration smoothly flowing.

On July 30, 2007, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) made changes to fifty immigration forms, including substantial changes made to key business immigration forms. This update en masse coincided with an increase in fees related to immigration applications, which also went in effect on the same day.

These changes to U.S. immigration forms have a direct effect on foreign nationals applying for entry into the U.S. and their immigration lawyers. “Any change in government forms and policies directly affects the way we practice law,” said Virender Goswami, an immigration attorney in San Francisco, California. “Immigration lawyers and our clients depend upon smooth transitions that are parallel with the government to effectively practice the business of immigration.”

Responses to these changes in immigration forms also came from the technology sector. INSZoom.com, Inc., is a Silicon Valley based immigration software firm. The company responded quickly to the situation and, within three days, had updated all fifty immigration forms in their database. INSZoom’s clients were able to have instant access to updated immigration forms in less than one week’s time.

“Immigration is a very fluid business,” said Umesh Vaidyamath, founder and C.E.O. of INSZoom. “Laws, regulations and forms are constantly in flux and it is essential that lawyers and their software providers respond immediately and consistently to any changes made at the governmental side. Law firms that have that flexibility built-in to the way they function on a day-to-day level will always have an advantage in the immigration industry.”
Immigration forms that were changed this week include: Form I-751, the Petition to Remove conditions on Residence; Form I-765, the Application form Employment Authorization; Form I-907, the Request for Premium Processing Service; Form I-209B, the Notice of Appeal or Motion; and Form I-129F, the Petition for an Alien Fiancé(e).

About inszoom.com
INSZoom, Inc., is the world's largest immigration software company, with offices in San Ramon, CA, US; London, UK; and Bangalore, India. Founded in 1999, the company has been helping law firms and corporate immigration divisions in automating and managing their immigration tasks efficiently. As a Microsoft Certified partner, INSZoom provides clients with leading-edge technology, flexible platforms, and superior compliance management tools. For more information, please email sales[.]inszoom.com in the US/India or sales[.]inszoom.co.uk in the UK.

styrum

08-10-2007, 12:53 PM

http://pewtrusts.org/ideas/ideas_item.cfm?content_item_id=4292&content_type_id=16&issue_name=Economic%20mobility&issue=55&page=16&name=Pew%20Press%20Releases

Immigrants Still Climbing America's Economic Ladder, But Trends Suggest Progress Is Slowing

Pew Press Releases

Pew Contact:
Mona Miller 202.552.2135

Washington, DC -- July 25, 2007 -- America continues to be the land of opportunity for immigrant families, but the degree of upward economic mobility for newer arrivals has slowed from that experienced by earlier waves of immigrants, according to a report released today by the Economic Mobility Project, an initiative of The Pew Charitable Trusts.
“The American economic assimilation machine remains strong for immigrants and they continue to seize our nation’s historic promise of opportunity, working to make a better life for themselves and their children,” said John E. Morton, managing director of economic policy at Pew. “But trends are heading downward and there are substantial changes in wages that raise real questions about the degree of continued upward movement for future generations.”

The report was written by Ron Haskins, a principal of the Economic Mobility Project and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. It draws on the pioneering research of George Borjas, Ph.D., of Harvard University on immigration economic trends using data from the Current Population Survey that captures both legal and illegal immigrants. It is one in a series of reports that the project will release in the next 18 months, including future new analyses on gender, race, wealth, education and other factors that illuminate the status of U.S. economic mobility.

“The great story of America is that it still offers a job to first generation immigrants and better jobs to their children,” Haskins said. “Historically, the U.S. economy has successfully created opportunity and economic mobility for immigrant families, but the scale of recent immigration – and especially of poorly educated immigrants – could be cause for future concern.”

The report’s key findings are:

--Immigrants continue to experience strong upward economic mobility over generations. A comparison of first generation immigrants in 1970 and second generation immigrants in 2000 reveals that average wages increased by nearly five percentage points relative to non-immigrant wages. By contrast, between 1940 and 1970, there was an increase of nearly nine percentage points. In both cases, second generation immigrants continue to have higher wages than non-immigrants.

--Immigrant wages have dropped steadily over the past six decades. First generation immigrants today are poorer relative to non-immigrant Americans than at any other time since World War II. In 2000, the average first generation immigrant earned about 20 percent less than the typical non-immigrant worker, compared to 1940 when first generation immigrants earned 5.8 percent more than the typical non-immigrant worker. Additionally, although second generation immigrant workers today continue to earn higher wages than non-immigrant workers, that difference has narrowed. This raises questions about the ability of future immigrant generations to continue to achieve at higher-than-average levels.

--Initial differences in wages due to country of origin seem to moderate over a generation. Upon arrival, those from industrialized nations tend to earn more than non-immigrants—and those from non-industrialized nations tend to earn less. But by the second generation, wages for immigrants from both groups move toward average nonimmigrant wages.

--The diversity and size of America’s immigrant population have changed in the past forty years. As compared to the 1960s, the fraction of legal immigrants who are from European nations or Canada has declined, while the fraction from Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean has increased from about half to nearly three quarters of all incoming immigrants. Today, one million legal immigrants enter the country annually, compared to about 300,000 per year in the 1960s. Recent studies estimate about 500,000 illegal immigrants arrive each year.

--Education remains a crucial factor for immigrant economic mobility. Overall, the mix of educational achievement of arriving immigrants remains roughly constant with 1970 levels, but education levels vary depending on country of origin. The education level of first generation immigrants upon arrival appears to be a key factor in the transmission of higher wages to the second generation.

Economic mobility is defined as the ability of a person or family to move up the economic ladder over a lifetime or across generations. It has been a central tenet of the American experience for more than two centuries but recent research has suggested America may be a less mobile society than generally believed.

The Economic Mobility Project is a unique nonpartisan collaborative effort of The Pew Charitable Trusts that seeks to focus attention and debate on the question of economic mobility and the health of the American Dream. It is led by Pew staff and a Principals’ Group of individuals from four leading policy institutes – The American Enterprise Institute, The Brookings Institution, The Heritage Foundation and The Urban Institute. As individuals, each principal may or may not agree with potential policy solutions or prescriptions for action but all believe that economic mobility plays a central role in defining the American experience and that more attention must be paid to understanding the status of U.S. economic mobility today. For more information, please visit the Economic Mobility Project Web (http://www.economicmobility.org/)site.

sent

08-12-2007, 02:04 PM

Follow the link to the article about our flower campaign..

http://www.dinamalar.com/2007aug12/world7.asp

satishku_2000

08-18-2007, 04:26 AM

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/18/us/18visa.html?ref=us

Immigration authorities have received about 300,000 applications for high-skilled-employment visas since July 1, federal officials said yesterday, a deluge unleashed after the federal government first said it would not accept any applications for those visas during July and then reversed course.

Citizenship and Immigration Services, the federal agency, was still receiving applications for employment visas yesterday, the last day of a special period it announced on July 17 for immigrants with professional skills to file petitions for permanent residence visas, known as green cards. As a result, the total tally of applications received in the last six weeks was not available.

The agency admitted it was swamped by the applications it had already received, which was more than double the annual limit of 140,000 employment visas.

According to official figures, in the three months before July the agency received an average of 54,700 applications a month for all green cards, including employment visas and those based on family ties. Applications were already surging then as foreigners sought to file papers before higher processing fees took effect on July 30.

“That is a fantastically high number,” said Carl Shusterman, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles. Mr. Shusterman said he thought 300,000 was the highest number of employment applications the immigration agency had received in the 31 years he had practiced immigration law.

Presenting their applications did not guarantee that immigrants would receive their green cards quickly, since the annual limit remains the same. All the applications did was ensure the immigrants places on the list for green cards.

The visa roller coaster ride began on June 12, when the State Department announced that visas would be available in July for a variety of professional immigrants. The State Department offers visas, and Citizen and Immigration Services processes applications for them.

Immigrants eligible for employment visas include doctors, nurses and people with advanced degrees and technology skills. Before they can apply, they must obtain certification from the federal government that no American workers are available for their jobs.

After thousands of foreigners hurried to prepare applications, the State Department said abruptly on July 2 that no visas would be available after all because the immigration agency had accelerated its processing and claimed them. After a nationwide outcry from lawyers, at least one lawsuit and a reprimand from Representative Zoe Lofgren, the California Democrat who is chairwoman of an immigration subcommittee, the federal agencies relented on July 17, saying applications would be received for four weeks.

Inundated, Citizenship and Immigration Services has not even been able to notify applicants that their petitions have been received, said Bill Wright, a spokesman for the agency.

The about-face was a relief for thousands of high-skilled immigrants seeking green cards after working in the United States on temporary visas. Once their applications have been officially received, they will have more job mobility and their spouses can apply for work authorization.

“It reinforced my belief in the American way of government,” said Satish Kumar, 31, a visa applicant who is a software programmer from India working for a California technology company.

But because of annual limits, the new green card applications will vastly increase backlogs. Most new applicants will still face waits as long as five years before they receive their green cards.

“The root of the problem is the arcane and ridiculous limit on visas for skilled immigrants whom the United States wants,” said Murtuza Bahrainwala, 38, an Indian doctor in Decatur, Ill., who applied last month.

amitjoey

08-20-2007, 01:48 PM

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20284646/

ras

08-22-2007, 07:57 AM

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Indians_Abroad/US_flooded_with_visa_applications/articleshow/2297295.cms

US flooded with visa applications
21 Aug 2007, 1215 hrs IST,IANS
Print Save EMail Write to Editor

WASHINGTON: US immigration authorities have received about 300,000 applications for employment visas from foreign professional workers in a deluge unleashed by a bit of Gandhigiri by unhappy Indian Green Card seekers.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said it was swamped by applications for permanent residence visas, known as Green Cards- numbering more than double the annual limit of 140,000 - after it gave an additional period ended Aug 17 to immigrants with professional skills to file such petitions.

The applications came pouring in after the federal agency first said it would not accept any applications for such visas during July and then reversed course following a unique protest by Indian applicants for permanent residency.

The Indians sent thousands of flowers to USCIS Director Emilio Gonzalez in the second week of July to protest a last minute reversal of a June announcement offering expedited processing for H1-B visa holders.

"The public reaction to the July 2 announcement made it clear that the federal government's management of this process needs further review," Gonzalez announced July 17, acknowledging the Indian workers' protest inspired by the hit Hindi movie Lage Raho Munnabhai that extolled Gandhian ways of non-violent protest.

According to official figures, in the three months before July, the agency received an average of 54,700 applications a month for all green cards, including employment visas and those based on family ties. Applications were already surging then as foreigners sought to file papers before higher processing fees took effect July 30.

"That is a fantastically high number," said Carl Shusterman, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, cited by the New York Times . Shusterman said he thought 300,000 was the highest number of employment applications the immigration agency had received in the 31 years he had practiced immigration law.

Presenting their applications did not guarantee that immigrants would receive their green cards quickly, since the annual limit remains the same. All the applications did was ensure the immigrants' places on the list for green cards.

The visa roller coaster ride began June 12, when the state department announced that visas would be available in July for a variety of professional immigrants.

The state department offers visas, and USCIS processes applications for them. Immigrants eligible for employment visas include doctors, nurses and people with advanced degrees and technology skills. Before they can apply, they must obtain certification from the federal government that no American workers are available for their jobs.

After thousands of foreigners hurried to prepare applications, the state department said abruptly July 2 that no visas would be available after all because the immigration agency had accelerated its processing and claimed them.

After a nationwide outcry from lawyers and the flowery protest from the Indian green card seekers, the federal agencies relented July 17, saying applications would be received until Aug 17.

The about-face was a relief for thousands of high-skilled immigrants seeking green cards after working in the United States on temporary visas. Once their applications have been officially received, they will have more job mobility and their spouses can apply for work authorisation.

"It reinforced my belief in the American way of government," said Satish Kumar, 31, a visa applicant who is a software programmer from India working for a California technology company, cited by the Times.

But because of annual limits, the new green card applications will vastly increase backlogs. Most new applicants will still face waits as long as five years before they receive their green cards.

"The root of the problem is the arcane and ridiculous limit on visas for skilled immigrants whom the United States wants," Murtuza Bahrainwala, 38, an Indian doctor in Decatur who applied last month, was quoted as saying by the daily.

saimrathi

08-22-2007, 11:07 AM

I am not sure if this has been already posted on this thread...

http://lofgren.house.gov/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=1826

Rep. Lofgren Responds to Administration Immigration Proposal

August 10, 2007

Washington, D.C. - Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) today issued the following statement in response to the Bush administration's announcement on immigration policy.

While I strongly agree with the administration that our immigration system is in desperate need of reform, I am skeptical that this Administration can deliver on its promises.

Simply re-branding the Basic Pilot electronic employment verification program as “E-Verify” will not solve the high error rate that has plagued this program since its inception a decade ago. It is unclear how the Bush Administration plans to avoid the potentially massive lay-offs of American citizens likely to result from the expanded program and defective databases.

I welcome the belated push to complete the exit portion of the US VISIT program. Unfortunately, the Administration's plan fails to address the cyber-security vulnerabilities with this program identified by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

In addition, I agree with the Administration in recognizing that our employment-based visa system is far too complex and cumbersome. I will evaluate the details of its plan as they are released. Nevertheless, the answer is surely not to weaken protections that assure that American workers are not undercut by a foreign workforce willing to work for less than prevailing wages.

The Administration finally recognizes that it has failed in its duties to administer the immigration laws. We shall see whether a dysfunctional agency that deports an American citizen and cannot keep count of the number of visas issued can effectively implement these proposals.

real_coolguy2003

08-22-2007, 11:33 AM

http://samachar.com/showurl.php?rurl=http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14514430

Indian immigration helped US more, says study
Wednesday, 22 August , 2007, 09:38

Washington: India may have provided more in intellectual capital to the US just over the last decade than all of the financial aid the US has given to India over the last 60 years, says an Indian American entrepreneur researcher who has done a study on the immigration issue.

"So one may ask - who's helping who, here," said Delhi born Vivek Wadhwa, a technology entrepreneur currently working as Wertheim Fellow at Harvard Law School and executive in residence at Duke University on the release of the study Wednesday by Kauffman Foundation.

But for the first time in its history the US faces the prospect of a reverse brain drain because of its flawed immigration policies, says the study, the third in a series of studies focusing on immigrants' contributions to the competitiveness of the US economy.

The US should bring in highly skilled immigrants not as temporary workers but to stay if it does not want to lose them to countries like India and China, the study suggests.

The study is co-authored by Guillermina Jasso, professor of sociology at New York University, Ben Rissing and Gary Gereffi research scholars at Duke University and Richard Freeman, Herbert Asherman Chair in Economics at Harvard University.

Noting that the number of skilled workers waiting for visas is significantly larger than the number that can be admitted to the US, it says this imbalance creates the potential for a sizeable reverse brain-drain from America to the skilled workers' home countries.

The study estimated "there are more than one million individuals waiting in line for legal permanent resident status. The wait time for visas for countries with the largest populations, like India and China, ranged to four years in June - not counting visa processing time - and may be even higher when visas are again available in October.

This backlog is likely to increase substantially, given the limited number of visas available, it said. Evidence from the "New Immigrant Survey" indicates that approximately one in five new legal immigrants and about one in three employment principals either plan to leave the US or are uncertain about remaining.

Moreover, media reports suggest that increasing numbers of skilled workers have begun to return home to countries like India and China where the economies are booming, the study noted.

"So far, the US has the benefit of attracting the worlds best and brightest. They have typically come here for the freedom and economic opportunities that America offers," said Wadhwa.

"Now, because of our flawed immigration policies, we have not set the stage for the departure of hundreds of thousands of highly skilled professionals - who we have trained in our technology, techniques and markets and made even more valuable.

"This is lose-lose for the US. Our corporations lose key talent that is contributing to innovation and competitiveness, and we end up creating potential competitors," he said.

Wadhwa said he was by no means advocating an expansion of the numbers of H-1B visas for skilled workers. "In fact, part of this problem has been created by our expanding the numbers of temporary workers we admit and not increasing the numbers of permanent resident visas."

Noting that the focus of the immigration debate in US has been on the plight of the unskilled workers who have entered the country illegally, he said If Washington waited five years to reform the immigration system, the illegal and unskilled will still be here as these poor people have few options.

"But the highly educated and skilled - who are fuelling economic growth and contributing significantly to US global competitiveness will be long gone. They are in even more demand in countries like India and China than they are in the US. Our loss will be the gain of their home countries," Wadhwa said.

nomad

08-22-2007, 12:14 PM

http://www.mercurynews.com/businessheadlines/ci_6686174?nclick_check=1

Many green card seekers wait seven years or more
RESEARCHERS SAY BACKLOG COULD SPUR `REVERSE BRAIN DRAIN'
By John Boudreau
Mercury News
San Jose Mercury News
Article Launched:08/22/2007 01:34:02 AM PDT

For more than 1 million immigrant professionals and their families, applying for green cards is the bureaucratic equivalent of an interminable phone tree: Please hold and hold and hold, according to a new study to be released today.

The backlog can be seven or more years, a frustrating experience that could eventually lead to a "reverse brain drain" as engineers, researchers and doctors give up and return to their home countries, the report's authors said. However, they do not provide data that backs their suspicions.

As of Sept. 30, 2006, there were more than 500,000 workers, and another 555,000 family members, waiting for green cards, according to the report, a third in a series under the title "America's New Immigrant Entrepreneurs." It was prepared by researchers at Duke, New York and Harvard universities.

The study is part of ongoing research that looks at the importance of immigrant entrepreneurs to the U.S. economy. In addition to immigration backlog estimates, the report reveals that foreign-national inventors file large numbers of patents from the United States.

New York University sociologist Guillermina Jasso culled reports from the U.S. Department of Labor and the Citizenship and Immigration Services to come up with her estimate of the backlog of 1 million highly skilled immigrants and their family members awaiting permanent resident status in the United States.

Every year, the United States grants green cards to about 120,000 of these applicants. So even those who have cleared bureaucratic hurdles still must wait as long as seven to 10 years, she said.

One reason for the long wait is federal law limits the number of visas issued to immigrants from any one of the major sending countries to just 7 percent of the total employment-based visas available every year. So immigrants from China, India, Mexico and the Philippines who populate the American workforce could end up waiting much longer than those from, say, Iceland.

There is no single federal agency that compiles backlog numbers, Jasso said. "We are using the best available data to try to come up with a number," she said.

Report co-author Vivek Wadhwa said the research is designed to spotlight highly skilled immigrant workers whose plights have been overshadowed by the debate in Washington about illegal immigrants.

Earlier this year, Wadhwa reported that 52 percent of Silicon Valley start-ups had at least one immigrant as a key founder.

The latest report reveals that foreign nationals living in the United States were named as inventors or co-inventors in 25 percent of patent applications filed from the United States in 2006, and they accounted for 36 percent of the patent applications from California.

Foreign-national innovators also played a major role in international patent applications filed by numerous large U.S. companies. In 2006, they contributed to 72 percent of Qualcomm's international patent applications, 60 percent of those filed by Cisco Systems, 58 percent for Intel and 38 percent for Hewlett-Packard. They also represented 41 percent of the patent applications filed by the U.S. government.

The arduous green-card application process could trigger a wave of immigrant professionals returning to their home countries, Wadhwa said.

Immigrants awaiting green cards can find themselves in career limbo for many years. If they change job titles, even within their sponsoring companies, they must begin the green card application process again, said Wadhwa, who is executive-in-residence at the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke.

"These guys can't go anywhere," he said. "You can't go from being a programmer to a project manager because that's a different position.

"The difference between the skilled workers and the unskilled workers is, the unskilled workers are in desperate situations. They are not going back," Wadhwa said. Indian and Chinese engineers, on the other hand, can return home and find themselves in great demand, he said.

At the moment, though, there is no research that shows a vast exodus of highly skilled immigrants, Jasso said.

"There is no question that if someone faces a seven-year wait, they may become discouraged and go elsewhere," she said. "But we just don't know. Even if someone leaves, it does not mean they leave forever. Immigrants have demonstrated they want to go where their skills and knowledge will be put to the best use."

IF YOU'RE INTERESTED
To read the report, go to www.globalizationresearch.com.
Contact John Boudreau at jboudreau@mercurynews.com or (408) 278-3496.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Immigration Rally Teaser:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0F3eqQP7yw
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rajsand

08-22-2007, 04:00 PM

Yahoo News
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070822/pl_afp/usimmigrationeducation

real_coolguy2003

08-22-2007, 04:02 PM

http://www.kauffman.org/item.cfm?item=906

Kauffman Foundation Study Points to ‘Brain-Drain’ of Skilled U.S. Immigrant Entrepreneurs to Home Country

More than a million skilled foreign nationals in the United States, including doctors and scientists, face mounting visa backlog

(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) Aug. 22, 2007 – More than one million skilled immigrant workers, including scientists, engineers, doctors and researchers and their families, are competing for 120,000 permanent U.S. resident visas each year, creating a sizeable imbalance likely to fuel a “reverse brain-drain” with skilled workers returning to their home country, according to a new report released today by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

The situation is even bleaker as the number of employment visas issued to immigrants from any single country is less than 10,000 per year with a wait time of several years.

“The United States benefits from having foreign-born innovators create their ideas in this country,” said Vivek Wadhwa, Wertheim fellow with the Harvard Law School and executive in residence at Duke University. “Their departures would be detrimental to U.S. economic well-being. And, when foreigners come to the United States, collaborate with Americans in developing and patenting new ideas, and employ those ideas in business in ways they could not readily do in their home countries, the world benefits.”

Conducted by researchers at Duke University, New York University and Harvard University, the study is the third in a series of studies focusing on immigrants’ contributions to the competitiveness of the U.S. economy. Earlier research revealed a dramatic increase in the contributions of foreign nationals to U.S. intellectual property over an eight-year period.

In this study, "Intellectual Property, the Immigration Backlog, and a Reverse Brain-Drain," researchers offer a more refined measure of this rise in contributions of foreign nationals to U.S. intellectual property and seek to explain this increase with an analysis of the immigrant-visa backlog for skilled workers. The key finding from this research is that the number of skilled workers waiting for visas is significantly larger than the number that can be admitted to the United States. This imbalance creates the potential for a sizeable reverse brain-drain from the United States to the skilled workers’ home countries.

The earlier studies, “America’s New Immigrant Entrepreneurs” and “Entrepreneurship, Education and Immigration: America’s New Immigrant Entrepreneurs, Part II,” documented that one in four engineering and technology companies founded between 1995 and 2005 had an immigrant founder. Researchers found that these companies employed 450,000 workers and generated $52 billion in revenue in 2006. Indian immigrants founded more companies than the next four groups (from the United Kingdom, China, Taiwan and Japan) combined.

Furthermore, these companies’ founders tended to be highly educated in science, technology, math and engineering-related disciplines, with 96 percent holding bachelor’s degrees and 75 percent holding master’s or PhD degrees.

Among key findings in the most recent report:

* Foreign nationals residing in the United States were named as inventors or co-inventors in 25.6 percent of international patent applications filed from the United States in 2006. This represents an increase from 7.6 percent in 1998.
* Foreign nationals contributed to more than half of the international patents filed by a number of large, multi-national companies, including Qualcomm (72 percent), Merck & Co. (65 percent), General Electric (64 percent), Siemens (63 percent) and Cisco (60 percent). Forty-one percent of the patents filed by the U.S. government had foreign nationals as inventors or co-inventors.
* In 2006, 16.8 percent of international patent applications from the United States had an inventor or co-inventor with a Chinese-heritage name, representing an increase from 11.2 percent in 1998. The contribution of inventors with Indian-heritage names increased to 13.7 percent from 9.5 percent in the same period.
* The total number of employment-based principals in the employment-based categories and their family members waiting for legal permanent residence in the United States in 2006 was estimated at 1,055,084. Additionally, there are an estimated 126,421 residents abroad also waiting for employment-based U.S. legal permanent residence, adding up to a worldwide total of 1,181,505.

Using data from the New Immigrant Survey, the authors find that, in 2003, approximately one in five new legal immigrants in the United States and about one in three employment-based new legal immigrants either planned to leave the United States or were uncertain about remaining. The authors had no data on how many foreign nationals have actually returned to their homelands.

“Given that the U.S. comparative advantage in the global economy is in creating knowledge and applying it to business, it behooves the country to consider how we might adjust policies to reduce the immigration backlog, encourage innovative foreign minds to remain in the country, and entice new innovators to come,” said Robert Litan, vice president of Research and Policy at the Kauffman Foundation.

About the research team
For more information about the Global Engineering and Entrepreneurship research at Duke University, visit http://www.globalizationresearch.com; visit http://www.law.harvard.edu/programs/lwp/ to learn about Harvard Law’s Labor and Worklife Program; and visit http://www.nyu.edu/ for more information about New York University.

engineer

08-22-2007, 11:44 PM

http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/I551ReplacementQA082207.pdf

750,000 lawful permanent residents carrying ‘green cards’ without expiration dates to apply for a new Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551).

Thanks...that was what we needed..now see how they process these 750000 cards ..it will just delay 485 approvals..

....

saravanaraj.sathya

08-23-2007, 10:43 AM

This is one way for them to make money.
http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/I551ReplacementQA082207.pdf

750,000 lawful permanent residents carrying ‘green cards’ without expiration dates to apply for a new Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551).

Thanks...that was what we needed..now see how they process these 750000 cards ..it will just delay 485 approvals..

....

saravanaraj.sathya

08-23-2007, 10:45 AM

I think we need to let democrats - Clinton, Obama & comp to support EB Visa. I dont know whey they oppose it?

From www.immigration-law.com by Methew-Oh, Immigration Attorney

08/23/2007: CIR or Piecemeal, That Is The Question for the Fall Congress

It appears that there are three schools of political forces being formed in the political arena relating to the immigration reform when the Congress returns in about 10 days from now. One school is "enforcement only" anti-immigrationists, the second being piecemeal immigration strategists, and the third being the CIR. Strangely enough, the third school is neither Democrats nor Republican legislators but Bush who wants to leave a legacy before he leaves the White House. As we opined earlier, the Bush's recent Border Security and Immigration Proposal within the current laws appears to be a hook thrown over the Hill to reactivate the immigration reform legislation debate. Sources indicate that Bush will continue to push his agenda for the CIR. The enforcement only school is without doubt a group of conservative Republican legislators in both Houses that oppose illegal alien immigration. Again, strangely, this school does not necessarily oppose the legal immigration or employment-based immigration reform and they can easily be aligned with the business community. The third school appears to be the Democrats that more or less focused on illegal alien immigration, and facing the steep opposition from the Republicans on the otherside of the aile, they seem to take a piecemeal immigration legislation strategy. AgJOBS bill, DREAM bill, etc. are illustrations of such strategy. There is a prediction that the Democrats will keep attempting to attach these piecemeal legislations to the pending appropriation bills when the Congress returns in September. Accordingly, illegal immigrant community will closely monitor and follow the debates and passage of the federal departments' appropriation bills.
Where does the employment-based immigration legislation fit in the political dynamics? Democrats are generally aligned with the labor unions and oppose any employment-based immigration legislation that can increase the number of legal foreign workers. On the other hand, the Republicans generally support such legal employment-based immigration legislation either in the form of a piecemeal or comprehensive immigration legislation, but facing strong opposition from the Democrats, the chance remains an open question. Poor employment-based immigrant workers, Where to Go? They turn out to be "orphans" in the current political dynamics. Whichever they try, they will not be able to find "loving parents." Piecemeal bills will be continuously opposed and struck down by the Democrats, while Comprehensive Bill will be opposed by the Republicans and struck down because of the illegal alien and border issues. Facing upheal battle, some may feel "impotent!" Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh---------------------

andy garcia

08-23-2007, 12:46 PM

I think we need to let democrats - Clinton, Obama & comp to support EB Visa. I dont know whey they oppose it?---

Which part of this paragraph you do not understand?

Democrats are generally aligned with the labor unions and oppose any employment-based immigration legislation that can increase the number of legal foreign workers.
(translation: We do not want smart foreign workers)

saravanaraj.sathya

08-23-2007, 12:59 PM

I ve seen couple of debates wherein Edwards, Obama & Clinton talked about Highly skilled workers...Are they just cheating...How do we lobby with these guys..So I think this is the right time to strike hard. After election if Democrats come to power then we are totally gone.

Which part of this paragraph you do not understand?

Democrats are generally aligned with the labor unions and oppose any employment-based immigration legislation that can increase the number of legal foreign workers.
(translation: We do not want smart foreign workers)

amitjoey

08-23-2007, 01:11 PM

http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/aug/23visa.htm

The US is facing the prospect of a massive reverse brain drain with an estimated backlog of 1 million highly skilled legal immigrants in the queue for LPR (Legal Permanent Resident) status, against a total yearly allotment of just over 120,000 visas. At least 30 per cent of those in the immigration limbo are estimated to be Indians.

A new report released on Wednesday, which is the third part of a study titled 'Intellectual Property, the Immigration Backlog, and a Reverse Brain-Drain - America's New Immigrant Entrepreneurs', concludes that many highly skilled visa applicants waiting in the green card-queue for years, are getting depressed and discouraged and returning home to countries like India and China where economies are booming and their skills are in high demand.

The study, released by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, has been conducted by Vivek Wadhwa of the Harvard Law School, along with Guillermina Jasso of New York University. Noted Harvard economist Richard Freeman and other noted academics were also associated with the study.

The study says that at the end of fiscal 2006, there were about half-a-million employment-based applicants awaiting LPR status in the US and more than half-a-million family members.

"These numbers suggest that what has been viewed as a visa processing problem is essentially more of a visa number problem. The approximately 120,000 available visas are no match when you look at the million individuals in the queue," Wadhwa, founder of Relativity Technologies, and an adjunct professor at the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke University, said.

He said that the immigration debate in the US has focused more on the plight of the estimated 12 million illegal and unskilled workers.

"When you consider that there is a (total) yearly limit of 120,000 visas that can be granted to skilled immigrants and a limit of 7 per cent per country, we have the recipe for a crisis. There is evidence that many Indians and Chinese are already beginning to return home," Wadhwa said. It is notable that less than 10,000 visas are allotted annually for skilled workers in key immigrant categories.

A lose-lose situation will develop for the US if the reverse brain drain continues as a result of the visa backlog.

"First, we lose critical talent that is helping the US compete globally, and second, they become our potential competitors. We brought hundreds of thousands of workers to the US on temporary visas, trained them in our technology and market and now we are forcing them to leave - just when they have become even more valuable," the report notes.

Research conducted by Wadhwa and his team had documented that immigrants had founded half of the technology and engineering companies started in Silicon Valley from 1995-2005 and a quarter of those started in the US. Indian and Chinese immigrants were contributing significantly to US global patent build-ups.

World Intellectual Property Organization data indicates that in 2006, foreign nationals residing in the US were inventors or co-inventors of one in four US patent applications - a more than threefold increase over their proportion in 1998.

The report adds: "The US benefits from having foreign-born innovators create their ideas in the country. Their departures would be detrimental to US economic well-being. It behoves the country to consider how we might adjust policies to reduce the immigration backlog, encourage innovative foreign minds to remain in the country, and entice new innovators to come."

Even changing jobs in the middle of the process would require applicants to start green card petitioning all over again, putting them back at the end of the queue, and another wait for 6 years to 10 years.

"I have been in this process for the last four years, and now hope for some reform in the system so that it wouldn't take long and I can work to my full potential," says Ronnie Gandhoke, an anaesthesiologist from Gallup, New Mexico, in a testimonial to Immigration Voice, a group upholding the rights of those seeking permanent residency in the US.

maddipati1

08-23-2007, 01:48 PM

http://www.kauffman.org/items.cfm?itemID=906

gc4sk

08-23-2007, 03:12 PM

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=050816e7-5f6f-4551-96cc-5d4109759097&&Headline=US+facing+reverse+brain+drain+threat

saimrathi

08-23-2007, 03:56 PM

The Flip Side | US can use visas to beat sub-prime blues
It is funny how some words suddenly capture our attention and haunt us for a while. The word “scam” became popular in the urban Indian lexicon in 1992 after broker Harshad Mehta triggered a political furore by borrowing money from the inter-bank securities market to fund a stock bubble that led to a market scandal.

This year, the global flavour is “sub-prime” – the prefix for high-risk, high-interest home loans to people with poor credit records that led to defaults after house prices fell in the United States. The defaults led to a crisis in the financial market where high-risk investors like hedge funds had bought home loans (mortgages) converted into tradeable bonds.

This is not the first time that bonds of dubious worth have led to a financial market crisis. But this is happening at a time when the US is slowly realising that it may not necessarily be the sole superpower in economic matters. Europe and Asian economies like India and China are now forces to contend with.

Now, while it is possible to analyse the US economy in isolation, perhaps it is wise to stand back and ask some very commonsensical questions.

Why are home buyers with dubious track records in repaying loans being plied with cheap credit in the United States, while rickshaw pullers in India have to borrow at exorbitant rates or wait for new fangled microfinance institutions to arrive at their doors?

Why does Wall Street favour poor quality securities in the US markets while ignoring solid mid-cap companies in emerging markets?

Why does the US President face flak from critics like Michael Moore (maker of the hit documentary Farenheit 9/11) on the healthcare policies of his administration in an election year?

Why do US-based companies queue up to get temporary work-permit visas (H1B) for foreign workers while literally hundreds of thousands of high-knowledge jobs remain unfulfilled in the economy?

All those questions show a basic skew in the global economy today.

Doctors and nurses from India and other Asian countries can help the US lower healthcare costs, but they are not being courted significantly. Indian workers face protectionist pressures in getting work permits while they can actually help US-based companies become more efficient. Indians borrowing to get their first-ever home ownership can actually pay higher interest rates to buy their first roofs. Mid-sized Indian companies offer financial potential for US investors (as private equity firms are already discovering).

The real question facing the US administration today is: How long are you going to protect inefficient workers and dubious borrowers while ignoring the healthcare needs of your citizens and inviting a crisis upon your economy?

President George W Bush has to wake up and smell some robust coffee from India, which may help him shake off some of the stupor induced by the odour of Texan oil.

One thing the US can do is to increase the H1B visa quota from the current 65,000 of the year and also introduce a generally more liberal visa programme. (Overseas students working in the US after studying there are exempt from the quota already).

The visa programme, in turn, can be linked to the mortgage market. For instance, a Microsoft or an Intel may be allowed more Indian workers if it sponsors a home for them under a human resource initiative tied to employment conditions.

This might sound bizarre now. But think about what hedge funds did on Wall Street. They invented new financial instruments by packaging risky loans with good loans, calling it “structured finance”. To counter the bad effects of structured finance, perhaps it might be wise to invent “structured immigration” or “structured visas” that can strengthen the US economy and healthcare.

Such a policy would be backed by the fundamental forces of the global economy in which imbalances need to be addressed. The last time I heard, America’s favourite bird was the eagle not the ostrich.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Print.aspx?Id=76a07b9d-8217-4a29-8256-45ad48718801

cpbaherwani

08-23-2007, 04:30 PM

Indian firms to scout for Indian talent in US
http://in.news.yahoo.com/070823/43/6jtid.html

Indo-US job fair in New Jersey, 25th and 26th Aug 2007
http://www.clickjobs.com/jobfair/

By IANS
Thursday August 23, 03:14 PM
Chennai, Aug 23 (IANS) Around 15 Indian companies will scout for Indian talent in the US in a job fair in that country.

The two-day job fair - the first of its kind being held by an Indian job portal in the US starts Aug 25 in New Jersey.

'Companies like Oracle, Hewlett and Packard, GSS America Infotech IBM, Yahoo India and human resource consulting outfit Ma Foi Management Consultants have confirmed participation. We expect more confirmations,' said Michael M. Bala, business head, Clickjobs.com.

Around 4,000 middle management jobs in the IT field but with differing job profiles will be on the offer list at the fair. The jobs will be worth an annual pay ranging between Rs.3.5-6 million.

Some companies are looking for business analysts and some for programme managers, Bala added.

According to him, the job fair is the result of a dipstick study conducted by the company and also the recent trend of Indians returning home owing to the growing economy that has thrown up new opportunities. The Indo-US job fair looks at attracting over 6,000 professionals.

An official of a human resource consulting company who did not want to be named, said Indian companies were largely looking for domain experts in the middle management level - with five-six years experience - and not at very senior or junior levels.

On the trend of Indians coming back home, he said only people who have done well and are in their mid 30s or early 40s contemplate returning to India. Those who want to settle down in India have to adjust to the work culture in India - it cannot be a strict eight hours a day and five days a week as in the US, he said.

saimrathi

08-25-2007, 07:14 PM

Hope everyone's relatives and friends are ok in Hyderabad, India...

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/08/25/hyderabad.bombs/index.html

Officials: Deadly blasts in southern India were acts of terror

* Story Highlights
* NEW: Authorities also find explosives in 16 other locations
* NEW: Security beefed up at airport and railroads
* Almost simultaneous explosions strike Hyderabad park and snack shop
* 41 killed; at least one blast is believed to have been a bomb

NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- The death toll continued to rise in southern India, where two blasts Saturday night killed at least 41 people in Hyderabad in what authorities are calling terrorists attacks.

More than 60 people were wounded, several critically, police said.

But the carnage could have been worse.

Authorities also found explosives at 16 other locations in and near Hyderabad, said Y.S.R. Reddy, chief minister of Andhra Pradesh state.

Security was beefed up at the airport and railroads after police said the almost simultaneous blasts were coordinated attacks.

"This is definitely terrorist activity," Reddy said, urging everyone to stay calm. He scheduled a Cabinet meeting Sunday morning to discuss the incidents.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh issued a statement expressing deep concern over the violence.

One explosion, suspected to have been a bomb, occurred as a laser music show was to begin at an outdoor auditorium in Lumbini Park after 7:30 p.m. (10 a.m. ET).

About 500 people were in the audience when the blast ripped through the middle row of seats, Reddy said.

"It was a high-intensity blast," said Asaduddin Owaisi, an Andhra Pradesh state lawmaker from Hyderabad. He said it caused carnage at the park.

Video on CNN-IBN showed one or two bodies slumped amid theater seats at the park's amphitheater, and blood spattered on seats and pooled on a tile floor.

A second blast happened five minutes later, 8 kilometers (about 5 miles) away at a snack shop in a commercial area with large crowds.

Authorities believe a gas cylinder may have exploded at the shop.

India is no stranger to terror bombings, and memories of another deadly blast are still fresh in Hyderabad. The city -- one of India's biggest -- has a history of tension between Hindus and Muslims, Reuters reported.

In May, several people were killed in an explosion in a packed mosque in the southern city at the close of Friday prayers. Thousands of worshippers were inside Mecca Masjid -- considered one of the largest mosques in Asia -- at the time.

In July 2006 more than 200 people were killed by bombs set off in seven Mumbai, formerly Bombay, commuter trains.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Eternal_Hope

08-27-2007, 08:23 AM

Managing
Firms Get Creative
To Work Around
Visa Bottlenecks
By PHRED DVORAK
August 27, 2007; Page B1

Janet Reardon wants to hire a senior engineer for her company's Los Angeles office -- but first she has to send him to Canada. That's because the engineer, an Indian now working in Kuwait, is among tens of thousands of educated foreigners offered jobs in the U.S. this year but unable to get visas.

Ms. Reardon, a human-resource manager at Corrpro Cos. Inc., has asked the corrosion-prevention firm's Canadian unit to take on the engineer until the company can reapply for a visa next year. But no one is particularly happy about that. The engineer, with 20 years' experience, would rather move to Southern California; Corrpro's Canadian managers are reluctant to hire an employee they might lose in months; and Ms. Reardon can't be sure that next year will bring the coveted visa.

But she persists because corrosion specialists are rare. "It's like hitting the jackpot," she says. "Corrosion is not the sexiest industry."

As opponents worry about foreigners undercutting well-paid American workers and debate continues over reshaping U.S. immigration laws, companies like Corrpro are quietly taking matters into their own hands, with elaborate workarounds to retain foreign job applicants who can't get visas.

Since 2004, the U.S. has limited the number of so-called H-1Bs -- three-year visas for skilled workers with college degrees -- to 65,000 per year; an additional 20,000 visas are available for applicants with advanced degrees from U.S. schools. The quota was originally set in the early 1990s and was boosted temporarily to meet soaring demand -- particularly for technology workers -- earlier this decade. When jobs dried up after the tech bust, pressure faded to keep higher caps. Now companies are claiming they need more workers again, but disagreement on how to fix the broader immigration system, including what to do with undocumented workers, is bogging down change.

In 2004, it took about 10 months to reach the cap; last year, it took just under two months; this year, the cap was reached the first day applications were accepted in April. That forced the government for the first time to hold a lottery to allocate all of the visas, which take effect Oct. 1. About half of the applicants missed out, including the Indian engineer Ms. Reardon wants to hire and one of Corrpro's three other H-1B applicants.

The visa squeeze leaves companies scrambling for ways to retain valuable job candidates, including using other types of visas and temporary overseas assignments. Google Inc., which filed more than 300 H-1B applications this year, says it will send 70 new hires who didn't get visas to overseas offices until it can try again next year. Many of the Intel Corp. job candidates who failed to get H-1Bs will stay in school and try for the visa next year while Intel holds open the jobs; one will work abroad for a year, then plans to come to the U.S. on a different visa.

Some companies say they are moving jobs overseas in response to the restrictions. Chip maker Analog Devices Inc. says it will hire more engineers in countries like Canada and India next year, boosting the share of its engineers overseas to 60% from 50%. National Semiconductor Corp., which has design centers in India, China and Taiwan, says some job candidates from those countries who didn't get H-1Bs are being offered positions at home.

Microsoft Corp., which was the third-biggest user of H-1B visas issued in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2006, plans to open a new development center next month in Richmond, British Columbia -- 133 miles from its Redmond, Wash., headquarters -- largely in response to the U.S. visa rules. Many of the 200 initial employees failed to get H-1B visas this year, a Microsoft spokesman says.

"Addressing this issue has been the No. 1 priority for this office," says Jack Krumhold, who runs Microsoft's government-affairs office in Washington, D.C.

Critics of H-1B visas say employers use them to replace well-paid U.S. workers with cheaper foreigners. Ron Hira, an assistant professor of public policy at the Rochester Institute of Technology, says big information-technology outsourcing firms, such as Infosys Technologies Ltd. and Wipro Ltd. of India, gobble up a disproportionate number of them, applying for thousands of visas to hire low-level technical workers for their U.S. offices. The practice contributes to the visa shortage and displaces Americans, Mr. Hira says.

Mr. Hira, an electrical engineer by training, urges better policing of rules requiring H-1B workers be paid market wages, and an added condition that companies be required to first look for U.S. workers.

Infosys and Wipro referred questions on their H-1B practices to industry associations. Jeff Lande, senior vice president at the Information Technology Association of America, says the companies already follow H-1B rules that mandate that companies pay prevailing wages. He adds that this year's H-1B application figures show there wouldn't be enough visas to satisfy demand even without the Indian firms.

Employers who use H-1Bs say they aren't trying to save money; they say they incur significant expenses to obtain foreign workers with much-needed skills. Intel and Microsoft say they budget several thousand dollars in legal fees for each foreign hire, to cover an H-1B visa and a permanent-residency permit.

The expense soars when companies have to park people, like Corrpro's Indian engineer, in other countries while navigating visa issues. Leslie Dahan, an immigration lawyer at Littler Mendelson PC, says one client spends $30,000 for each employee it sends on an offshore assignment. Ms. Dahan says one client this year shifted a Korean hire to its U.K. branch; another asked an Indian to work from the Netherlands.

At Intel, which hired Littler Mendelson to handle its employees' visa applications, Ms. Dahan started warning managers in March that H-1Bs would be tight this year; she urged them to file applications the first day they would be accepted, April 2. Intel filed more than 200 applications that day, but 30 of those prospects lost out in the lottery.

Ms. Dahan then counseled Intel's hiring managers on their options for unsuccessful visa candidates, crafting "decision trees" to help managers navigate tricky immigration rules. The next round of visas won't take effect until October 2008, so managers had to find alternatives to cover roughly 18 months.

Prospective employees leaving U.S. colleges, for example, could legally work in the U.S. for a year. If that employee gets the H-1B in 2008, that would still likely leave them a gap of a few months before the visas take effect in October of that year. Ms. Dahan says during those months, the employees could return to school to legally stay in the U.S., take a leave of absence and leave the country, or work abroad.

Other prospective hires were urged to delay graduation until the fall, so they could work in the U.S. until October 2008; at least 47 people took that route. Others enrolled in an advanced-degree program -- sometimes their second -- in order to stay in school until the company could reapply for an H-1B next year, says Ms. Dahan.

Where those alternatives weren't practical, Intel managers considered sending candidates abroad, says Margie Jones, Intel's U.S. immigration manager. Managers had to weigh whether Intel had an appropriate overseas office, whether the job could be done remotely and whether the business division could afford the expense. In some cases, managers rescinded job offers, Ms. Jones says.

Ms. Dahan points out that the alternative strategies have a big flaw: They assume Intel's foreign job candidates will be more successful in getting H-1Bs next year.

Write to Phred Dvorak at phred.dvorak@wsj.com

gangster

08-27-2007, 04:19 PM

Hey all

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=3526093&page=1

The link to the article about the study conducted by kaufmann foundation.

saravanaraj.sathya

08-29-2007, 09:59 AM

U.S. Chamber: hopes dim on immigration bill, but H-1B visas look good

Source: http://www.statesman.com
http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/immigration/entries/2007/08/28

I posted this comment on this:

By Raj

August 29, 2007 10:22 AM | Link to this

I think talented & brilliant americans should not be worried about H1 visas. It is a competetive world. You need to keep yourself updated with latest technolofy and job marker and compete and should not be afraid of competition. Most companies do not prefer H1B when they can find a equally good american worker. It is a pain for them to go through all these immigration issues. Still they hire H1B because H1B visa holders are most productive & commited to the job

Reported by: Eunice Moscoso

the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told reporters Tuesday that hopes for a broad immigration bill are dim.

The chamber is supporting a measure by Sen. Arlen Specter (pictured), R-Pa., which is similar to a White House-backed immigration package that failed in the Senate earlier this year.

The Specter bill includes border security measures and a guest worker program and would not allow illegal immigrants to become U.S. citizens.

Johnson said the question is whether “the left” would support a measure without a citizenship provision.

He also said the Chamber of Commerce is optimistic that separate legislation to increase the yearly cap on H-1B visas for highly educated workers would pass in the Fall.

The number of H-1B visas allowed by law has fluctuated in recent years in response to the U.S. economy and the highs and lows of the technology industry and is now set by Congress at 65,000. In addition, 20,000 more foreign citizens with advanced degrees from American universities are allowed to stay in work in the United States.

Critic say that the H-1B program depresses wages for American workers and has many flaws including limited enforcement mechanisms.

saravanaraj.sathya

08-29-2007, 10:14 AM

What about our EB GC visa increase. Do we have hopes? or is it only H1. This is more reason to attend the DC rally...

U.S. Chamber: hopes dim on immigration bill, but H-1B visas look good

Source: http://www.statesman.com
http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/immigration/entries/2007/08/28

I posted this comment on this:

By Raj

August 29, 2007 10:22 AM | Link to this

I think talented & brilliant americans should not be worried about H1 visas. It is a competetive world. You need to keep yourself updated with latest technolofy and job marker and compete and should not be afraid of competition. Most companies do not prefer H1B when they can find a equally good american worker. It is a pain for them to go through all these immigration issues. Still they hire H1B because H1B visa holders are most productive & commited to the job

Reported by: Eunice Moscoso

the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told reporters Tuesday that hopes for a broad immigration bill are dim.

The chamber is supporting a measure by Sen. Arlen Specter (pictured), R-Pa., which is similar to a White House-backed immigration package that failed in the Senate earlier this year.

The Specter bill includes border security measures and a guest worker program and would not allow illegal immigrants to become U.S. citizens.

Johnson said the question is whether “the left” would support a measure without a citizenship provision.

He also said the Chamber of Commerce is optimistic that separate legislation to increase the yearly cap on H-1B visas for highly educated workers would pass in the Fall.

The number of H-1B visas allowed by law has fluctuated in recent years in response to the U.S. economy and the highs and lows of the technology industry and is now set by Congress at 65,000. In addition, 20,000 more foreign citizens with advanced degrees from American universities are allowed to stay in work in the United States.

Critic say that the H-1B program depresses wages for American workers and has many flaws including limited enforcement mechanisms.

kishdam

08-29-2007, 02:18 PM

The cover article in EE times (August 27, 2007) is about Reverse Brain Drain because of Greencard Red tape. Read this:
http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=YESQQOGEYK0NMQSNDLOSK H0CJUNN2JVN;?articleID=201802703

mpadapa

08-29-2007, 04:25 PM

by Sheila Riley

EE Times
(08/28/2007 1:40 PM EDT)

Disenchanted with life in immigration limbo, San Antonio resident Praveen Arumbakkam is abandoning his American dream and returning to his native India.

A senior programmer at a fast-growing IT company, Arumbakkam volunteered for the Red Cross in Texas after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. He worked on disaster recovery management software to locate displaced persons, track donations and organize aid distribution.

He had hoped to start a nonprofit disaster recovery management solutions company in the United States, but now he's decided he doesn't want to wait any longer for his green card.

When professionals such as Arumbakkam give up on the States, it creates serious economic consequences, said Vivek Wadhwa, lead author of a study on the subject released last week.

"We've set the stage here for a massive reverse brain drain," said Wadhwa, Wertheim Fellow at Harvard Law School's Labor and Worklife Program.

By the end of fiscal 2006, half a million foreign nationals living in the U.S. were waiting for employment-based green cards, according to the study, released by the nonprofit Kauffman Foundation. Titled "Intellectual Property, the Immigration Backlog, and a Reverse Brain-Drain," the study was based on research by Duke, Harvard and New York University. If spouses and children are included, the number exceeds 1 million.

The study looked at the three main types of employment-based green cards, which cover skill-based immigrants and their immediate families. Including pros- pective immigrants awaiting U.S. legal permanent resident status but living abroad, the numbers hit almost 600,000 in the first group and almost 1.2 million in the second.

The number of available green cards in the three categories totals approximately 120,000. "If there are over a million persons in line for 120,000 visas a year, then we have already mortgaged almost nine years' worth of employment visas," said study author Guillermina Jasso, an NYU sociology professor.

The report also notes that foreign nationals were listed as inventors or co-inventors on 25.6 percent of the international-patent app-lications filed from the United States in 2006, up from 7.6 percent in 1998.

U.S. companies bring in many highly skilled foreigners on temporary visas and train them in U.S. business practices, noted Wadhwa, an executive in residence at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering. Those workers are then forced to leave, and "they become our competitors. That's as stupid as it gets," he said. "How can this country be so dumb as to bring people in on temporary visas, train them in our way of doing business and then send them back to compete with us?"

Many in the engineering profession argue that American tech employers take advantage of the work visa system for their own benefit. They state that though there is plenty of American engineering talent available, employers use the programs to hire cheaper foreign labor.

And others counter the concern that large numbers of foreign residents will depart America. Most immigrants who have waited years for green cards will remain firm in their resolve, given the time and effort they have already invested, believes Norm Matloff, a computer science professor at the University of California at Davis. "People are here because they want to be here," he said. "They place a high value on immigrating."

But while Arumbakkam wants to be here, he has had enough of waiting. And his story is typical of those foreign-born tech professionals who return home.

In July 2001, the then 27-year-old Arumbakkam arrived on a student visa to get his master's in information technology at Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York. He has a bachelor's degree from the highly ranked University of Madras in southern India.

Arumbakkam said he "pretty much loved the society and the infrastructure for advanced education" in the States. In the post-Sept. 11 climate toward foreigners, however, he found it difficult to get work. After sending out countless resumes, he took an internship in Baltimore, followed by a job in Michigan.

That post didn't bring him any closer to his goal of permanent residency, however. He next took a job in San Antonio and insisted his employer secure him a green card. About that time, the government established an "application backlog elimination" center. "My application went straight into this chasm. I don't know what happened after that," he said. "That was pretty much a blow."

In 2005, he landed his current job, where he's happy with the work environment and the salary. His employer applied for a green card when the government rolled out an online system that was supposed to streamline the process.

But since then, with two applications in the works, Arumbakkam has been waiting-and waiting. In the meantime, his work status can't change, meaning no pay raises or promotions.

Arumbakkam knows plenty of others in the same boat. In early 2006, he ran across Immigration Voice, a nonprofit national group that supports changes in immigration law affecting highly skilled workers. The 22,000-member organization includes professionals in a wide range of fields, from engineers and doctors to architects. Many have families, and all are stuck in the legal process.

"I heard horror stories," said Arumbakkam. One is the tale of a quality assurance engineer employed by a midsized consulting firm in Oklahoma working with Fortune 50 companies. The Indian engineer was hired at a salary that was 30 percent lower than he expected. This was in exchange for the promise that his employer would file a green card application. He was told the money would go to attorneys' fees.

For four years, the engineer asked about his application and was repeatedly told it was coming along. The employer blamed the slow progress on the law firm. In fact, the employer had never filed the application. Finally, the engineer found other work and restarted his efforts to obtain permanent residence.

In another case, a senior strategic projects manager who has an engineering background and is working for a Fortune 100 company has been waiting 13 years for his green card, Arumbakkam said.

That manager, also Indian, applied for permanent residency in Canada at the same time he applied for it in the States. After 18 months, Canada offered it to him and his family. His wife and children moved to Vancouver, B.C., where he visits regularly while waiting for a change in his U.S. residency status.

Indians in the United States often have too much trust in their employers and lack knowledge of resources that could help them understand their immigration options, Arumbakkam said. He plans to attend an Immigration Voice rally in Washington on Sept. 18 to urge congressional action on immigration.

But he isn't optimistic. "I just feel that I'm getting pushed further down as far as my career is concerned," he said.

Arumbakkam pointed out that he has no accent, calling it a measure of his assimilation. "I've opened up my mind, opened up my heart and soul," he said. "It tells me that I've really integrated here-the way of life, the culture, the melting pot."

To understand the larger picture, it's important to start with why U.S. tech companies hire highly skilled foreign nationals in the first place, said Boston lawyer Russell Swapp. "It's a supply issue," said Swapp, who heads the national immigration practice at Seyfarth Shaw, a 700-attorney firm: There simply aren't enough Americans with the education levels in tech necessary to meet employer demand.

And politics is at work in the often-contentious immigration dialogue.

Everyone agrees that a comprehensive solution to illegal immigration is needed. But politicians with their own agendas cause trouble for those wanting to focus on legal immigration, he said.

"There are folks in Congress who are holding legal-immigration initiatives and legislative proposals hostage," said Swapp. "They're using [those initiatives] as bargaining chips in the debate on illegal immigration."

The entire economy suffers as a result, said Swapp, whose clients are Fortune 500 companies.

"Corporate America is being competitively disadvantaged because they're unable to hire a sufficient number of highly skilled and educated foreign nationals," he said.

Strong opinions surround the "supply debate." Critics of corporate budgets say an unwillingness to pay homegrown talent competitive wages is the cause of the problem. They say salaries simply have to be higher in order for more U.S. students to want to study engineering, instead of pursuing degrees that will lead to jobs in higher-paying fields.

For years, numerous studies have shown that the U.S. must do a better job of preparing graduates in the fields of technology, math and science. For some, it's a national policy issue.

Ron Hira, assistant professor of public policy at the Rochester Institute of Technology, identifies three policy issues that need to be addressed for progress to be made: the appropriate number of available green cards, criteria for obtaining them, and the path to permanent residency.

No public policy forum has adequately tackled those questions, and no analysis has been good enough to inform their answers, he said.

Hira believes the United States can and should encourage the immigration of skilled workers-with clear limits.

"Let's say you lift the cap on employment-based green cards for people with advanced degrees," he said. "You're going to have lots and lots of people who'll want to immigrate to the U.S."

For Arumbakkam, the discussion is purely academic. He has already made up his mind to leave.

"Basically, my dream for giving back to this community by starting a company and employing Americans did not take off," he said. "It's going to be hard to go back."

gcformeornot

08-30-2007, 08:01 AM

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/08/29/business/NA-FIN-US-Immigration-Reform.php

saimrathi

08-30-2007, 08:33 AM

More International Graduate Admissions
A new report shows business schools are increasing numbers of international students as well as expanding their own programs overseas

by Alina Dizik

Come fall, U.S. business schools will reach even more international students. According to a study released Aug. 28 by the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS), a jump in overseas applications and admission offers will increase international student populations at U.S. schools—particularly business programs. It also predicts the significant expansion of U.S. programs abroad.

According to the group's interim findings, admission offers for international business students rose 10% for the upcoming school year, while applications were up by 15% from last year. It's the second straight year of sharp increases in applications and offers of admission to international students.
Equally Competitive

How many of these international students will actually make it to campus is another matter, says Kenneth Redd, the author of the study and director of Research & Policy Analysis at the Council of Graduate Schools. After September 11, stricter visa requirements decreased the number of international students coming into the U.S. Some of the restrictions that were put in place have been eased, Redd says. "We're hoping to see that the changes made by the State Dept. will alleviate some of the barriers for student visas and will be reflected in our enrollment numbers, but there seems to be a backlog of complaints from our consulates."

Does the smaller growth in admission offers mean that spots for international students are getting even more competitive? Not quite, says Redd. The bulk of the increase probably comes from foreign students applying to several U.S. schools at one time, he says.

While application rates for business programs have been leveling off since 2005, this year's study shows a significant increase in international students who want to pursue business-related fields. "What you're seeing is business increasing faster than the overall average," says Redd. "It's an indication of foreign students who are wanting to learn about American business practices."
International Degree

According to the survey, the international applicant pool is also growing faster at universities that have smaller international populations. They're "getting more involved with recruitment and enrollment, so there's more internal activity away from the traditional 50 campuses," says Redd. For example, of the 50 universities with the largest international populations, admission offers to students from China grew by 15%, but for those outside of the 50 largest, there was a 38% surge.

It's telling that, as international education is becoming increasingly important, the CGS for the first time gathered data on the joint and dual-degree programs that U.S. universities have recently developed abroad. The study found that nearly 30% of American universities have established collaborative degree programs with international universities. But what's more indicative of future global business trends is that almost a quarter of U.S. schools plan to establish at least one international program in the next two years. For business schools that number is significantly higher—44%—than other fields, including engineering and social sciences.

International programs include dual-degree programs (in which graduates receive degrees from both institutions) and joint-degree programs (in which graduates receive only one degree), as well as other programs including MBA and executive MBA options.

The August survey by the CGS is the second of three that studies international applications for the upcoming academic year. A final report analyzing actual enrollment trends will be issued in October.

Dizik is a BusinessWeek.com project assistant.

Copyright 2000-2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.
McGraw-Hill Logo
http://www.businessweek.com/print/bschools/content/aug2007/bs20070829_130029.htm

DallasBlue

08-30-2007, 07:29 PM

Great Job sw33t and needhelp in getting the media attention!!

http://www.eetimes.com/rss/showArtic...1802703&pgno=1

http://www.dallasobserver.com/2007-0...of-opportunity

ps57002

09-09-2007, 07:44 AM

Great article but it says sept 14th as rally day....

gc4sk

09-12-2007, 12:07 AM

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1120788

CHENNAI: With India becoming a favoured destination of several multinational companies, thousands of Indian IT professionals in the United States are returning to their homeland with good pay packets, according to a survey.

The survey, conducted by Indus Entrepreneurs, an association of Indian IT professionals settled in the US, found that around 60,000 professionals have returned to India in recent years, Michael M Bala, business head of recruitment portal clickjobs.com, said.

Several couples in age group of 27 to 35 were looking forward to come back to India, he said, quoting the survey.

"Most young Indian couples preferred to return to India to protect their kids from the western culture and to educate them in Indian atmosphere," he said.

Infrastructure development and job opportunities at the more or less same salary in India were cited as the factors behind the trend.

Bala, who recently conducted a job fair in New Jersey to recruit personnel for multinational companies, said more and more Indians were coming forward to return to their motherland with the country becoming favoured destination of several MNCs, financial institutions and IT companies.

"The growth of these institutions in India have thrown open the doors to talented people, who had so for thought that the West was their only resort," he said.

In the recently held job fair, over 3,000 people, mostly couples, had come forward to attend interviews for companies like Yahoo, Canon, IBM and HP, he said.

Encouraged by this, the portal would be conducting another fair in the US within six months, he said.

jonty_11

09-12-2007, 12:00 PM

This may be soon the story in US also...if nothing is done about the GC mess.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
IT skills shortage costing Europe billions
======================================

http://news.com.com/IT+skills+shortage+costing+Europe+billions/2110-1022_3-6207460.html?tag=nefd.hed

virtual55

09-13-2007, 04:27 PM

http://www.andhraheadlines.com/World/BrowseArticle.aspx?ArtID=2303

IVLageRaho

09-17-2007, 09:42 AM

Remember the Immigration Voice Rally on Tuesday, Sep 18th
Posted Sep 14, 2007 ©MurthyDotCom
Justice does not help those who slumber but helps only those who are vigilant. - Mahatma Gandhi
©MurthyDotCom
The words of Mahatma Gandhi call us to actively work for change. We at the Murthy Law Firm would like to commend those who are making their way to Washington DC on September 18, 2007, to participate in the peaceful rally organized by Immigration Voice. We wish you great success in your efforts to convince lawmakers of the need to address the problems in the U.S. immigration system. If you are not able to attend the rally, we encourage you to work in your own way to make a difference. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who was an American disciple of Gandhi, took his words to heart and led others in the peaceful quest for justice.
©MurthyDotCom
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

gc_mania_03

09-19-2007, 06:59 AM

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/19/us/19immigration.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin

Way to go IV!

Lasantha

09-20-2007, 09:19 AM

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7002296.stm

husker

09-21-2007, 11:38 AM

http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/09/20/skilled_immigrant_protests/

DallasBlue

09-21-2007, 12:12 PM

http://www.mercurynews.com/nationworld/ci_6935047

High-tech immigrants

protest visa delays

About 1,000 highly skilled legal immigrants, carrying placards and cell phones and wearing T-shirts emblazoned with U.S. flags, rallied Tuesday at the Capitol to protest long delays and vast bureaucratic backlogs in the immigration system.

The immigrants, including computer engineers, doctors and medical technicians from India and China, came from as far as California and Washington state to call on Congress to provide more permanent visas for highly educated immigrants and more resources for the overburdened immigration system. They said the plight of foreigners living in the United States legally had been eclipsed by the polarized debate over illegal

immigration that led to the defeat of an immigration overhaul in June.
The immigrants, who are living in the United States on student or high-skilled employment visas, said they were nearing despair with waits lasting as long as a decade to obtain visas giving them permanent residence, which are known as a green cards.

DallasBlue

09-21-2007, 12:26 PM

Chung: Piecemeal immigration reform a start
By L.A. Chung
Mercury News Columnist
Article Launched: 09/19/2007 01:37:37 AM PDT

Maybe it was just another demonstration in our nation's capital Tuesday.
High-skilled workers from around the country, including San Jose, met at the Washington Monument for the time-honored American ritual of marching to the front of the Capitol to press their cause. In this case: reforming employment-based immigration laws.

Let's hope it's the beginning of something more: progress in one little corner of our screwed-up immigration system. After the debacle of the big immigration reform bill this summer, Sen. Dianne Feinstein had suggested that the only way to fix any of it was to start piecemeal. Indeed, several independent measures are afoot, aimed at relieving specific areas, from high-skilled workers to guest workers to students. There's no talk of addressing the status of undocumented immigrants, the thing that killed the big bill in June.

So if there are places we can start solving problems before Congress freezes up in presidential election politics, why not?

"We are hoping for a clear action, rather than being left hanging in this state," said Rahul Deshpande, a 31-year-old software engineer who came here on an H-1B visa eight years ago.

Right now, people like Deshpande aren't looking for comprehensive reform. They're just hoping for a more predictable timeline for people already well into the application process but stuck in the long, uncertain state of waiting for green cards that are available but expire because of backlogs in

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Advertisement

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the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency. With so much uncertainty, he has explored opportunities in Australia.
Seeing a clear way?

True, in Silicon Valley, and throughout the tech industry, we have ambivalence toward employment-based visas. High-tech employers in particular say there is a shortage and they cannot do without them. American software engineers, some of whom have had to train foreign replacement programmers, contend the system has been abused, lowering wages and importing some workers who are less uniquely skilled than advertised.

I sat in the hillside living room of an American software engineer who has seen the ups and downs of the industry over the course of two decades. He didn't want to be identified because he wants to continue to be employed and fears speaking candidly, lest employers take umbrage.

Programmers' wages, which had been stagnant, rose inordinately high with the run-up to preparing computers for the Y2K change. With the advent of aggressive overseas hiring, wages "corrected," he acknowledged. And now they've gone down.

Investing in 'us'

He doesn't fault the overseas workers in this era of globalization. Yet, he has discouraged his very bright nephew from going into computer science because of his own bleak outlook for earning potential in the field.

I doubt we want that, either.

Groups like Immigration Voice, which began almost two years ago, and Legal Immigrant Association, which sprang up in recent months, have taken pains to emphasize their members' legal status and to appeal to Americans' sense of fairness.

Fix the abuses, and fix the backlogs that make a mockery of the current laws, they say.

Deshpande's 6-month-old daughter is the reason he hopes for a long-term future in the United States. He likes the broader sense of community expressed, for example, by things we take for granted, such as a beach cleanup or a neighborhood watch. "Everyone feels responsible here," he said. "Ultimately, we take responsibility for our own environment here."

A shared sense of community: That's the way we'd all like to live.

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Contact L.A. Chung at lchung@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-5280.

saimrathi

09-21-2007, 02:27 PM

More Indian-origin persons in Forbes list of richest Americans

Bharat Desai, founder of leading IT and ITeS firm Syntel, and his family have joined acoustics pioneer Amar Gopal Bose and Google founder-director Kavitark Ram Shriram as the only Indian origin persons to figure in Forbes' list of the 400 richest Americans.

Desai and family have been ranked 286th with a fortune of $1.7 billion in the 2007 list released on Thursday.

However, both Bose and Shriram, who shared the 242nd post last year, went down the list and now share the 271st position though their respective personal fortunes went up from $1.5 billion to $1.8 billion.

Born to an accountant in Kenya, Desai, now 54, moved to India at the age of 11. He passed out from the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, before doing his MBA from the University of Michigan.

He founded Syntel in 1988 along with his wife Neerja.

"I'm genetically not wired to be an employee," Forbes quoted him as saying.

Of Bose, the magazine wrote: "Sultan of sound formed firm 43 years ago, yet today it thrives on the latest in iPod speaker docks, home theater systems, noise-killing headphones."

"He started repairing radios in high school to help the family after WWII hurt his father's import business. Earned PhD in electrical engineering from MIT, stayed on faculty. Began research in hi-fi sound. Founded Bose Corp 1964; first contracts with NASA, US military, to improve radio communications. Built brand on groundbreaking loudspeaker design. Owns 60 per cent stake; wears nametag to office so employees know who he is. Enjoys badminton. Will leave fortune to independent research institute."

Forbes described Shriram as an Indian-born financier who created shop bot Junglee, which was later sold to Amazon in 1998.

"Worked for Netscape, Amazon before creating venture firm Sherpalo in 2000. Early investor, board member of Google has sold more than 3 million shares since 2004 public offering; still owns 1.7 million shares worth $870 million," it said.

Shriram today backs Indian and American tech outfits 24/7 Customer, Frontline Wireless and Zazzle.com.

Owner of Indian job site Naukri.com, Shriram sold off online classifieds site StumbleUpon.com to Ebay earlier this year.

This year's list is again headed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates with a fortune of $59 billion.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Print.aspx?Id=b55950ff-a42d-4980-8c3d-3f9480cee379

virtual55

09-22-2007, 10:35 AM

Friends:

Hope you will be able to attend. Could you please also circulate it to people who may be interested in attending this important community event?

The checks (for $20 per-person donation) made out to "ICCC" may be sent to me ASAP, at:

4926 Andrea Ave, Annandale, VA 22003. We have to give a count of participants to the restaurant.

Hope things are going well with you. Best.

Cordially, Har Swarup Singh, Tel. 703-978-5741(H), 571-245-9373(Cell).

You are cordially invited to a gala

Community Dinner-Reception

In Honor of the

Honorable Vayalar Ravi

Cabinet Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs

Sunday, September 30, 2007, 6:00 p.m.
Indian Experience (formerly ASCOT) Restaurant

1708 L Street, NW

Washington DC 20036

Phone: 202 296 7640

Donation: $20 per person

Limited Seating: Prior Reservation is Required

Please make your checks payable to ICCC (India Cultural Coordination Committee)

Organizing Committee

Sambhu Banik 301-530-7539 Har Swarup Singh 703-978-5741
Kaleem Kawaja 443-812-0123 Rajen Anand 703-642-3156
Renu Misra 301-330-5098 Kumar Singh 571-451-5309
Ram Singh 703-758-0232 Benoy Thomas 240-593-6810 Alka Batra 301-384-8276

Directions: Take Red Line metro to Farragut North station. Walk half block to restaurant. Parking on the street and in the garage at De Sales Street.

styrum

09-23-2007, 01:50 AM

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-inline_21edi.ART.State.Edition1.427fa5a.html

snegrust

09-24-2007, 11:07 AM

Education and Occupation Separates Two Kinds of Immigrants in U.S.
New estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 American Community Survey show that the number of foreign-born people in the United States has reached an all-time high of more than 37 million. Although policymakers, journalists, and the public have focused their attention on low-skilled migrants from Mexico and other Latin American countries, there are also a large and growing number of highly skilled immigrants arriving from Asia to attend college or work in America’s high-tech workforce. These two tiers of immigration have contributed to a wide economic divide among America's foreign-born population. This study was conducted by Mark Mather, deputy director of domestic programs at the Population Reference Bureau.

http://www.prb.org/Articles/2007/EducationAndOccupationSeparatesUSImmigrants.aspx

New Database Reveals State Variations in the U.S. Science and Engineering Labor Force
A new database created by the Population Reference Bureau reveals geographic differences in characteristics of people working in the science and engineering labor force in the United States. The data, from the Census Bureau's 2005 American Community Survey, highlight state-level variations in earnings, education, and the participation of minorities, women, and foreign-born workers in the high-tech economy. This research is funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. There are 52 individual profiles (one for each state, the District of Columbia, and the United States).

http://www.prb.org/Articles/2007/NewDatabaseRevealsStateVariations.aspx

gsc999

09-24-2007, 03:04 PM

Foreign-Born Wage and Salary Workers in the US Labor Force and Unions

http://www.migrationinformation.org/USfocus/display.cfm?id=638

kanaihya

09-26-2007, 02:37 PM

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=37281&dcn=e_gvet

FBI name checks blamed for immigration benefits delaysBy Elizabeth Newell enewell@nationaljournal.com June 22, 2007

The ombudsman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, in a report released last week, cited the untimely completion of FBI name checks as a primary cause of delays in granting immigration benefits to applicants.
"FBI name checks, one of the security screening tools used by USCIS, continue to significantly delay adjudication of immigration benefits for many customers, hinder backlog reduction efforts and may not achieve their intended national security objectives," USCIS ombudsman Prakash said in his annual report, presented to the House and Senate Judiciary committees on June 11.
According to the report, 64 percent of the 329,160 FBI name check cases pending from USCIS have been waiting more than 90 days, and 32 percent are more than one year old. There are more than 31,000 cases that have been pending longer than 33 months.
In his report, said the name check delays are caused by the fact that some require manual review by the FBI and the agency does not have the resources to complete these reviews quickly.
In an e-mail to Government Executive, FBI spokesman Paul Bresson said the National Name Check Program is doing a number of things to improve the process, including scanning documents to build an electronic records system and testing textual analysis software to reduce the need for manual review.
The FBI also is working to develop a Central Records Complex to house paperwork and files.
"Currently, paper files [and] information must be retrieved from over 265 locations throughout the FBI," Bresson said. "The CRC will expedite access to information contained in billions of documents that are currently manually accessed in locations around the U.S. and world."
To decrease the FBI workload, recommended that USCIS adopt a risk-based approach to name checks, allowing the FBI to focus its limited resources on applicants posing the greatest threat. Currently, all immigration and naturalization applicants go through the name-check process.
"Name checks do not differentiate whether the individual has been in the United States for many years or a few days, is from and/or has traveled frequently to a country designated as a state sponsor of terrorism, or is a member of the U.S. military," said in his report.
He said in an interview that while the safety of U.S. citizens is the primary concern of the Homeland Security Department, of which USCIS is a part, it is crucial to use a risk management model to ensure that resources are allocated logically.
"That has to be used as the filtration system to really look at any of our protective measures," said. "There are times when protection can come at such a cost that it's just not worth spending that much money in that area, that it's better to spend it where we can have more effect."
The process of applying for immigrant benefits includes a number of other background checks, and 's report questioned whether the FBI name checks are useful in their current form, especially given the delay they cause.
He said he agrees with USCIS case workers and field office supervisors that "the FBI name check process has limited value to public safety or national security, especially because in almost every case the applicant is in the United States during the name check process, living or working without restriction."
This is the fourth annual report from the ombudsman, whose position was established under the 2002 Homeland Security Act. The act requires the ombudsman to submit annual reports to Congress identifying serious and pervasive problems within USCIS and making recommendations to fix them. The agency is obligated to respond formally to the annual report within three months.
While says he received last year's response more than eight months late, USCIS acknowledged receipt of the report and an agency spokesperson said officials are in the process of reviewing the recommendations.

http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?t=3900&page=88

Please post all news articles in this thread.

kanaihya

09-26-2007, 03:02 PM

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/tech/3172918.html

sunny1000

09-28-2007, 01:45 AM

I am no Macaca when it comes to posting news threads but, I tried my best to imitate him.

I really feel sorry for the guy in this news thread. What a sad story...

================================================== ======

MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- For 11 years, Pedro Zapeta, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, lived his version of the American dream in Stuart, Florida: washing dishes and living frugally to bring money back to his home country.
Zapeta

Pedro Zapeta, an illegal immigrant, managed to save $59,000 while working as a dishwasher for 11 years.

Two years ago, Zapeta was ready to return to Guatemala, so he carried a duffel bag filled with $59,000 -- all the cash he had scrimped and saved over the years -- to the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

But when Zapeta tried to go through airport security, an officer spotted the money in the bag and called U.S. customs officials.

"They asked me how much money I had," Zapeta recalled, speaking to CNN in Spanish.

He told the customs officials $59,000. At that point, U.S. customs seized his money, setting off a two-year struggle for Zapeta to get it back.

Zapeta, who speaks no English, said he didn't know he was running afoul of U.S. law by failing to declare he was carrying more than $10,000 with him. Anyone entering or leaving the country with more than $10,000 has to fill out a one-page form declaring the money to U.S. customs.

Officials initially accused Zapeta of being a courier for the drug trade, but they dropped the allegation once he produced pay stubs from restaurants where he had worked. Zapeta earned $5.50 an hour at most of the places where he washed dishes. When he learned to do more, he got a 25-cent raise.

After customs officials seized the money, they turned Zapeta over to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The INS released him but began deportation proceedings. For two years, Zapeta has had two attorneys working pro bono: one on his immigration case, the other trying to get his money back.

"They are treating me like a criminal when all I am is a working man," he said.

Zapeta's story became public last year on CNN and in The Palm Beach Post newspaper, prompting well-wishers to give him nearly $10,000 -- money that now sits in a trust.

Robert Gershman, one of Zapeta's attorneys, said federal prosecutors later offered his client a deal: He could take $10,000 of the original cash seized, plus $9,000 in donations as long as he didn't talk publicly and left the country immediately.

Zapeta said, "No." He wanted all his money. He'd earned it, he said.

Now, according to Gershman, the Internal Revenue Service wants access to the donated cash to cover taxes on the donations and on the money Zapeta made as a dishwasher. Zapeta admits he never paid taxes.

CNN contacted the U.S. Attorneys office in Miami, U.S. Customs and the IRS about Zapeta's case. They all declined to comment.

Marisol Zequeira, an immigration lawyer, said illegal immigrants such as Zapeta have few options when dealing with the U.S. government.

"When you are poor, uneducated and illegal, your avenues are cut," he said.

On Wednesday, Zapeta went to immigration court and got more bad news. The judge gave the dishwasher until the end of January to leave the country on his own. He's unlikely to see a penny of his money.

"I am desperate," Zapeta said. "I no longer feel good about this country."

Zapeta said his goal in coming to the United States was to make enough money to buy land in his mountain village and build a home for his mother and sisters. He sent no money back to Guatemala over the years, he said, and planned to bring it all home at once.

At Wednesday's hearing, Zapeta was given official status in the United States -- voluntary departure -- and a signed order from a judge. For the first time, he can work legally in the U.S.

By the end of January, Zapeta may be able to earn enough money to pay for a one-way ticket home so the U.S. government, which seized his $59,000, doesn't have to do so.

claudia255

09-28-2007, 09:45 PM

http://www.competeamerica.org/news/alliance_pr/Pelosi_FINAL.pdf

Washington D.C. – In a letter delivered today to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, companies and trade associations representing America’s leading innovators urged congressional action this year to reform the H-1B visa and employment-based (EB) green card programs designed to provide U.S. employers with access to highly educated foreign professionals.

The letter stated:

“… highly educated foreign professionals play a significant role in allowing the United States to maintain an innovative edge over its global competitors. However, our outdated immigration system has made it harder and harder for qualified foreign talent to come to and remain in this country and contribute to our nation’s intellectual capital and economic well-being, which, ultimately, poses a serious threat to our global leadership position.”

The letter precedes the start of the Federal government’s new fiscal year on October 1 – which, for the fourth consecutive year, will mark the beginning of 12 months when no new H-1B visas will be available to U.S. employers. H-1B visas are temporary visas typically used by engineers, scientists, researchers, medical professionals and teachers as a step towards permanent residency.

The letter was also delivered to all House and Senate leadership. A copy of the letter is available by clicking here.

lost_in_migration

09-30-2007, 11:46 AM

America’s Innovation Edge Seen at Risk
- from competeamerica.org

http://competeamerica.org/news/alliance_pr/20070927_risk.html

In Letter to Speaker Pelosi, Wide Range of U.S. Employers Urge Action on H-1B Visa and Employment-Based Green Card Reform in 2007

Washington D.C. – In a letter delivered today to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, companies and trade associations representing America’s leading innovators urged congressional action this year to reform the H-1B visa and employment-based (EB) green card programs designed to provide U.S. employers with access to highly educated foreign professionals.

The letter stated:

“… highly educated foreign professionals play a significant role in allowing the United States to maintain an innovative edge over its global competitors. However, our outdated immigration system has made it harder and harder for qualified foreign talent to come to and remain in this country and contribute to our nation’s intellectual capital and economic well-being, which, ultimately, poses a serious threat to our global leadership position.”

The letter precedes the start of the Federal government’s new fiscal year on October 1 – which, for the fourth consecutive year, will mark the beginning of 12 months when no new H-1B visas will be available to U.S. employers. H-1B visas are temporary visas typically used by engineers, scientists, researchers, medical professionals and teachers as a step towards permanent residency.

The letter was also delivered to all House and Senate leadership. A copy of the letter is available by clicking here.

Compete America (www.competeamerica.org) is a coalition of corporations, educators, research institutions and trade associations concerned about legal, employment-based immigration and committed to ensuring that the United States has the highly educated workforce necessary to ensure continued innovation, job creation and leadership in a worldwide economy.

manderson

10-01-2007, 12:49 PM

Source http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2007/10/01/story3.html?b=1191211200^1526985
Companies' growth stalled as flow of foreign workers slows

Sanjeev Dahiwadkar first came to the U.S. from India in 1995, a temporary worker on a visa that the federal government granted his employer to fill a position with a noncitizen.
Twelve years later, Dahiwadkar is starting up a business for the second time, but its success or failure could depend largely on that same type of government visa.
The market is ripe for his Baltimore software firm, IndiSoft -- it helps mortgage lenders track potentially delinquent loans. But he can't find enough skilled workers locally to fill his office, and a cap on the number of foreign worker visas permitted is keeping him from bringing eager employees from India.
His situation is familiar to firms across the country desperate for highly trained and specialized workers from overseas because they say they can't find enough in the U.S. A shortage of the visas is stirring complex debates over immigration and U.S. work force issues, and it's not clear what solution is the best for business and for the nation. Meanwhile, it has meant staff shortages and growth limits at companies that cannot find local workers to fill high-tech jobs.
<<Subscription Only>>

RandyK

10-02-2007, 09:59 AM

immi_seeker

10-02-2007, 10:05 AM

The Conflicted Life of the Modern Immigrant Doctor (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/health/02book.html) By ABIGAIL ZUGER, M.D. | New York Times, October 2, 2007

For all the griping about the sad state of the medical profession, immigrant families have never stopped propelling their children firmly in its direction. North American hospitals are increasingly staffed by these obliging children, some greeting patients with the exotic inflections of the newly arrived, some already assimilated into the pure vernacular.

They are doctors like Ming, Chen and Sri, who, along with their colleague Fitzgerald, grow from pre-med students into veteran doctors in Vincent Lam’s collection of intertwined short stories. Published in 2006 in Canada, where it won the Giller Prize for fiction, this lovely book breaks ground on several fronts, not the least of which is its depiction of the tentacles of obligation and expectation encircling these young people.

Doctors who write about medicine tend to dwell on the big themes: life, death, suffering, hope and the rest. Dr. Lam, a Toronto physician, covers that territory, too, but he also takes a pioneering look at the particular situation of the modern immigrant doctor, suspended by strong and often opposing ties to profession, cultural heritage and family, with patients who may seem as alien as if from Mars.

Thus, early in the book, Ming, Chen and Sri, medical students in Toronto, contemplate the tattoos over the biceps of their medical school cadaver with detached concern, as they would the hieroglyphics of an ancient civilization. They can decipher “RCAF — 17th Squadron” and the crude cartoons of Spitfire planes etched beneath it without much problem, but “The Lord Keeps Me — Mark 16” on the shoulder has them perplexed.

“‘It’s one of the four books in the second half,’ said Chen.

“‘What is that part?’

“‘Umm ... I don’t know...’

“‘It must mean something,’ said Sri.

“‘I’ll look it up for you,’ said Chen ...

“‘The manual shows,’ Ming said, ‘to cut here.’”

Ming is the classic pre-med overachiever, a plodder who specializes in brute memorization as she strategizes to ace exams. She votes to cut right through the tattoo, because that is where the textbook says to cut. She becomes an obstetrician; we glimpse her years later, a seasoned professional, thrust into a once-in-a-lifetime emergency that gives her no alternative but, for once, to break all the rules.

Sri, soft-hearted beyond all necessity or common sense, votes to preserve the tattoo. “You should respect a man’s symbols,” he says. “My mother told me that. Look at his arm. These are his symbols.” Even after years of training, Sri’s intractable kindness leads him away from the beaten path, as he wanders alongside patients more like a guardian angel than a medic.

Chen, a bland, pleasant, responsible guy, is descended from Chinese expatriates in Vietnam (like Dr. Lam himself) with an extended family scattered over the globe. As a medical student, he spends a summer in Australia, trying his best to minister to his dying grandfather, a vice-ridden, womanizing patriarch as colorful as Chen himself is colorless. Chen becomes an E.R. physician (again like Dr. Lam), working shifts that vary between stultifying and terrifying. He commutes to work in a fast, expensive car, playing an aggressive game of chicken with the drivers in the next lane, the kind of reckless risk-taking behavior he cannot indulge in anywhere else.

All are recognizable types, drawn with precision and affection. Fitzgerald, though, is a little different: he is more a novelist’s creation, a real tragic hero. The only Anglo among them, an incompetent with chopsticks, he is the true outsider in the group, an obsessive philosopher always just a little out of step with his colleagues and his profession.

The others never question their place in medicine; Fitz never stops questioning his, until he is plunged directly into the SARS outbreak that gripped Toronto hospitals in 2003. The rest of the world may have forgotten those few months of terror, but hospital workers in Canada glimpsed the apocalypse, as we clearly see here.

This is not a perfect book. It has its share of blood-and-guts cowboy medicine suitable only for network TV, and a few too-facile resolutions of various improbable plot twists. Still, Dr. Lam, whose mentors include the author Margaret Atwood, has enough talent to sculpture a story considerably more nuanced than the usual thinly disguised autobiography doctors like to call fiction. Presumably much of the book is, in fact, memoir, but the joints between the imagined and the recalled are seamless, and the fiction does its job of turning mirror into magnifying glass.

Readers will have become fully immersed in these characters before they realize that each has only one name. The students Ming, Chen, Fitz and Sri graduate from medical school to become Dr. Ming, Dr. Chen, Dr. Fitzgerald, Dr. Sri. Are they all going by their last names alone, a macho band in green scrubs? Are they icky-sticky first-name doctors like Oprah’s Dr. Phil? Do the Asians have the tongue-twisting ethnic names that have forced them to create short nicknames, yet one more sacrifice of identify? We never find out.

Perhaps it is simply a demonstration that a single name suffices for people whose other name quickly becomes “Doctor.” So the wily author both distances us from his characters, and draws us near.
Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures (http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780385661430&view=excerpt) By Vincent Lam. 353 pages. Weinstein Books. $23.95

good job

sapota

10-02-2007, 04:10 PM

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/30/AR2007093001233.html

2 N.Va. Firms Win Immigration Document Deals

By Nick Wakeman
Special to the Washington Post
Monday, October 1, 2007; D04

The Department of Homeland Security has awarded two contracts worth $225 million each to a pair of Northern Virginia companies for document management at four immigration services centers.

SI International of Reston and Stanley Inc. of Arlington received the three-year contracts from the department's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency. Each company will support two centers that process visa applications and other immigration petitions.

The four centers together handle more than 5 million paper applications a year. Many of the documents come in from U.S. embassies around the world. SI will support centers in Dallas and Lincoln, Neb., while Stanley will support centers in Laguna Niguel, Calif., and St. Albans, Vt.

The contractors will run mailrooms and provide data entry, fee collection and records management services. They also will be responsible for ensuring that application files contain all the information needed to make a decision on a petition, officials with both companies said.

For SI, the contract is a role reversal. During the past six years, the company has been a subcontractor at the centers with JHM Research and Development of Silver Spring as the prime contractor. JHM won the previous contract through a small business set-aside, but the new contract was awarded through an open competition that allowed any business to bid, said Brad Antle, SI's chief executive.

Under the new award, JHM is on SI's team as a subcontractor. Other team members include Lockheed Martin, Zimmerman Associates, HeiTech Services, iDox Solutions, Unisys and Base One Technologies.

SI officials estimated that their two centers could require up to 800 employees, including subcontractors.

Being the prime contractor gives SI an opportunity to build a closer relationship with the immigration agency, Antle said. Homeland Security is an important customer for the company, representing up to 20 percent of its revenue, Antle said. In 2006, SI reported $462 million in revenue.

For Stanley, the contract is its first with the immigration agency, said Pat Flannery, vice president of corporate development. "This is a new customer for us so we are very excited," he said.

The award will help the company expand its business with Homeland Security, Flannery said. About 3 percent of Stanley's revenue comes from the cabinet agency, through work performed for the Coast Guard. For fiscal 2007, ended March 31, Stanley reported $409.4 million in revenue.

Stanley has started a 60-day transition as it takes over work at its two centers from JHM, said Kristen Moulin, Stanley's transition manager and deputy program manager for the contract. The change should be completed by the end of November.

Moulin said Stanley will draw from its experience at the State Department, where it processes passport applications. "It is a high-volume environment," she said.

Stanley officials declined to name their partners on the contract but estimated that as many as 1,000 people could be working on the project between their two centers.

Nick Wakeman is editor of Washington Technology magazine. For information

on this and other contracts,

go to www.washington

technology.com.

sathyaraj

10-02-2007, 04:52 PM

Sapota:

It looks to be a good news. I think we can see faster adjudication of our pertitions. Just being hopeful.

amitga

10-03-2007, 07:58 AM

http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2007/10/01/story3.html?b=1191211200^1526985&t=printable

Friday, September 28, 2007
Companies' growth stalled as flow of foreign workers slowsBaltimore Business Journal - by Scott Dance Staff
Sanjeev Dahiwadkar first came to the U.S. from India in 1995, a temporary worker on a visa that the federal government granted his employer to fill a position with a noncitizen.

Twelve years later, Dahiwadkar is starting up a business for the second time, but its success or failure could depend largely on that same type of government visa.

The market is ripe for his Baltimore software firm, IndiSoft -- it helps mortgage lenders track potentially delinquent loans. But he can't find enough skilled workers locally to fill his office, and a cap on the number of foreign worker visas permitted is keeping him from bringing eager employees from India.

His situation is familiar to firms across the country desperate for highly trained and specialized workers from overseas because they say they can't find enough in the U.S. A shortage of the visas is stirring complex debates over immigration and U.S. work force issues, and it's not clear what solution is the best for business and for the nation. Meanwhile, it has meant staff shortages and growth limits at companies that cannot find local workers to fill high-tech jobs.

"Right now we probably have well over a dozen full-time Java openings on our team, and another 30 to 40 for our clients," said Lawrence Fiorino, CEO of IT staffing firm G.1440. "We're using our offshore resources to augment our onshore resources, because we can't keep up with either demand."

Big demand
The visas in demand, called H-1B visas, are a popular option for U.S. companies looking to bring workers from overseas, but they are held to a quota of 65,000 per year. Demand for the documents greatly exceeds supply; employers filed 150,000 petitions in April for fiscal year 2008 visas, on the first day applications were being accepted.

The H-1B program was created in 1990, when much of technology was still a nascent industry and specialized workers were more rare. The quota has remained 65,000 -- except for a spike to 115,000 in 2000 and 195,000 from 2001 to 2003.

In Washington, D.C., the debate over the H-1B quota has been contentious, as it's often linked with immigration reform. H-1B visas are often a first step toward getting a green card and then U.S. citizenship.

Some argue that bringing foreign workers to the U.S. on visas displaces the American work force. Local lawyers who help companies navigate the visa process said many who make this point consider the hiring of foreign workers to go hand-in-hand with offshore development -- cheap labor doing work that could otherwise be done by U.S. citizens, all at the expense of the U.S. economy.

But the lawyers said that according to their clients, that's a misconception.

"I can assure you if they could find U.S. workers to fill those jobs, they would," said Mary Ryan, an immigration lawyer with Baltimore firm Taylor and Ryan LLC.

Not only do they have to deal with the uncertainty of getting a visa in the first place, but there is also a litany of forms and fees to take care of. A visa application costs at least $1,570, and sometimes more than twice that.

Immigration lawyer Sheela Murthy, of Murthy Law Firm, said federal law also requires employers to pay workers of any nationality the prevailing wage for a position, so she wouldn't consider it "cheap labor."

"Companies are accused of going overseas for cheap, but they say, 'Why would we deal with the Department of Labor if we didn't have to?' " Murthy said. "If anything, they're getting them for much more expensive."

Murthy said she thinks the number of foreign workers should be allowed to ebb and flow with supply and demand. If positions are left empty because companies can't find workers in the U.S., that's hurting the economy more than if they are filled with foreign workers, she said.

"It's affecting America much more because we're losing the revenues that those people could earn, and their taxes being put back in the economy," Murthy said.

The visas, which last three years and have a three-year extension option, can be used to fill jobs that require specialized training or knowledge, most often in the engineering, science and technology fields. Colleges, universities and nonprofit groups are frequent recipients, as they are exempt from the cap.

Maryland organizations filed 9,585 applications to fill jobs with foreign workers in the fiscal year ended September 2006, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. It's not clear how many of those potential workers were ultimately brought to the U.S. through a visa and hired, however. The Homeland Security department approves or denies the actual visa applications but does not make the data available.

Few alternatives
Dahiwadkar has 10 employees in his Baltimore office, but about 100 in Mumbai, India, working for IT Shastra, IndiSoft's parent company. While the software engineering for his products does not need to take place in the U.S., other operations, such as sales, require employees here, he said. But recruiting efforts he has made here haven't been successful, he said.

Vasu Maddisetty of Intellectual Business Solutions, a software firm in Columbia, said his company has had similar troubles. It's ramping up its local recruitment after only 32 of its 70 visa applications were approved in April. In the past, all 45 to 50 of the company's applications were approved.

At G.1440, company leaders have a different strategy to confront their worker shortage. Instead of bringing people from overseas to work for a few years at a time on an H-1B visa, they are bringing them over for a few months on a different visa, the L-1, to get them trained before transferring them back to an offshore company facility in India.

John Hill, G.1440's director of IT professional services, said it allows the company's software development to take place 24 hours a day, as workers in India are on the clock while those in the U.S. are sleeping.

All contents of this site © American City Business Journals Inc. All rights reserved.

manderson

10-05-2007, 10:07 AM

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119154966904949270.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Republican Candidates
Rev Up for Economic Debate

By JOHN HARWOOD
October 5, 2007; Page A4

REPUBLICANS ESCALATE sparring on eve of campaign's first economic debate.
Romney says Giuliani "killed the line-item veto" with a lawsuit after it passed Congress during Clinton administration. His predecessor as Massachusetts governor, Paul Cellucci, responds for Giuliani by accusing Romney of "desperation" and notes his failure to achieve broad-based tax cuts.
Both men and four Republican rivals address "American Dream Summit" today in advance of Tuesday's debate in Michigan sponsored by The Wall Street Journal, CNBC and MSNBC. In new WSJ/NBC poll of Republican voters, Giuliani leads Fred Thompson by 34%-27% among those assigning top priority to economic issues.
Among those citing moral issues, Thompson leads with 24% to McCain's 19% and Giuliani's 16%.
CALENDAR SHIFTS may improve Obama's shot at overtaking Clinton.
Political operatives gauge effects of states' jockeying, which could place Iowa caucuses Jan. 5 and New Hampshire primary three days later. Obama, now in close three-way Iowa race with Clinton and Edwards, hopes momentum from leadoff win would propel him past the front-runner in New Hampshire and beyond.
"It gives Iowa greater value," says Republican strategist Scott Reed. Democratic consultant Anita Dunn agrees, noting that her candidate Bill Bradley "dropped roughly 25 points in New Hampshire" in 24 hours after losing Iowa to Gore in 2000. Ex-Gore aide Donna Brazile disagrees, saying a short-term interval could encourage New Hampshire voters to brush off Iowa results. In the poll, Republicans in every region give Giuliani best chance of beating Clinton.
BATTLE LOOMS over Internet-access taxes.
With the ban on state and local access taxes expiring Nov. 1, online and telecom businesses press Congress to extend it -- permanently, if possible. Many Republicans and West Coast Democrats lead the push.
But other influential lawmakers, in a nod to states, back a time limit of four or six years, setting up a showdown vote later this month. Affected industries don't want the dispute to stall legislation while the ban expires. "Our view now is let's get the longest moratorium possible," says one lobbyist.
Four in 10 Midwestern Republicans back tax increases on the rich, most of any region.
MIDEAST SUMMIT in Annapolis remains uncertain. Saudi Arabia and other Arab states say they will come only if Israel stops settlements in the West Bank. U.S. hasn't set date or sent invitations. Despite war challenges, two-thirds of Republicans in the poll welcome a candidate promising to keep American troops in Iraq "until the mission there is complete."
OVERRATED? Despite controversy over moveon.org's ad targeting Gen. Petraeus, 53% of Republican voters haven't heard of the liberal activist group. Republicans who have heard of the group rated it negatively by a 37%-3% margin.
DANGEROUS? Union representing federal correctional officers lobbies Congress for more prison funding. After 2,300 paid positions have been eliminated in past three years, the union says shifts at some facilities have 10 officers watching 2,000 inmates.
HIGH-TECH EMPLOYERS get lift from House Republican letter to Speaker Pelosi urging passage of immigration bill to help "attract and retain" high-skilled workers. But in the poll, 56% of Republicans earning more than $75,000 annually would "strongly" or "partially" agree with candidate who would bar illegal immigrants from path to citizenship.
ADMINISTRATION STRUGGLES to keep trade agenda alive.
Bush aides look to Brazil to help revive the Doha Round of global trade talks. U.S. trade ambassador Schwab and Commerce Secretary Gutierrez visit the Port of Baltimore today, part of a broader push to turn up heat for congressional action on pending bilateral deals.
As prospects brighten for passing Peru agreement, the administration turns to pact with Colombia. Consumer Electronics Association launches pro-trade lobbying blitz, while House Democratic Leader Hoyer vows "bipartisan" consideration in Congress.
Gender gap: Seven in 10 Republican women call foreign-trade bad for economy, compared with half of men.
MINOR MEMOS: Fifty years after Sputnik was launched, census says U.S. aerospace industry has 387,188 workers. ... Plurality of Republicans over 65 cite national security as top issue, while those 35-49 name domestic issues such as education and health care.
• Washington Wire is updated each weekday at www.washwire.com (http://www.washwire.com/).

h1techSlave

10-05-2007, 02:15 PM

Here is a long overdue, but very refreshing take on the current immigration mess.

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2007/09/one-familys-nig.html

One family's nightmare
A Palestinian couple’s application for asylum — filed a decade ago — is denied. The wife faces deportation, and no country will accept the entire family. All thanks to our broken immigration system.
By Souheila Al-Jadda

The Garadah family story is about how an American dream turned into an immigration nightmare. In 1998, Bassam Garadah and his wife, Maha Dakar, both Palestinians, applied for political asylum in the USA. In the ensuing nine years, the couple made a good life, raising four daughters born in America, all now younger than 10.

Earlier this year, after a decade-long process of court hearings and appeals, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals came back with a final decision on their asylum petition: denied. The family was left scrambling about what to do next.

(Photo — Fighting deportation: Maha Dakar is afraid she’ll have to leave her husband and four daughters, including Yasmine Garadah, 8. The girls were all born in the USA. / By Carrie Cochran, The Cincinnati Enquirer)

The nation's immigration debate has been largely about the 12 million illegal immigrants in this country. But little attention has been paid to the law-abiding immigrants whose families have suffered through long delays and even errors because of backlogs at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and FBI.

So now Maha Dakar is being threatened with deportation — which would mean the family will likely be split apart. Several years ago, the couple tried to improve their odds by also applying for residency through their immediate relatives in the USA. But their applications will take at least five years — well beyond Maha's deportation deadline.

Their situation becomes more complicated by the family's background. Maha is a Jordanian citizen of Palestinian descent. She will likely be deported to Jordan. Bassam, who carries only Egyptian travel documents, has been refused entry to both Egypt and Jordan. The couple lived in Bulgaria and Kuwait before immigrating to the USA. But Kuwait will not allow the entire family to return because they are Palestinians and do not have citizenship rights. (In fact, the judge, in rejecting their asylum request, mistakenly ruled that they could return to Kuwait without facing persecution.)

Aside from reflecting the poor state of U.S. immigration services, the Garadah story also highlights how stateless and displaced Palestinian refugees, who number more than 4 million, are often mistreated in host countries. These refugees often are treated as second-class citizens. For those reasons and others, the Garadah family felt privileged to live in America.

From bad to worse

On July 30, Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, introduced a bill that would allow Maha to remain in the USA while her immigration application is being considered. Chabot has been strongly opposed to illegal immigration, but he has said that Garadah family members entered the country legally, have broken no laws and should be allowed to stay given that their daughters are U.S. citizens. After Chabot's bill was introduced, USCIS decided not to enforce Maha's deportation until March 2009. Still, such bills are usually symbolic and have rarely passed. When they do pass, only an individual or family is helped. For families like the Garadahs, the path to legal immigration does not appear to be getting shorter:

* Application backlog. As of September 2006, about 1.2 million immigration applications had yet to be processed, USCIS reported then. Recently, however, Homeland Security's ombudsman for USCIS Prakash issued a report estimating that the backlog is more like 2.5 million cases — and rising. Some immigrants, he found, have been waiting many years for a decision to be made on their green card or citizenship applications.

* FBI background checks. After 9/11, President Bush folded Immigration and Naturalization Services into the new Department of Homeland Security, linking the immigration process with security policy. As a result, the FBI conducts name checks on all immigrant applications to screen for threats. According to the USCIS ombudsman report, FBI name checks "may be the single biggest obstacle to the timely ... delivery of immigration benefits."

As of May, 329,160 FBI name-check cases were pending. That's up nearly 40% from the previous year. USCIS does not include these cases in its own backlog estimates.

A difficult existence

Delayed applications can make the daily lives of these immigrants quite difficult.

The Garadah family has not traveled outside the USA in the past 10 years out of fear of being refused re-entry. Maha and Bassam also must apply for a work permit every year, making it difficult to hold down a job because their authorization papers often arrive months late, or sometimes not at all. Applicants often face difficulties obtaining driver's licenses, opening bank accounts and establishing a credit history to buy a home or car.

The fact that immigrants are willing to wait out the seemingly interminable immigration process shows the value that they place in living in the USA. Yet how does the nation reward them for trying the legal path? It allows their applications to become entangled in a bureaucracy that will ultimately fail many of them.

In 2005, Homeland Security tried to resolve the backlog by raising citizenship application fees to cover the cost of hiring more staff to process cases more quickly. Clearly, this has not worked. Fees were raised again this summer, yet millions of applications are pending.

Comprehensive immigration reform in Congress this year appears dead. Perhaps an incremental approach would be more politically viable. Lawmakers could first concentrate their efforts on correcting the glitches in the system that affect legal immigration, before turning to illegal immigration. After all, if the legal process was more efficient and less daunting, perhaps the illegal immigration problems wouldn't be quite so bad.

USCIS aims to serve legal immigrants, and its motto is "Securing America's promise."

For the Garadah family and many others, that promise is being broken.

Souheila Al-Jadda is associate producer of a Peabody award-winning show, Mosaic: World News from the Middle East, on Link TV. She's also a member of USA TODAY's board of contributors.

Posted at 12:16 AM/ET, September 26, 2007 in Al-Jadda, Family - Forum, Foreign policy general - Forum, Forum commentary, Immigration - Forum, Politics - Forum, Politics, Government - Forum | Permalink
USA TODAY welcomes your views and encourages lively -- but civil -- discussions. Comments are unedited, but submissions reported as abusive may be removed. By posting a comment, you affirm that you are 13 years of age or older.

chinna2003

10-06-2007, 11:58 PM

The theme of all the commentaries is that the Immigration system needs a change that is long overdue. The change is not going to happen unless there are more politicians concerned about Americas well being as a nation, instead of their selfish political and isolationist objectives.

For a full text click on
http://shusterman.com/cgi-bin/ex-link.pl?www.law.yale.edu/news/5693.htm

commentary by Peter Schuck- yale law professor

engineer

10-08-2007, 09:19 AM

U.S. citizens Mario R. Capecchi and Oliver Smithies and Sir Martin J. Evans of Britain won the 2007 Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for groundbreaking discoveries that led to a technique for manipulating mouse genes.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/10/08/nobel.science.ap/index.html
http://www.connect-utah.com/article.asp?r=2289&iid=54&sid=1

Let anti-immigrants know that we the immigrants fuel America growth..

manderson

10-08-2007, 10:51 AM

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=89bb508e-774b-4499-a8f5-1a15d98dacaf&k=61230

Limit on U.S. work visas paves the road from Redmond to Richmond
Microsoft expects to employ hundreds of highly trained software developers
By Gillian ShawVancouver Sun
Friday, October 05, 2007

A Canadian software development centre wasn't even in a gleam in the corporate eye of the giant Microsoft six months ago.
Today, thanks to a cap on working visas for the U.S., British Columbia's technology sector has been delivered a substantial boost with 700 Microsoft workers slated to move into a new centre in Richmond in the coming year and plans to expand after that.
The Microsoft jobs are in computer software development, requiring the specialized skills of designers and programmers that are in high demand around the globe.
The decision to set up shop in Richmond came when Microsoft ran headlong into a visa shortage.
"There's a cap in the U.S. for all companies, not just Microsoft," said Sharif Khan, vice-president of human resources for Microsoft Canada. "The government cap was hit in the first day of the release of the H-1B visas for the year.
"There were double the number of applications than there were visas."
The H-1B non-immigrant visa category lets U.S. employers hire highly skilled temporary workers for three years, with a provision to extend that another three years. The H-1B visa category requires a post-secondary degree and specialized expertise.
Last spring, the application opening lasted only a couple of days before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services had 133,000 applications for 65,000 openings. It stopped taking any more.
Microsoft was left wondering what to do with some great young talent it had recruited - mostly university students who were studying in the States but were not Americans. Once they graduated, and their student visas expired, they'd have to go home taking their knowledge and talents with them.
"These people were in the pipeline to be hired for Microsoft and the cap issue was there so we had to look at an alternative solution," Khan said of the graduates who he described as 'top in their field.'
That's when Canada came in, laying out a welcome mat for international talent.
Microsoft could now hire the top help and move them to Canada - it only needed a location. The Lower Mainland with its close proximity to corporate headquarters in Redmond, Wash., was a natural. Richmond, with an international airport, and a location two-and-a-half to three hours away from Redmond by car, won the sweepstakes.
Khan said it is taking only two weeks to get a working visa here. The new Microsoft employees are moving into the 6,700-square-metre development centre in Richmond as fast as the visas can be issued. There are 20 people in the new centre so far but soon they'll have lots of company.
"The visa officials have been so cooperative with us and they have really been very supportive in this whole process, basically expediting visas and stuff like that," said Khan. "We are getting people on board quickly.
"We are ready to ramp up; we expect another 50 next months and another 50 after that. We are working on two buildings and we could scale up from a few hundred to 700 hundred in the first 12 months."
Lois Reimer, spokesperson for Citizen and Immigration Canada, said while she can't comment specifically on the Microsoft visa applications, she said some software developing jobs are among the categories deemed to be suffering a skills shortage.
"If that's the case they would get work permits as long as they meet the requirements of entry into Canada," she said. "We don't have quotas."
Since 2002, B.C. has seen a 91- per-cent increase in foreign workers, compared to a 66-per-cent increase in the rest of Canada, said Reimer. In 2006, B.C. received 36,300 foreign workers, out of the 129,000 who came to Canada that year. For B.C. that was up from 26,500 in 2004.
"It is kind of an amazing opportunity for us to leverage," said Khan, who sees the U.S. visa cap as 'an interesting catalyst.' "If you think about it, six months ago we hadn't thought of doing a development centre in Vancouver.
"We were responding to all inquiries saying there were no plans to do so. It is all happening very quickly, it is amazing."
Amazing, too, for the folks at Richmond City Hall who were so thrilled their community was chosen that they hosted the incoming staff for their orientation day while the office renovation was still underway.
"Right from day one when Microsoft announced it was coming to the Lower Mainland we were aggressively going after them and telling them all the wonders of Richmond," said Ted Townsend, Richmond's senior manager of corporate communications. "There is the proximity to the airport, the border and to Redmond and also a lot of it was about the livability of the community and the fact we have a very healthy, active community here."
Along with the immediate jobs and economic impact, Microsoft's new centre located on Commerce Parkway not far from Sierra Wireless, adds to the critical mass of Richmond's tech sector.
"Those businesses create more business and foster more business," said Townsend. "We think it will not only foster new business creation in Richmond but also such a high-profile employer will give people another reason to take a closer look at Richmond and what we have to offer.
"It is something we were very excited about and we are pleased that they chose Richmond."
Microsoft's arrival has British Columbia's technology industry looking across the border for other potential visa-seeking employers.
"We have strategized as to what other companies we want to contact to make sure they are aware of the issue and how Microsoft has chosen to deal with it and to suggest they look at British Columbia as a destination," said Rob Cruickshank, president of the B.C. Technology Industries Association. "Of the big companies affected now, there has certainly been some strategizing done around targeting other large multinational tech companies - Google, Yahoo and eBay all jump to mind."
eBay has already has located here with a customer support centre in Burnaby.
The new Microsoft staff in Richmond will be part of virtual teams, working for bosses in Redmond or other global centres on projects in which they may collaborate with colleagues from all over the world.
"The people working there are developers, we are talking core development people," said Khan.
And they are discerning about their work surroundings.
"When they looked at the blueprints of the office, they put up a board and started evaluating how much light you get in different parts of the building," said Khan. "They are scientifically mapping out the areas of the office with the greatest degrees of light."
Along with its proximity to Redmond, Vancouver is an easy sell to potential employees as a place to live and work. Khan said the company has also advertised internally for positions at the new centre within Canada. Among the new people at the centre is a human resources specialist from Microsoft's Toronto office who is moving here for a new job.
Khan cites a study in which 82 per cent of Vancouverites said they would not move for a job of comparable pay, compared to 40 per cent of people in Toronto who would be prepared to move.
"I think as a company we need to get the best talent, we need to go to where they want to be, where they are and where they want to be," said Khan. "Where there is a great environment to live - they are likely to be more creative and more productive at the end of the day."
The pioneering group at the new centre has already constructed a Microsoft sign out of Lego to mark their new quarters.
"There is an incredible amount of enthusiasm around the project," said Khan. "When people arrived, everything was pretty much ready - computers, desks - and all the screen savers had big Canadian flags on them.
"There is just a lot of pride around this."
The development centre in Richmond, Microsoft's first in Canada, joins others outside the Redmond headquarters, including ones located in North Carolina, Ireland, Denmark and Israel.
The company also has full research and development centres in the United Kingdom, India, China and the Silicon Valley. It's planning expansions in Boston, Mass., and Bellevue, Wash.
gshaw@png.canwest. com

pappu

10-08-2007, 11:04 AM

http://indiapost.com/article/immigration/1067/

Amit: amit[@]indiapost.com
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manderson

10-10-2007, 09:39 AM

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/oct2007/db2007109_932262.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_ top+story

The Great Tech Worker Divide

Is there really a labor shortage, or are tech companies lobbying Congress for more visas and green cards simply to avoid paying Americans better wages?

by Moira Herbst (http://www.businessweek.com/print/bios/Moira_Herbst.htm)
With a B.S. in computer science, an M.A. in information systems management, and 20 years of experience, Rennie Sawade would appear to be a strong candidate for a job as a software development engineer. But all the 44-year-old can find these days are short-term, temporary jobs—like the 15-month contract he's currently on at a Seattle-based medical device company. At Microsoft, the most prominent employer in town, he's had contract jobs and even interviews for permanent positions. But after several failed attempts, he's given up on trying to land a staff position at the software giant. "I feel like my time is being wasted," he says.
Just across town at Microsoft headquarters, in suburban Redmond, Wash., Kevin Schofield is grappling with what he calls a severe shortage of qualified workers. Schofield's job is to help develop recruiting strategies to stay ahead of rivals like Google (GOOG (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=GOOG)), IBM (IBM (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=IBM)), Yahoo! (YHOO (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=YHOO)), and SAP (SAP (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=SAP)). The 40-year-old says Microsoft is desperate to fill 3,000 core technology jobs in the U.S., and there are so few Americans with the specialized skills required that the company needs to bring in more workers from overseas on temporary visas and permanent green cards. "There just aren't enough people," says Schofield.
Reform Likely

Sawade and Schofield's contradictory viewpoints highlight a deepening fault line in the technology industry. While American tech companies say they can't find enough qualified people, many tech workers say there aren't enough good jobs. Employers point out that the unemployment rate in the sector is extremely low, a mere 1.8% in the second quarter of this year. Workers counter that salaries in the sector are still below their level in 2000, adjusted for inflation, a sign that companies haven't had to bid up wages to get staff.
The frustration is growing on both sides. Bill Gates (http://investing.businessweek.com/businessweek/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=181600&symbol=MSFT), Microsoft's founder and chairman, testified in Washington earlier this year (http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/mar2007/db20070307_617500.htm) (BusinessWeek.com, 3/7/07) that he feels "deep anxiety" over the competitiveness of the U.S. and says that the country needs to do more "to attract and retain the brightest, most talented people from around the world." Meanwhile, John Miano, founder of the Programmers Guild, which represents tech workers, calls the idea of a labor shortage in technology the "big lie" that U.S. employers are trying to use to hold down labor costs.
Is there any way to satisfy both sides? It may seem like an impossible task, but that's precisely the challenge ahead for Congress and public policy experts. The Senate and House of Representatives are considering whether to try to overhaul the immigration policies for high-skilled workers. The question is whether there's a way to help U.S. tech companies recruit the talent they need to stay competitive, while also easing American workers' anxiety. Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), chair of the House subcommittee on immigration whose district includes Silicon Valley, says "there is a greater willingness to move forward on immigration reform (http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/sep2007/db20070911_591357.htm)" (BusinessWeek.com, 9/11/07).
Outsourcing Abuses?

Radical options are on the table. One reform could be to ban outsourcing companies from using temporary visas (http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/may2007/db20070523_485361.htm) (BusinessWeek.com, 5/25/07), since the firms have been accused of using the U.S. program to send American jobs overseas. Another could be to eliminate temporary visas altogether and allow high-skilled workers to come to the U.S. only on permanent green cards. There's even talk of limiting visas to positions in which a demonstrated shortage exists so the market isn't flooded with workers and wages driven down. "The question is how the workers will be brought in," says Ron Hira, assistant professor, public policy at the Rochester Institute of Technology. "Are we just increasing the supply of workers or increasing a particular kind of supply?"
The distinction is crucial. While the political debate often seems like one between those for and against immigrant workers, reality is much more complicated. There is no single "tech job market," but rather a collection of markets for workers with different kinds of skills. There may be shortages for certain kinds of workers, but there are way too many with other skills. For example, demand for network systems analysts, the people who design and set up computer networks, is surging. But the number of computer programming positions in the U.S. has tumbled 25% since 2000.
While the differences among tech workers are growing as jobs become more specialized, public policy hasn't kept up. For one popular visa, known as an H-1B, any worker from overseas with an undergraduate degree qualifies. There's no need to try to hire an American first or demonstrate that such workers are in short supply. In addition, the visas are doled out to the first companies that ask for them, not those most important to the U.S. economy.
Questionable Searches

The loose criteria have opened the door to potential problems. Earlier this year, senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) launched an investigation (http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/may2007/db20070515_218119.htm) (BusinessWeek.com, 5/15/07) into how companies have been using the H-1B program for temporary visas. They disclosed that the most active users of the visas are Indian outsourcing companies, led by Infosys Technologies (INFY (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=INFY)) and Wipro (WIT (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=WIT)). The senators said the visas were being used not to make the U.S. more competitive but to save money by hiring cheaper workers from abroad and to facilitate the outsourcing of jobs to other countries. Grassley cited the "high amount of fraud and abuse" in launching the investigation. Wipro and Infosys say they are simply helping their clients become more competitive and have done nothing wrong.
In June, a startling video leaked out. It showed a corporate law firm coaching employers (http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/jun2007/db20070621_912042.htm) (BusinessWeek.com, 6/22/07) on how to get around the requirement of trying to hire an American before bringing in a worker from abroad for a green card. "[O]ur goal is clearly not to find a qualified and interested U.S. worker," said the firm's director of marketing in the clip.
Such cases are taken by American tech workers as confirmation of their worst fears. In Seattle, Sawade thinks many employers he talks to don't really want American workers; they just want cheaper labor from abroad. "It seems companies are going through the motions so they can be free to hire guest workers," he says.

(to be continued....)

manderson

10-10-2007, 09:40 AM

Where Are the Jobs?

From the outside, it would seem tech workers should have little trouble finding jobs. The unemployment rate for computer and mathematics-related work occupations has dropped steadily, from 5.4% in second quarter of 2002 to the 1.8% in the second quarter, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The total number of such jobs is higher than at any point in the last seven years.
The type of jobs being created, however, is shifting dramatically. As more technical jobs like programming are outsourced, new opportunities in the U.S. require additional or more specialized skills. The biggest job gains in information technology in the past year have been for software engineers, IT managers, and network systems analysts. IT management jobs are up more than 50% since 2001. Meanwhile, programmers and support specialists—the easiest categories to outsource—continue to shed positions. Computer programmer employment tumbled to 396,020 last year, from 530,730 in 2000.
The result is that even as some are thriving, other U.S. tech workers are falling behind. The mean salary for computer and mathematics-related jobs was $69,240 last year, or $850 per year less than in 2000 adjusted for inflation. Tech worker advocates and some economists say the reason for the stagnation is that U.S. tech companies have been able to manipulate the labor market by bringing in guest workers. "Employers are asking the government to intervene in the labor market to ensure they have a steady supply of cheap workers," says Marcus Courtney, co-founder and president of WashTech, a Seattle-based union with 1,500 members. "This is not about a labor shortage—it's about political power."
Shortages Worsen

Microsoft's Schofield says that such assertions simply don't make sense. The company has one of the largest stashes of cash in the world and gushes profits every quarter. Saving a few thousand dollars in salary is much less important than finding the next hotshot techie who can help dream up a new billion-dollar business. Microsoft is one of the most active American companies in the H-1B visa program, receiving 3,117 certifications in fiscal year 2006. But Schofield says that H-1B workers are on the same pay scale as U.S. workers. Government records show that the median salary for Microsoft's H-1B workers was $82,500, typically at or above the prevailing wage for similar positions.
In the U.S., Microsoft is currently seeking employees in a handful of key areas: software development engineers, who design complex software; research software development engineers, who research advanced software design and theory; software architects, who design large-scale projects at the highest levels; and localization software engineers, who customize software for foreign languages.
Schofield is concerned that if Congress does not offer relief by raising the annual cap on H-1B visas and boosting the number of green cards, Microsoft will have to source more employees overseas. Microsoft, along with Intel (INTC (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=INTC)), Texas Instruments (TXN (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=TXN)), Motorola (MOT (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=MOT)), and others, has been pushing for the H-1B cap to be raised from the current 65,000 a year to at least 115,000.
Schofield feels the shortages may get worse. Statistics show declining interest in tech degrees at all levels, and he is worried the hunt for talent will only get harder. In math, science, and engineering, for example, 50% or more of the post-graduate degrees at U.S. universities are now awarded to foreign nationals. "Enrollment in computer science and engineering is dropping like a rock," says Schofield. "There is already huge competition for people with really deep skills, and it will only get worse."
Change Needed

In addition to advocating for more visas and green cards, Microsoft is trying to boost enrollment in computer degree programs and help U.S. midcareer workers update their skills. Schofield says Microsoft representatives, including Gates himself, are visiting high schools and colleges in an attempt to dispel three myths: that offshoring means the future for tech work is bleak, that tech jobs are mundane and not "cool," and that there is little opportunity left to innovate in computer science. "We're sending the message that this is a vibrant industry doing creative things," says Schofield. "Exciting things are happening, and individuals can have a real, lasting impact."
Critics say the emphasis should be on public policy changes, not public relations. "The presumption is that American students are irrational, and that they are leaving great opportunities on the table," says Hira. "I find that hard to believe. Is there a shortage of investment bankers? No, because they are paid a lot of money. Wages do matter."
As advocates and politicians take up the issue of immigration reform for high-skill workers, the one thing that Schofield and Sawade can agree on is that the current situation needs to change. The question now is what additional common ground can be found between them.
Herbst (Moira_Herbst@businessweek.com) is a reporter for BusinessWeek.com in New York .

gc_mania_03

10-10-2007, 11:02 AM

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071009-starting-salaries-surge-for-comp-sci-grads.html

krugerbrent

10-10-2007, 12:35 PM

Immigrant's sex with minor doesn't merit deportation, court rules (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/10/BA7ASN75D.DTL&hw=immigration&sn=004&sc=697) By Bob Egelko (begelko@sfchronicle.com) | Chronicle Staff Writer, October 10, 2007

[FONT="Microsoft Sans Serif"]An immigrant who is in the United States legally does not have to be deported if convicted of having sex with a minor, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

In a 2-1 decision, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said the crime that Alberto Quintero-Salazar admitted in 1998, illegal intercourse between an adult over 21 and a youth under 16, was not the type of "vile, base or depraved" conduct that subjects a lawful U.S. resident to deportation.

Quintero entered the United States from Mexico in 1990, became a legal permanent resident in 1994...

He pleaded no contest to the sex crime charge in 1998 and was sentenced to 11 months in jail...

Immigration courts ordered him deported in 2003, but he has remained here during his appeal...

The appeals court said a legal resident can be deported for committing a crime of "moral turpitude," defined as a vile, base or depraved offense that violates society's moral standards. That definition doesn't fit the charge against Quintero, the court said.

That's just stupid isnt it. After you are already a LPR, you can do anything you want, including this case of statutory rape, and it wont affect your immigration status. That's what sex with a minor is. Statutory rape. Even if its consensual. Its a law in all states, to protect stupid teenagers under 16(or 17 or 18 depending on states) from being cajoled into relationship from an older manipulative individual.

And There was another case, in california, where this Pakistani guy fought deportation attempts successfully based on USCIS trying to deport him because he faced charges of aggravated assault. Aggravated assault my friends. And this fact came up when he applied for citizenship. Not only he was able to beat the deportation attempt, he was also given citizenship. I think his case was fought by Carl Shusterman.

Now, if you and I were to have a few missing paystubs, which is basically saying that you were unemployment for 2-3 months on a work visa, then boy its a problem and they can deny you your 485 and ask all sorts of questions. If its unemployed more than 6 months during a recession and layoff time in economy, something that's very common, then its a problem for getting LPR.

So let me get this. In some cases, being unemployed is grounds for denying immigration benefits. But statutory rape and aggravated assault is not grounds for denying immigration benefits, including granting of citizenship ?

Sorry Macaca, I know you dont prefer editorials in your new article thread, but this one is just plain dumb part of immigration laws.

claudia255

10-10-2007, 08:06 PM

U.S. Seeks Rules to Allow Increase in Guest Workers

Article Tools Sponsored By
By STEVEN GREENHOUSE
Published: October 10, 2007

Bush administration officials said yesterday that they were developing new rules so the nation’s farmers could bring in more foreign guest workers to prevent a recurrence of problems like growers’ letting their fruit rot because there were not enough laborers for the harvest.

Farm groups have long pressed the administration to eliminate hurdles that make it hard to bring in guest workers, saying they face a crisis because stepped-up federal immigration enforcement has reduced the number of farm workers. By many estimates, more than half of the nation’s 2.5 million farm workers are illegal immigrants.

Administration officials said they saw a need to make procedural changes and larger regulatory changes in the guest worker program after Congress killed an immigration overhaul last summer.

“The current temporary agricultural worker program has become too antiquated and too cumbersome to be used effectively by producers,” said a White House spokesman, Scott Stanzel. “The program needs to be updated to reflect today’s economy and to utilize technological and other advances.”

Under the H-2A program, farmers can bring in temporary workers after demonstrating that American workers are not interested in the jobs and after going through a lengthy application process. Currently, they bring in about 50,000 such workers a year.

After President Bush called for changes in the program on Aug. 10, the White House, the Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security solicited recommendations from farm groups on how to streamline the program.

The administration is pressing ahead on that effort, first reported in The Los Angeles Times, after some growers in the Northwest let their cherries and apples rot because of a shortage of workers and after some growers in North Carolina did not plant cucumbers this year because they feared not having enough workers for the harvest.

The National Council of Agricultural Employers has written to the administration to urge changes like speeding up the H-2A application process, easing housing requirements for guest workers, reducing the required wage for these workers and increasing the types of work they are allowed to do — poultry processing might be included, for instance. Grower groups have also urged the administration to ease requirements that they run newspaper advertisements to determine whether American workers want the jobs.

The council’s executive vice president, Sharon M. Hughes, said the application process often took so long that by the time some farmers obtained guest workers the harvest was over. Ms. Hughes said the number of farm workers available was down about 200,000, or nearly 10 percent, from last year because of more aggressive border enforcement.

“Right now,” she said, “the H-2A program provides about 2 percent of the farm work force and for us to try to double that number with the current government infrastructure would cause it to collapse on itself unless we have these reforms.”

The executive vice president of the Western Growers Association, Jasper Hempel, said: “We’re caught in a vise. When labor isn’t available, we have a legal program using H-2A, but many farmers can’t use that program because there are so many impediments. They throw up double requirements. They don’t process papers when they say they will. There isn’t enough staff.”

Grower groups say that even more than administrative changes, they would prefer enacting stalled legislation that would greatly streamline the H-2A program and create a path to citizenship for many undocumented farm workers.

A Labor Department spokesman, David James, said the administration was mindful of the farmers’ concerns.

“The Department of Labor,” Mr. James said, “is now in the process of identifying ways the program can be improved to provide farmers with an orderly and timely flow of legal workers while protecting the rights of both U.S. workers and foreign temporary workers.”

Advocates for farm workers have voiced dismay about the administration’s plans and the industry’s recommendations.

“The industry’s demands would amount to a cheap foreign labor policy,” said Bruce Goldstein, executive director of Farmworker Justice. “They would make it easier for employers to bring in guest workers and slash wage rates and other labor protections.”

The administration also faces criticism from conservative groups that dislike bringing in more immigrants.

“If there is a demonstrable need for the workers, we have no objection to bringing them in,” said Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which opposes liberalizing immigration rules. “But here they’re trying to tip the balance in favor of employers. The administration wants not just to cut down on administrative procedures, but to bypass the whole process that has been put in place to protect American workers.”

amitjoey

10-11-2007, 04:45 PM

Foreigners flock to India for good jobs

http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/oct/11jobs.htm

rbharol

10-11-2007, 11:28 PM

.....Worse, Chen said, the U.S. makes it hard for highly educated workers to come and stay -- even those who graduate from U.S. schools. Chen himself came to the U.S. from Hong Kong to get a university education.

"The first thing when they graduate, we want them to leave," he said.

All three panelists called for an immigration policy that makes it easier for foreign workers to get jobs with U.S. companies......

http://biz.yahoo.com/ibd/071011/tech01.html?.v=1

gcnirvana

10-15-2007, 12:59 PM

http://www.visabureau.com/america/news/12-10-2007/us-chamber-of-commerce-ceo-calls-for-increased-legal-immigration.aspx

12 October 2007
US Chamber of Commerce CEO calls for increased legal immigration
The president and chief executive officer of the US Chamber of Commerce has called for an increase to legal American immigration to keep the economy growing, reports the Arizona Republic newspaper. In a conference speech to business leaders in Phoenix, Thomas Donohue insisted the US Congress must readdress the issue after failing to pass immigration reforms earlier this year.

The president and chief executive officer of the US Chamber of Commerce has called for an increase to legal American immigration to keep the economy growing, reports the Arizona Republic newspaper. In a conference speech to business leaders in Phoenix, Thomas Donohue insisted the US Congress must readdress the issue after failing to pass immigration reforms earlier this year.

"If we take a hard look at the reality of immigration on our economy, we can reach consensus. We don't have any choice. The US is creating more jobs than workers, and we need immigrants to balance the equation.

"We can either force companies to move offshore. We can either make the US dependent on other countries for our food supply, just like we are for oil or we can have a system of bringing the workers into our country," he explained.

Anyone applying for an American visa should begin by taking the American Visa Bureau's online American visa application to see if they meet the basic legislative requirements.

drona

10-15-2007, 01:15 PM

Needed: Productive Legal Immigrants (http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=12166)
By Doug Bandow
Published 10/15/2007 12:08:01 AM

Immigration was a hot topic at the Conservative Leadership Conference in Reno, Nevada. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney placated the crowd by affirming his opposition to illegal immigration. But he added, "I love legal immigration, especially when immigrants bring skills."

It's a critical distinction. The U.S. long has taken for granted its position atop the international economic heap. But the sound of footsteps behind America grow louder. Productivity is rising far more rapidly in Asia. The U.S. is falling behind in the number of degrees granted in engineering and science, as well as patents issued. Now the rancorous political fight over immigration risks creating serious collateral economic damage: a reverse brain drain.

Large-scale illegal immigration has many and complicated consequences. Uncontested is the benefit of legal immigration by the technically talented and economically entrepreneurial from overseas. With an open economy and democratic polity, America attracts the world's best and brightest. They result in an enormous economic pay-off.

Researchers at Duke, Harvard, and New York University have been studying the impact of immigration on economic competitiveness. They discovered that between 1995 and 2005 immigrants founded one in four engineering and technology firms, which in 2006 generated $52 billion in revenues and employed 450,000 people. The largest number of entrepreneurial immigrants came from India; United Kingdom, China, Taiwan, and Japan followed as sources of productive immigrants.

The latest study by the same researchers found that immigrants "were named as inventors or co-inventors in 25.6 percent of international patent applications filed from the United States in 2006. This represents an increase from 7.6 percent in 1998." The rate of increase has been rising, growing fastest since 2004.

Foreign invention played a particularly significant role in California, followed by Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Illinois, and Pennsylvania. The role of immigrants varied dramatically by industry and firm. They played only a minor role for Microsoft, General Motors, Medtronic, and 3M, for instance. But immigrants were involved in 56 percent of Wyeth's patents, 58 percent Freescale Semiconductor's and Intel's patents, 60 percent of Cisco's patents, 63 percent of Siemens's patents, 64 percent of General Electric's patents, 65 percent of Merck's patents, and 72 percent of Qualcomm's patents. Interestingly, four in ten patents filed by the U.S. government involved foreign participation.

Chinese, Taiwanese, and Indian immigrants accounted for more than one-third of the patents involving immigrants. Their numbers dwarf the contribution of American citizens of Chinese, Taiwanese, and Indian descent.

The largest number of patents involving foreign nationals involved medical or dental uses and electric digital processing. In these cases immigrants provided an important supplement to the work of American citizens. The bump approached or exceeded 50 percent of the number of patents granted citizens in several fields.

With notable understatement, notes researcher Vivek Wadhwa, a fellow at Harvard Law School, "The United States benefits from having foreign-born innovators create their ideas in this country." These people create wealth rather than consume welfare; they engage American culture rather than promote their native cultures. They help America retain its international economic dominance.

Yet for all of these benefits, the U.S., a nation of more than 300 million people, awards only 120,000 employment-based visas for permanent residence every year. Moreover, fewer than 10,000 are available for any one country, even those, such as India and the United Kingdom, which provide so many talented entrepreneurs. Yet there are about 560,000 principals and 620,000 family members, for almost 1.2 million overall, in employment-based categories awaiting visas.

IN SHORT, IMMIGRATION BREAKS DOWN into two separate issues. One, which has received by far the most attention, is how to deal with the flood of unskilled labor pouring over America's southern border. The second is how to take better advantage of the much smaller number of economically talented entrepreneurs desiring to settle in the U.S. Doing a better job on the second would ease the financial burden of confronting the first.

The current system of employment-based visas is broken. In general, visas are available for professionals of outstanding ability or executives subject to transfer to the U.S. As of last year, some 200,000 principals were awaiting labor certification, the first step to gaining permanent residence status. Some 50,000, roughly seven times the number a decade ago, were lodged at the second stop, the I-140 application. More than 300,000, treble the number ten years before, were at the final, I-485 stage.

The overall waiting time is about 4.4 years -- which doesn't even include visa processing time. Warns the report, "Waiting for visa processing makes a stressful time even more stressful." Wait times have been getting longer, though the relevant agencies have declared themselves determined to clear up the backlog. Unfortunately, one-third of employment principals polled are uncertain about remaining in the U.S. or actually plan to leave. Returning home is an increasingly viable option for Chinese and Indian nationals, whose native economies have begun to grow substantially, including in high-tech fields.

There are two separate problems. One is statutory limits on the number of employment-based visas. The other is agency incompetence in processing applications. The combination is costing America money and jobs. Observe the researchers:

The impact of this intertwining of numerical limitations and visa processing is periodically felt, for example, in January 2005, when application cutoff dates of January 2005 were placed on the employment third preference category for nationals of China, India, and the Philippines, and most recently on 2 July 2007, when the State Department updated its previous Visa Bulletin for July and announced that all employment categories had become unavailable for the rest of the fiscal year. [The filing period was subsequently extended a month.]

But the most important limitation remains the statutory quota. With 1.2 million people waiting for 120,000 visas, in effect, observe the researchers, "we already had mortgaged almost nine years' worth of employment visas." More competent management would be good for all concerned, but would primarily reshuffle the line's starting point. In short, get rid of the backlog and 120,000 people get visas sometime during the year. "The others would experience visa number wait," explain the researchers.

Only an increase in employment-based visas will solve the problem. The report also suggests "letting some of the time spent waiting for a visa number or for visa processing count toward naturalization -- such a precedent exists in refugee procedures, and it could be a way of saying to visa applicants that the long wait has not been in vain." Best, however, would be to simply reduce the wait time.

THE ISSUE OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION raises numerous concerns: the large-scale flow of unskilled laborers, who violate the law in coming, are less likely to assimilate, and are more likely end up as a financial burden. None of these concerns apply to the sort of people who now apply, and wait, for employment visas.

Increasing the number of visas available for professional and entrepreneurial foreigners would make good sense on its own terms, reinforcing what the researchers call America's "ability to push the frontier of knowledge and its application." These immigrants are an unalloyed blessing for the United States and should be welcomed.

Expanding the number of employment-based visas also would mute the attacks on critics of illegal immigration. A sovereign nation should control its own borders. The best way to do so is to make distinctions, encouraging beneficial labor flows while regulating overall immigration. How much to hike the number of employment-based visas is an obvious matter of debate. But the quota should be increased.

Robert Litan of the Kauffman Foundation concludes: "Given that the U.S. comparative advantage in the global economy is in creating knowledge and applying it to business, it behooves the country to consider how we might adjust policies to reduce the immigration backlog, encourage innovative foreign minds to remain in the country, and entice new innovators to come."

Unfortunately, the U.S. can no longer treat its global economic dominance as inevitable, an immutable fact of nature. With China and other nations, such as India, making significant economic strides, America should do more to attract to its shores the best and brightest from around the world. That means offering a home to more engineers, scientists, and entrepreneurs from other nations.

lacrossegc

10-15-2007, 02:26 PM

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/14/AR2007101400993.html

When Immigration Goes Up, Prices Go Down

By Shankar Vedantam
Monday, October 15, 2007; Page A03

vdlrao

10-16-2007, 08:48 AM

The Programmers Guild is issuing a rebuttal following calls for unlimited green cards for some foreign workers. Can Congress reach a compromise?

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/oct2007/db20071015_302399.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index _companies

manderson

10-16-2007, 02:46 PM

Concern over India’s IT future

By Joe Leahy in Mumbai
Published: October 10 2007 22:24 | Last updated: October 10 2007 22:24

India’s shortage of computer science PhDs is so dire that it threatens the country’s role as the world’s information technology services outsourcing hub, according to the chairman of Microsoft (http://mwprices.ft.com/custom/ft2-com/html-quotechartnews.asp?FTSite=FTCOM&q=MSFT&searchtype&expanded=&countrycode=us&s2=us&symb=MSFT&company=NEW) India.
Although many Indians pursue post-graduate studies overseas, India’s universities now produce only about 35 computer science PhDs a year compared with about 1,000 in the US.
“It’s an incredibly urgent and important issue,” Ravi Venkatesan told the Financial Times. “It affects the pipeline of future talent because the teaching institutions aren’t getting enough qualified faculty and, of course, if you really want to do cutting edge innovation in computer science, you’re restricted by the pool of talent out there.”
The rise of India’s $47bn (€33bn, £23bn) computer services outsourcing industry has been an important factor in the country’s economic revival over the past decade as companies around the world move to take advantage of its abundant pool of English-speaking talent.
India’s universities turn out about half a million engineering graduates a year but few stay on for post-graduate studies.
The World Bank estimates that the country produces a total of 7,000 PhDs a year across the entire spectrum of science, engineering and technology. “India’s higher education system needs to produce more scientists, engineers and other masters and PhD graduates with skills matched to the needs of the innovation economy,” the bank said in a recent report.
While Indian companies have until now relied on the difference between Indian wages and those in developed markets to attract business, the strategy is not sustainable, Mr Venkatesan said.
Indian entry-level IT salaries are presently about half those in the developed world but they are increasing by about 15 per cent a year and will be on a par with the developed world within the next seven to eight years.
“It’s inevitably a matter of time before these wage disparities disappear and the only thing that’s going to matter is the quality of ideas coming out of an employee,” Mr Venkatesan said.
However, he said the industry could buy time by becoming better at training people.
This is already happening at many companies; Infosys (http://mwprices.ft.com/custom/ft2-com/html-quotechartnews.asp?FTSite=FTCOM&q=INFOSYSTCH&searchtype&expanded=&countrycode=in&s2=in&symb=INFOSYSTCH&company=NEW)has set up its own training facilities while multinationals including Microsoft are taking on assistant researchers in their labs.
P. Anandan, the managing director of Microsoft Research India, said that the gap in the meantime could be plugged by Indian PhDs coming back from abroad.
“In computer science, probably about a quarter of PhDs that come out of US universities are of Indian origin,” he said.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/4bd37392-7762-11dc-9de8-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=a6dfcf08-9c79-11da-8762-0000779e2340,Authorised=false.html?_i_location=htt p%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2F4bd37392-7762-11dc-9de8-0000779fd2ac%2Cdwp_uuid%3Da6dfcf08-9c79-11da-8762-0000779e2340.html&_i_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fworld%2Fasiap acific%2Findia

yabadaba

10-16-2007, 04:37 PM

http://www.newsweek.com/id/43356

saimrathi

10-17-2007, 03:54 PM

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/10/18/stories/2007101850691200.htm

Visa delays, opportunities at home causing reverse brain-drain: Report

Reverse triggers

Number of skilled workers waiting for visas larger than number that can be admitted.

Employment visas issued to immigrants less than 10,000/year, with long wait-time.

Study by researchers at Duke University, New York University, Harvard University.

T.E. Raja Simhan

Chennai, Oct. 17In the next couple of years Indian companies will have access to increased number of skilled workers returning home from the US. For the first time, the US is facing the prospect of a ‘reverse brain-drain’ with skilled workers returning to countries like India and China, according to a recent report.

Over a million skilled immigrant workers, including scientists, engineers, doctors, researchers and their families, compete for 1,20,000 permanent US resident visas each year. This creates an imbalance that could fuel a “reverse brain-drain”, according to a report, Intellectual Property, the Immigration Backlog, and a Reverse Brain-Drain, released by the US-based Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

The situation is even bleaker as the number of employment visas issued to immigrants from any single country is less than 10,000 per year with a waiting time of several years, says the report.
Return triggers

Mr Ravi Viswanathan, head of Chennai operations, Tata Consultancy Services, says three years back the company received one resume a day from people in the US wanting to return home. Today, at any point of time, there are half-a-dozen such resumes. Delay in permanent visa issuance and increasing opportunity in India is forcing people to return home.

The report said that the number of skilled workers waiting for visas is significantly larger than the number that can be admitted to the US. This imbalance creates the potential for a sizeable reverse brain drain from the US to the skilled workers’ home countries.

The study conducted by researchers at Duke University, New York University and Harvard University, is the third in a series of studies focusing on immigrants’ contributions to the competitiveness of the US economy.
Earlier studies

The earlier studies, “America’s New Immigrant Entrepreneurs” and “Entrepreneurship, Education and Immigration: America’s New Immigrant Entrepreneurs, Part II,” documented that one in four engineering and technology companies founded between 1995 and 2005 had an immigrant founder.

Researchers also found that these companies employed 4,50,000 workers and generated $52 billion in revenue in 2006. Indian immigrants founded more companies than those from the United Kingdom, China, Taiwan and Japan combined.
Key findings

The key findings in the latest report are that foreign nationals contributed to more than half of the international patents filed by a number of large, multi-national companies, including Qualcomm (72 per cent), Merck & Co (65 per cent), General Electric (64 per cent), Siemens (63 per cent) and Cisco (60 per cent).

Forty-one per cent of the patents filed by the US government had foreign nationals as inventors or co-inventors.

In 2006, 16.8 per cent of international patent applications from the US had an inventor or co-inventor with a Chinese-heritage name, representing an increase from 11.2 per cent in 1998. The contribution of inventors with Indian-heritage names increased to 13.7 per cent from 9.5 per cent in the same period.

© Copyright 2000 - 2007 The Hindu Business Line

saimrathi

10-17-2007, 03:55 PM

The Visa Shortage: Big Problem, Easy Fix
A broken system is driving our best-educated foreign workers—talent desperately needed by U.S. companies—to Europe, India, and China

by Vivek Wadhwa

Signs with the words "U.S. citizens and permanents only" greeted students at employers' booths at a recent career fair at Duke University, where I teach. In previous years only government jobs requiring security clearances were labeled off-limits to international students. Foreign-born engineering graduates told me they were disappointed that employers like General Electric (GE), IBM (IBM), and Carmax (KMX) as well as smaller companies would not even interview them. Recruiters told me they were frustrated that they could not fill critical positions. They have few options because the visas they need to hire foreign nationals simply aren't available.

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/oct2007/sb20071017_303173.htm?campaign_id=rss_daily

This visa shortage is a problem for U.S. companies that depend on engineers because significantly more foreign-born students than Americans are completing higher degrees in engineering. According to the American Society of Engineering Education (asee.org), foreigners account for nearly 45% of masters-level engineering students and 60% of PhDs. The result? Multinationals have little choice but to expand their engineering operations abroad, and smaller businesses that can't afford to expand overseas are unable to hire the talent they need.

Aaron McQuaid, a customer-support engineer at Cisco's (CSCO) Research Triangle Park (N.C.) group, has been helping the tech giant recruit from Duke. He says Cisco currently has more than 1,300 openings. His team alone, he says, has been looking for two engineers for more than three months. McQuaid says barely 10% of the applicants from Duke were U.S. citizens, none had the skill set he needed, and his group couldn't find a way to hire highly qualified foreign nationals.

The visa system isn't working. Right now, when international students complete their degrees in the U.S., they are allowed to work for up to one year on a practical-training visa. After that they must obtain a temporary work visa called an H-1B, which is valid for up to six years. Yes, companies are allowed to hire foreign students during the one-year practical training period. But those I spoke with worry that they won't be able to keep their recruits beyond this period because H-1B visas are in short supply. (This year there were 65,000 H-1Bs available for any foreign-born worker who holds an undergraduate degree and an additional 20,000 for those with a master's degree. But U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services reported there were twice as many applications received by its April deadline for the undergraduate-degree H1-Bs for 2008 than the allotted number, and those were distributed via a lottery.)
Bad for Everybody

The problem with H-1Bs, which were originally intended to let U.S. companies recruit highly skilled workers, is that they can be misused (BusinessWeek, 10/10/07). John Miano, of the anti-outsourcing advocacy group Programmers Guild (programmersguild.org). says these visas are frequently used to import low-level computer programmers who work at below-market salaries. Miano estimates that 56% of computer workers, who make up 45% of the H-1B pool, are in this low-skill category. Yet these visas are also used to hire highly skilled engineers, scientists, doctors, and computer-information architects.

With the number of available visas drying up, there's no easy way for the current batch of international students to stay. This means they need to find jobs back home or in other countries. Additionally, there is already a backlog of more than a million skilled immigrants working in the U.S., mostly on H-1B visas, who are waiting for a yearly allocation of 120,000 permanent-resident visas. So we are headed for a massive reverse brain drain (BusinessWeek, 8/22/07) of skilled workers and students.

Our loss is likely to be the gain of countries like India and China.

On Oct. 5, Wim Elfrink, chief globalization officer for Cisco, paid a visit to Duke. He talked about the opportunities his company was seeing in international markets and innovative new technologies being developed for them. Elfrink said he expects to hire 7,000 engineers over the next five years and to have 20% of Cisco's top talent located in India. He encouraged Duke students to apply for jobs in Bangalore.
What Undergrads Say

Will our current crop of foreign-born graduates end up in India or China? I asked my students about their plans.

Baris Guzel, 23, says he has a job offer in Germany and knows of opportunities back home in Turkey. But he wants to stay in the U.S. and join a financial-services or consulting firm. What deters him are ads like those posted by Accenture (ACN) on Duke's recruiting site that read: "Applicants for employment in the U.S. must possess work authorization which does not require sponsorship by the employer for a visa." How can he get a visa if employers won't sponsor him, Guzel asks.

Gauravjit Singh, 24, and his team won a $100,000 prize last September from Duke's CURE business plan competition (BusinessWeek, 10/11/05). He then co-founded a medical-device company to equip clinicians in the developing world with an affordable and effective technology in the fight against cervical cancer. They outsourced the technology development to a Cary (N.C.) design firm. Given how hard it is to get a visa, Gauravjit sees no choice but to return home and run his venture from Bangalore.

Jaineel Aga, 23, says he may have made the wrong decision about studying in the U.S. instead of Europe. The reason he picked the U.S. was because he believed it was more open and welcoming to international students. He wants to become a management consultant and is keen to stay in the U.S. He considers it a travesty that his career may ultimately be decided by a visa lottery.

Tanya Srivastava, 24, says she never planned to stay permanently in the U.S. but did want to work for a few years to get some global experience and pay off the loans she took to complete her U.S. education. But she believes she can easily get a job back home in India if things don't work out here.

All these students said they would discourage their friends from coming to the U.S.

Unlike many of the problems facing the U.S., this one isn't hard to fix. All we need to do is increase the number of visas that are available for international students who get job offers from U.S. companies. An even better solution is to offer these students permanent-resident visas rather than H-1Bs. In the new global landscape, we need the world's best talent on our side.

Vivek Wadhwa, the founder of two software companies, is an Executive-in-Residence/Adjunct Professor at Duke University. He is also the co-founder of TiE Carolinas, a networking and mentoring group.

manderson

10-18-2007, 11:51 AM

Opinion Will H1-B immigration debacle be fixed?
By Thomas D. Elias

It's an open question now whether the egregious abuse of H-1B immigration visas by large corporations will ever be fixed.

That's because a small organization dedicated to helping American workers get jobs for which American companies are now importing foreign immigrants has uncovered a 2006 document demonstrating that letting foreigners take jobs Americans could fill is in fact the policy of the Bush Administration.

States the U.S. Department of Labor's Strategic Plan for the fiscal years 2006 to 2011, “H-1B workers may be hired even when a qualified U.S. worker wants the job, and a U.S. worker can be displaced from the job in favor of the foreign worker.” The Federal Register adds that “the statute does not require employers to demonstrate that there are no available U.S. workers or to test the labor market for U.S. workers as required under the permanent labor certification program.”

That damning language was uncovered by Donna Conroy of the organization Brightfuturejobs.org.

It seems to confirm what thousands of displaced American engineers and technical workers have believed for years: Large U.S. companies including Cisco Systems, Sun Microsystems, Intel, Hewlett-Packard and other Silicon Valley stalwarts bring in thousands of skilled foreign workers each year not because they can't find American workers to fill their jobs, but because they can pay the immigrants less.

The actual intent of H-1B visas is to allow American companies to recruit immigrant labor when they can't find sufficient qualified U.S. citizens or legal residents to fill open positions. Each year, the electronic giants of the Silicon Valley lead a lobbying effort to get Congress to expand the limit on H-1Bs from 65,000 to some far higher figure.

These companies aim not merely to fill jobs for which they can't find U.S. citizens and green card holders, but to feather their financial nests, as the Labor Department documents indicate.

What happened early this year provides good evidence of who is really coming in on H-1B's: It is not principally Ph.D.'s and other highly educated persons. Rather, it is primarily factory workers, low-level draftsmen and the like.

The evidence is clear: Out of 132,000 applications received on the first day they were accepted for the 2007 quota of 65,000 visas, just 12,989 were from applicants with master's degrees or higher. That meant the vast bulk of applications came from workers with bachelor's degrees or less. These are not high-level researchers and software engineers, as they are often billed. They may be laboratory technicians or other skilled laborers, but there is no demonstrated shortage of Americans workers for those jobs.

Of course, the Labor Department has made it clear to the companies they don't have to demonstrate any shortage of U.S. workers; they can hire all the cheap labor they can somehow bring into this country.

It's not that the foreign workers they bring in lack merit. In fact, most are dedicated employees and become taxpaying contributors to American society. But the many Americans either bumped out of their jobs by this Bush-sanctioned corporate welfare are also dedicated employees and taxpayers.

Interestingly, no one has heard Colorado's Republican Rep. Tom Tancredo, now running for President on a jingoistic anti-immigrant platform, complain about the government-backed misuse of H-1Bs. Nor any of the other groups now trying loudly to tighten up both the Mexican and Canadian borders.

Rather, it is two liberal Democratic politicians, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin and New Jersey Rep. Bill Pascrell, who are carrying similar bills to wipe out the Labor Department language that now subverts the plain intent of the H-1B visas.

For now, companies that discriminate against American citizens when hiring are legally protected by the Bush administration, which kept its disgraceful and possibly illegal rules quiet until Conroy discovered them.

Only if the Durbin-Pascrell legislation passes will citizens and legal immigrants have an opportunity to compete for the top dollar, white collar jobs at stake here.

And even if their bills should succeed in Congress, they would still need the signature of President Bush to end illegal discrimination against Americans and green card holders. Of course, if Bush wants to fix the problem, he need not wait for Congress to act. All he'd have to do is pick up his telephone and order his labor secretary to change the rules back to what they are supposed to be.

He's had years to do this, but has shown no inclination because he knows who his campaign donors have been. So it's unlikely he would sign such a bill even if it reached him.

Which means there will probably be no change in the current anti-American discrimination by American companies until there is a new President.

Elias is author of the current book “The Burzynski Breakthrough: The Most Promising Cancer Treatment and the Government's Campaign to Squelch It,” now available in an updated second edition. His e-mail address is tdelias@aol.com.

chanduv23

10-18-2007, 07:37 PM

http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/washington/news.aspx?id=65773

by Mrinalini Reddy
Oct 17, 2007

WASHINGTON -- Chandrakanth Vemula was frustrated with trying to get an employment-based green card. He paid his taxes, was a law-abiding legal resident and contributed to the country’s economic growth and development.

Vemula, 31, got into a predicament back in 2005, when he was laid-off from his job as a software analyst at a consulting firm in Atlanta. He was in the sixth year of his H-1 visa, a document granted to highly skilled workers.

U.S. immigration law permits six years for an H-1 work visa, through the sponsorship of an employer. The visa can be extended however, if a green card application for permanent residence has been pending for more than a year.

But with the lay-off, Vemula’s green card application was essentially terminated.

“Nobody was giving me proper guidance—it didn’t seem like anyone cared,” said Vemula.

Help was on the way. Vemula joined online discussion forums to talk to other legal immigrants in similar situations. Eventually, he successfully navigated the system. But he was still frustrated by the red tape and delays facing those attempting to get their employment-based green cards.

The frustration, even desperation, shared by many in Vemula’s situation has sparked the emergence of a grass roots organization, committed to getting legislation approved for this cause of legal immigrants.

Immigration Voice, an all-volunteer group, suspects that many in Congress are not fully aware of their problems, especially in the face of a heated immigration debate that has centered on undocumented workers. .

The organization, which claims 24,000 members, was created in late 2005 and has undertaken fund-raising efforts. Most of the core group of volunteers have full-time jobs and take time out of their daily schedules to contribute to the organization.

”This grew entirely out of frustration,” said Mark Bartosik, spokesman for Immigration Voice. A British citizen, Bartosik says he has been waiting eight years for his green card. “It’s a case of people’s patience wearing out. They just completed some applications from 2001! That’s how tethered we became.”

In September, about 2,000 legal immigrants marched on the West Lawn of the Capitol to gain visibility among lawmakers, Bartosik said. Volunteers also spent several days of the week meeting with congressional aides, explaining the green card problems and suggesting possible legislative solutions.

With an all-volunteer team in full-time jobs in order to maintain legal status, the organization recently hired Patton Boggs, an influential lobbying law firm, to be its “ear to the ground” in Washington.

“When people hear the word “immigration,” they think about the 12 million undocumented workers,” said Tamsen Mitchell, a British native, who flew to the Capital from San Francisco. “People don’t realize or understand our precise problems.”

The green card application is a three step process that requires a certification approval from the Labor Department, approval from Citizenship and Immigration Services and finally an elevation to permanent resident status by the State Department.

Out of an average of one million green cards issued each year, only about 14 percent are reserved solely for the employment-based category. No country can claim more than 7 percent of the employment-based cards. That was a disadvantage for Vemula, an Indian citizen, as it meant a higher volume of applications.

The majority of green cards are issued to facilitate family reunification.

The situation is further complicated by the fact that spouses and dependents of a single green card applicant receive separate cards, filling up the quotas quickly.

Immigration Voice has made reaching out to lawmakers a priority and a core group of volunteers has started state chapters to assist in this initiative.

Another tactic amounts to a civics lesson, teaching the recent immigrants the intricacies and peculiarities of the legislative process and the nuances of how to present one’s self to a congressman or state legislator. .

Some of their efforts have yielded tangible benefits.

In July, the State Department reversed an announcement in its June bulletin of the availability of 60,000 new visas for skilled workers. The last step in the process requires a filing with the State Department, but can only be done upon availability from that year’s annual quota.

To protest this apparent flip-flop, Immigration Voice members arranged delivery of more than 200 bouquets of flowers to Emilio Gonzales, director of Citizenship and Immigration Services, in the spirit of Gandhi’s principle of non-violent aggression.

In San Jose, Calif., the organization mobilized about 500 residents to gain the support of Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., to take up the visa issue with the State Department.

Later in the month, the State Department reinstated the visa pool, also under pressure of the threat of a lawsuit by the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said Bartosik.

“We have better things to do—we would rather be designing the next IPod,” said Gopal, an Indian national living in San Jose, Calif., who did not reveal his last name due to a non-disclosure agreement with his employer. “But unless we talk about our issues, nobody will. The laws are archaic and were established when there was no Silicon Valley.”

Vemula is heartened at the response among Immigration Voice members and recent advances in Washington. However, he is aware of the challenging task of getting legislation approved with presidential elections due next year.

“Immigration Voice educates a lot of people and also says to them that the ‘American Dream” is not so easy,’” he said.

jungalee43

10-18-2007, 09:45 PM

I just fail to understand why this article is posted on IV forum. This is a perfect article for all anti-immigrant websites. They must be enjoying publicity to their lies on our web-site.
I am removing the entire draft of article from the quote. I don't want to contribute to their "cause" and make matters difficult for us.
Please remove this article.

Opinion Will H1-B immigration debacle be fixed?
By Thomas D. Elias

claudia255

10-19-2007, 05:44 PM

FRANKLINTON, La., Oct. 17 — An Oxford-educated son of immigrants from India is virtually certain to become the leading candidate for Louisiana’s next governor in Saturday’s primary election. It would be an unlikely choice for a state that usually picks its leaders from deep in the rural hinterlands and has not had a nonwhite chief executive since Reconstruction.

But peculiar circumstances have combined to make Representative Bobby Jindal, a conservative two-term Republican, the overwhelming favorite. Analysts predict Mr. Jindal, 36, could get more than 50 percent of the vote in the open primary, thus avoiding a November runoff and becoming the nation’s first Indian-American governor. If he fails to win a majority, he would face the next-highest vote getter in the runoff.

Louisiana Democrats are demoralized, caught between the perception of post-hurricane incompetence surrounding their standard bearer, Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco, who is not running for re-election, and corruption allegations against senior elected officials like William J. Jefferson, the congressman from New Orleans.

Leading Democrats begged off the governor’s race, and Mr. Jindal’s opponents are from the second tier, trailing so badly in polls that Mr. Jindal has ignored most of the scheduled debates among candidates, leaving the challengers to take grumbling verbal shots at his empty chair.

The prize is not necessarily an enviable one: Louisiana is the nation’s poorest state, measured by per capita income; one of its unhealthiest; the worst in infant mortality; and the least educated. It is last in attracting new college-educated workers. Tens of thousands of people remain displaced by Hurricane Katrina, the police department in New Orleans still operates largely out of trailers, and neighborhoods are still trying to rebuild.

“The storms didn’t cause all of our problems — they revealed a lot of our problems,” Mr. Jindal said in a brief interview this week. “It’s an incredible opportunity to change the state.”

But he is not a natural fit for Louisiana. The state likes its governors to know the fundamentals of the Cajun two-step, speak some derivation of French patois, and at least get to a duck blind, regularly and publicly. But Mr. Jindal has labored assiduously to overcome the disadvantage of being a non-Cajun, Rhodes Scholar policy wonk whose given name was Piyush, and who has a penchant for 31-point plans.

He is a born-again Roman Catholic who has suggested that teaching intelligent design as an alternative to evolution may not be out of place in public schools, favors a ban on abortion and opposes hate-crimes laws. Conservative views aside, the slightly built congressman is anything but a backslapping good ol’ boy.

He lost to Ms. Blanco in 2003 largely in places like this, Washington Parish, a hardscrabble rural area 70 miles north of New Orleans, where voters openly expressed unease four years ago about opting for someone of Mr. Jindal’s race. In areas where the Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke won in the 1991 governor’s race — here and in the deeply conservative parishes of north Louisiana — Mr. Jindal lost.

But by Wednesday, three days before Mr. Jindal’s second attempt at the governor’s mansion, he was greeted here, if not with great warmth, at least without alarm. The congressman, tossing souvenir cups from a fire truck in a town parade, was met with shouts of “Hey Bobby!” from the rural whites lining the route.

Mr. Jindal picked out familiar faces in the crowd, greeted the sheriff like an old friend and posed for a picture with man sporting a Confederate flag tattoo.

For months, the congressman has cultivated the rural areas where he lost in 2003, “witnessing” in remote Pentecostal churches, neutralizing his image of being hyperqualified — head of the state health department at 24, head of the university system at 28 and under secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services at 30 under President Bush — that did not help him the last time. In one recent debate, Mr. Jindal boasted that he had made 77 trips to north Louisiana since announcing his candidacy.

Insinuations about his excessive intellectual capacity are still being made. “It’s not going to be about the smartest person in this race,” Walter Boasso, a Democratic state senator and one of Mr. Jindal’s opponents, said recently. But such remarks do not seem to be catching on with voters apparently weary of bumbling at the Capitol in Baton Rouge and at City Hall in New Orleans.

This time, Mr. Jindal is aiming his multipoint plans at ethical reform in state government, schools and economic development, and attacks on his wonkishness have fallen flat. Mr. Jindal kept a low profile after Hurricane Katrina, but opponents are not attacking him for that either, perhaps because few others in Louisiana’s political class have stepped up.

Mr. Jindal told a group in Jefferson Parish this week that he had “150 specific proposals,” after rattling unflinchingly through a good many in a 12-minute speech.

He makes a particular case for a “war on corruption,” as he puts it, in Baton Rouge, proposing to tighten financial disclosures on lobbyists and legislators and to prohibit business relationships between legislators and the state. He promises to build up infrastructure like ports, to devote attention to research universities and promote technical training. He hardly mentions Mr. Bush, a sharp contrast to four years ago when he often boasted of his connections to the president.

Past governors have charged into Baton Rouge promising reform only to founder in the change-resistant Legislature. Mr. Jindal will most likely face long odds too, if he fulfills the near-universal prediction that he will come out on top.

Pandi

10-21-2007, 03:54 PM

Thanks for the link. It is quite interesting.:)

anreddy77

10-21-2007, 07:35 PM

http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/oct/21canada.htm

another one

10-22-2007, 08:38 AM

I thought this is an article people in this group will specifically enjoy. :)

http://www.indolink.com/displayArticleS.php?id=102107104132

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Canadian psychology professor John Philippe Rushton has recently claimed that South Asians “aren’t that Intelligent (on average)” and that "mass immigration from the region is very likely to lower the average IQ of the receiving Western countries, and consequently be dysfunctional."
Rushton, a psychology professor at the University of Western and is well known for his controversial work on intelligence and racial differences. His article appeared in the anti-immigration site VDare on September 26, 2007 (http://vdare.com/rushton/070926_indians.htm)

He writes: "East Asians (Chinese, Japanese and Koreans) obtain the highest mean IQ at 105. Europeans follow with an IQ of 100. Some ways below these are the Inuit or Eskimos (IQ 91), South East Asians (IQ 87), Native American Indians (IQ 87), Pacific Islanders (IQ 85), and South Asians and North Africans (IQ 84). Well below these are the sub-Saharan Africans (IQ 67), the Australian Aborigines (IQ 62), the Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert, and the Pygmies of the Congo rain forests (IQ 54)."

IQ tests constructed in Western Europe and North America and standardized with an average IQ of 100. The "normal" range goes from "dull" (IQ around 85) to "bright" (IQ around 115). IQs of 70 suggest handicap, while IQs of 130 and above predict giftedness.

Rushton goes on to explain: “Even a few years ago, news of drastically lower mean IQs for any population group—as low as 70 to 85 in Africa—would have been considered not only an absurdity, but also an injustice. Yet new empirical work continues to show a world IQ average of 90. It continues to show that mean IQs of 70 are found routinely in sub-Saharan Africa and that mean IQs of 70 to 90 are typical of many other regions of the world. Outside of European and East Asian populations, an average IQ as high as 100 is seldom found.”

He claims that IQ scores usefully predict the capacity to learn and also to reason logically and flexibly. They can also effectively predict work behavior, child abuse, crime and delinquency, health, accident proneness, and civic responsibility, he says.

Classical anthropology often placed South Asians and North Africans in the same taxonomic group as Europeans and designated them both as Caucasoids. But modern genetic studies, such as those by L. L. Cavalli-Sforza, show the South Asians/North Africans are a surprisingly distinct "genetic cluster". They can be distinguished from Europeans to their north as well as from sub-Saharan Africans to their south and the other Asian groups to their east, Rushton notes.

According to Rushton, "the evidence that the average IQ of the North Africans/South Asians is as low as 85 is extensive." He goes on to quote studies by British psychologist Richard Lynn as well as his own studies which have been published in the journal Intelligence..

Lynn reviewed 37 IQ studies from 16 countries such as India, Pakistan, Turkey, Iran, and Iraq and found an IQ range of from 77 to 96 with a median of 84. He reviewed 13 studies of immigrants from those countries in the UK and Australia and found a median IQ of 89. He reviewed 18 further studies of South Asians and North Africans in Continental Europe and found a median IQ of 84. He reviewed 9 studies of South Asians in Africa, Fiji, Malaysia, and Mauritius and found a median IQ of 88.

LIMIT IMMIGRATION

Rushton comments: “Given the euphoria current about the Indian economy—the fastest growing of any large polity after China—and all the adulation for Indian high tech types, the news that, in aggregate, India is so weakly positioned is going to be difficult for some to accept.” He explains that the apparent anomaly of so many well-known high IQ Indians must be due to

1. 0.5% of a population of 1.1 billion is a lot; 2. the variation in IQ scores in the Indian sub-continent may be greater than elsewhere; and 3. a steep inflection in economic growth from a depressed level is not incompatible with an ultimate inability to match western production levels.

He calls for an adjustment of immigration policy from South Asia because "mass immigration from the region is very likely to lower the average IQ of the receiving Western countries, and consequently be dysfunctional." He adds in parenthesis: "Conversely, the incentives for the relatively few high IQ people from these countries to emigrate are likely to be extremely high. Living in a low IQ milieu is not efficient for them."

The implications for immigration are obvious: it can have fundamental, and permanent, consequences, affirms Rushton.

Science journalist Peter Knudson stated: Despite the occasional media stereotype of Rushton as some sort of incompetent scientific adventurist, he has throughout most of his career as a psychologist been seen as a highly competent researcher. He has published more than 100 papers, most of them, particularly those dealing with altruism, in highly respectable journals.

Since 2002, Rushton has been the president of the Pioneer Fund - listed by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) as a hate group. Popular science commentator David Suzuki protested Rushton's racial theories and spoke out against Rushton in a live televised debate at the University of Western Ontario. "There will always be Rushtons in science," Suzuki said "and we must always be prepared to root them out!."

In 1988, Rushton was twice formally reprimanded by the University of Western Ontario for conducting research on human subjects without the permission of the university's committees on ethics.

VDARE, in which the Rushton article appeared, is a website that advocates reduced immigration into the United States.

saimrathi

10-23-2007, 07:59 AM

EU 'blue card' to tempt skilled
The European Commission is set to unveil a Blue Card for skilled immigrants, based on the US Green Card.

The card would allow suitably qualified people and their families to live and work within the EU.

The EU says it needs 20 million skilled immigrants over the next 20 years, and is very short of expertise in engineering and computer technology.

Correspondents say another aim of the proposal is to deter the best brains from emigrating to the US to find work.

The BBC's Mark Mardell in Brussels says the plan is controversial and some countries are sure to oppose it.

Critics also fear that Europe's attempt to take the best and leave the rest will only encourage a brain-drain from poorer nations.

Creating 'EU magnet'

The UK, Ireland and Denmark could opt out, but the other EU members will have to take part.

PROPOSED 'BLUE CARD'
Points system for skills and languages
Attached to individual, rather than job
Residence permit and work permit in one
Britain, Ireland and Denmark likely to opt out

UK ministers say officially they are studying it, but our correspondent says they are not keen on the idea, preferring to develop a points system.

Under the proposals, due to be unveiled on Tuesday afternoon, a Blue Card would enable holders and their families to live, work and travel within the EU.

To be eligible for the card, new immigrants would need to show a recognised diploma, have at least three years professional experience and the offer of a job which could not be filled by an EU citizen.

"To maintain and improve economic growth in the EU, it is essential for Europe to become a magnet for the highly skilled," the European Commission said in a statement.

"...To do so, the EU must present a united front, rather than emphasise the different immigration policies of each member state."

The plan will need the approval of all member states to come into force.

Some politicians in the Netherlands and Germany are hostile and the Austrian government has condemned the plan as "a centralisation too far".

There is a real tension between politicians all over Europe, who know their voters are worried about immigration, and businesses which say they will not be able to function without the skills of graduates from India and China, our correspondent says.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/7057575.stm

claudia255

10-26-2007, 08:05 AM

Ting to advise Giuliani on immigration
Del. professor ran for senate on call for tighter borders
By SUMMER HARLOW, The News Journal

Posted Thursday, October 25, 2007

Alapocas resident and former U.S. Senate candidate Jan Ting is an immigration policy adviser for Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani. (Buy photo)

The News Journal GINGER WALL

Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani speaks in Concord, N.H., on Tuesday. The former mayor, who once said immigrants benefited New York, has hired anti-immigration Republican Jan Ting as an adviser.

AP/CHERYL SENTER

Elsmere councilman John Jaremchuk, known for trying to pass local anti-immigration laws, said Rudy Giuliani's new stance on the issue is "refreshing."

Latin American Community Center Executive Director Maria Matos said Giuliani putting Jan Ting on his board is just a "political move" to get "Brownie points."
At this time last year, Temple University law professor Jan Ting was on the campaign trail, calling for tighter borders and bemoaning the ills of illegal immigration in an unsuccessful bid to unseat Sen. Tom Carper.

Today, the Alapocas resident still is stumping, but this time the candidate is Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani.

Under attack from his GOP rivals for being soft on illegal immigration, Giuliani has tapped Ting and other anti-illegal immigration stalwarts for his campaign's immigration advisory board -- a move that many expect will boost his standing with hard-line Republicans concerned about the former New York City mayor's abortion- and gay-rights stances.

Giuliani was familiar with Ting's U.S. Senate bid in 2006, when Ting ran on an anti-immigration platform, said Jeffrey Barker, spokesman for the Giuliani campaign.

Stacking his advisory board with immigration experts such as Ting, who was assistant commissioner at the former Immigration and Naturalization Service under President George H.W. Bush, and Robert Bonner, former U.S. Customs and Border Protection commissioner, sends the message that immigration is a top priority for Giuliani, Barker said.

The advisory boards, whether for immigration, health care or economic issues, do more than just ensure the candidate has up-to-date information and expert advice, Barker said. They provide "an element of support."

"When someone like Robert Bonner says, 'I'm on board with Mayor Giuliani,' it sends a strong message that Giuliani has the right idea on immigration and homeland security," he said.

But Steven Camarota, research director for the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies, which favors immigration limits, said Giuliani's actions and statements as mayor seemed to undermine immigration law, and were out of step with the views of Ting and most Republicans.

Giuliani sued the federal government over a welfare law he believed would treat undocumented immigrants inhumanely. As New York City's mayor he also maintained an executive order to prevent city employees, including police, from asking for or reporting a person's legal status -- something critics have said made New York a de facto "sanctuary city" for undocumented immigrants.

And while Giuliani worked to deport undocumented immigrants who had committed crimes, at the same time he defended those who were contributing to the city's economy.

"If you come here, and you work hard and you happen to be in an undocumented status, you're one of the people who we want in this city," he said in 1994.

If Giuliani wants to secure the Republican nomination, Camarota said, he has to distance himself from the image of him welcoming undocumented immigrants, and he needs to appear tough on enforcement.
"What he can't do is be seen as what he once was, which was someone talking about illegal immigration as basically a benefit, and his actions seemed to actively subvert immigration law," he said. "What a guy like Jan Ting does is give him some credibility in that area."

In 2006, Ting and his anti-illegal immigration platform won the Republican nomination to run for Senate against entrenched incumbent Carper. Appearing on CNN and Fox as an immigration expert, Ting vocally opposed Congress' plan for comprehensive immigration reform, applauding its demise earlier this year.
Still, Ting said he's "very satisfied with the mayor's position on immigration. He understands where the American people are, and they want to see our laws enforced and our borders secured, and it's embarrassing that they're not."

John Jaremchuk, an Elsmere councilman who has become known for his attempts to pass local laws targeting illegal immigration, said if Ting is supporting Giuliani, it means "Giuliani's views have evolved to be more in line with Jan's and mine. This is refreshing."

Barker disagreed that Giuliani has previously been "soft" on illegal immigration.

"The mayor has a strong and consistent record of opposing illegal immigration," he said. "Illegal immigration is one of the largest problems we face in this country, and it is inextricably tied to the threat of terrorism. Ending illegal immigration is integral to ensuring that we do not let those who would do us harm come across our borders."

Latin American Community Center Executive Director Maria Matos said that, although she admired the way he handled the 9/11 crisis, she doesn't think Giuliani is headed to the White House. Choosing someone like Ting, she said, just proves he isn't a visionary leader.

"This is a political move on his part to get some Brownie points from the Republican party and Republican voters," she said. "What a sad thing to do, to support someone who's anti-immigrant, because this country needs the immigrants."

Another Delawarean, Louis Freeh, former Director of the FBI, also is playing a key role in the Giuliani campaign as chairman of the Delaware leadership team. This is the first time in at least 20 years two Republican Delawareans have been chosen for such positions in presidential campaigns, said Terry A. Strine, state committee chairman for Delaware's Republican Party.

Ting said his advisory role is limited to the campaign, but if Giuliani does win, he said, he'd be happy to continue offering advice, although he doesn't necessarily want to return to Washington to work for the administration.

Bringing Ting on board, Strine said, means Giuliani recognizes that Americans want a president who is serious about protecting the border.

"What he did as mayor may be different than what he would do as president, because the roles are very different," he said. And Ting, he said, would never support a candidate he didn't believe would uphold his anti-illegal immigration stance.
Giuliani has a ways to go convincing rank-and-file Republicans he's not "pro-illegal alien," Camarota said.

"He has a tough row to hoe," Camarota said. "But having a guy like Jan on staff will help, and I think he gets that."

lost_in_migration

10-27-2007, 06:28 PM

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=19&entry_id=21463

Sybase CEO John Chen, speaking at the California-Asia Business Council's annual gala Friday, said that the United States can't afford to be short-sighted as it determines how to handle intellectual property, immigration and other hot issues with China.

Chen, who runs Sybase, a software and database company in Dublin, also is a member of President Bush's export council and is co-chairman of the Secure Borders and Open Doors Advisory Committee, a subcommitee of the federal government's Homeland Security Advisory Council. He spoke to the Chronicle before giving his speech and receiving an award from the California-Asia Business Council.

Chen said the United States must think both long-term and short-term when it comes to immigration policies. Though the United States must secure its borders, it also has to balance that with the need for skilled immigrants, such as engineers. It's a thorny issue that Silicon Valley tech companies continue to wrestle with, contending that they need to hire more software developers to stay competitive, but having a limited ability to recruit overseas workers.

"We need to make sure our immigration policy makes sense in both directions," said Chen, himself an immigrant from Hong Kong.

Chen also said that U.S. businesses have to be patient on intellectual property matters in China. With the country prospering, it's only a matter of time before China's intellectual property violations become less prevalent, he said. In the meantime, the United States shouldn't crack down too harshly because it could backfire. Instead, it should foster more collaboration between the two countries in establishing certain global technology standards.

Posted By: Ellen Lee (Email: elee@sfchronicle.com)

lost_in_migration

10-27-2007, 06:37 PM

http://www.competeamerica.org/news/alliance_pr/20071024_europe.html

Eric Thomas
or Frances Cox
202-822-9491

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 24, 2007

Europe Opens Door to Educated Workforce

Compete America Denounces Steep Hike in H-1B Visa Fees as EU Acts to Ease Entry
for Highly Educated Professionals

Washington D.C. – Compete America harshly criticized the Senate’s approval of the Grassley/Sanders Amendment to the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education appropriations bill as anticompetitive in the face of increased global competition.

The fee hike of $3500 per visa, on top of current fees totaling $1500, sent an onerous message to U.S. employers about the future of the U.S. innovation economy.

The Senate passed the ill-advised fee hike on the very same day that the European Union announced the introduction of the “Blue Card,” a temporary work visa for highly educated foreign professionals. The Blue Card program is designed to attract professional talent by cutting red tape and long waiting periods for work within the EU.

“Europe has sent a message. They are aggressively pursuing the professional talent they need to compete on the global stage,” said Robert Hoffman, Vice President for Government and Public Affairs, Oracle, and Co-Chair of Compete America. “The Senate has unfortunately also sent a message, and it doesn’t bode well for the U.S. economy.”

Hoffman indicated that the fee hike would hit small and mid-sized U.S. businesses the hardest.

“Cutting-edge U.S. companies depend on specialized talent coming out of U.S. graduate schools. These scientists and engineers are often foreign-born, as more than half of U.S. engineering master’s and PhD recipients are international students,” stated Hoffman. “H-1B visa numbers are already completely inadequate. Raising further roadblocks for U.S. employers trying to hire top talent is shortsighted and anticompetitive.”

Hoffman noted that in the last eight years U.S. employers have paid more than $1billion in H-1B visa fees – funding more than 40,000 scholarships for U.S. students in math and science, supporting science programs for 75,000 middle and high school students, and training more than 82,000 U.S. workers.

For more information on how highly educated immigration benefits America, please visit www.competeamerica.org.

Compete America (www.competeamerica.org) is a coalition of corporations, educators, research institutions and trade associations concerned about legal, employment-based immigration and committed to ensuring that the United States has the highly educated workforce necessary to ensure continued innovation, job creation and leadership in a worldwide economy.

claudia255

10-29-2007, 09:35 AM

Cornyn ends dream for DREAM Act

12:00 AM CDT on Sunday, October 28, 2007
TODD J. GILLMAN / The Dallas Morning News
tgillman@dallasnews.com

WASHINGTON – The dream died last week, and Sen. John Cornyn helped to kill it: legislation that would grant legal status to students whose parents brought them to this country without visas.

The Texas senator had long supported the idea behind the so-called DREAM Act. This time, though, he argued that it's better to hold out for an immigration overhaul – however hopeless that seems – because cherry-picking its most popular elements makes it even harder to cobble together support for a broader deal.

"This is a hot hot-button issue that divides our country," he said. "I don't think the solution is to do piecemeal legislation that solves one group's problems at the expense of a comprehensive bill."

His Democratic challenger accused him of flip-flopping on the DREAM Act, and immigration policy analysts and lobbyists agreed that Mr. Cornyn's hard line of late seems to have a strong political dimension.
"Long term, it's hard to argue that being seen as anti-immigrant is going to be helpful to the Republican Party," said John Gay, co-chairman of the business-backed Essential Worker Immigration Coalition and an executive at the National Restaurant Association. "But when you're up [for re-election] in 15 months, that's as far as the horizon goes."

The Cornyn stance contrasted with that of senior Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. She backed the DREAM Act and was working with the Democratic author, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, on tweaks meant to broaden its appeal.

Mr. Cornyn complained that the bill would let criminals seek legalized status, and didn't set graduation from college as a requirement, only attendance. The fact that Democrats blocked amendments showed they were only trying to score political points, he said.

Two senators. Same state, same party, same constituents.

"They have different sensibilities and different ambitions," said Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin. "You run on different sets of issues when you run for governor vs. when you run for Senate. ... He is by nature a more conservative guy on those issues than Hutchison, and he probably is thinking about shoring up his base for his upcoming race."

Ms. Hutchison won another term last year and won't be on the ballot again until at least 2010, when she may run for governor.

Besides, with the president's popularity so low – the chattering class in Washington was atwitter last week at a poll showing Americans more likely to believe in ghosts than to believe President Bush is doing a good job – there's no penalty for bucking the White House these days.

"It gets easier and easier and easier to break with the president every day," Mr. Henson said.

For most of his first term, Mr. Cornyn was an outspoken advocate of a "comprehensive" plan wedding a guest worker program with interior enforcement and heightened border security. But with the GOP base unhappy at the guest worker plan, and allegations that it provided "amnesty" for millions of illegal immigrants, he shunned the deal. Both he and Ms. Hutchison voted to shelve it in June.

Since then, Mr. Cornyn has dug into a security-first stance.

State Rep. Rick Noriega accused him of being disingenuous in claiming he opposed the DREAM Act because he wants to include it in a broader reform bill.

The Houston lawmaker last week became Mr. Cornyn's sole Democratic challenger, after San Antonio lawyer Mikal Watts dropped out. Mr. Noriega touts his support of a state version of the DREAM Act, asserting it has helped 10,000 children living in Texas stay in school. He accused Mr. Cornyn of flip-flopping to "exploit the education of Hispanic children" for political advantage.

"What we've seen is that he feels he has to pay homage to an ideological fringe," he said.

The death of the DREAM Act forebodes slim chances for other reforms before the new president and Congress take office in 2009.

"Hope springs eternal, but it looks worse and worse," said Mr. Gay.

He noted that most senators supported the DREAM Act, even though it fell short of the 60-vote supermajority needed.

"Yes, it's amnesty," he said. "It's amnesty for people whose parents committed a crime – forgiveness for the sins of the father. It just shows you where we are."

alps

10-29-2007, 09:52 AM

Not sure whether this is been posted already, but I could not find it..

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071029/ap_on_bi_ge/high_tech_squeeze

manderson

10-29-2007, 11:40 AM

Alarm Rises Over European Bid To Woo Educated U.S. Workers (New York Sun)

http://www.nysun.com/article/65425

American companies are becoming increasingly alarmed at a European initiative designed to attract the world's best-educated workers with a speedy and relaxed work permit system.
The proposed European Union "blue card" is designed to woo highly skilled workers from outside Europe, including America, to take jobs with European companies. American businesses, especially those in medicine and high technology, already face a shortage of suitably educated labor and say the restrictive and slow American "green card" system will be no match for the new European card, leading to the world's best brains decamping to Europe.
Although the European measure is intended primarily to attract well-educated immigrants from Russia, China, and India, some American companies say the lure of living in Europe will also encourage many skilled young Americans, and foreigners trained at American expense at American colleges, to emigrate.
"The E.U. is saying, 'We're coming for your students. We know the U.S. produces the best math and science students coming out of college and we're going to come get them,'" the vice president of government and public affairs at the software company Oracle, Robert Hoffman said in a statement.
"Europe has sent a message. They are aggressively pursuing the professional talent they need to compete on the global stage," he said.
While the Republican presidential candidates are focused on how to reduce the number of illegal low-skilled immigrants, America's need to find from abroad the highly skilled labor it cannot meet from its own population is not yet an issue in the 2008 race.
Nor is Congress addressing the issue. Last week, the Senate approved a measure that will make the hiring of skilled foreign workers more expensive, by hiking the price of temporary H–1B visas to $5,000 a person from $1,500.
"Cutting-edge U.S.companies depend on specialized talent coming out of U.S. graduate schools. These scientists and engineers are often foreign-born, as more than half of U.S. engineering master's and Ph.D. recipients are international students," said Mr. Hoffman, who is also co-chairman of Compete America, a lobbying group representing technology companies that have been urging Congress to increase the quota of H–1B visas, currently fixed at 85,000 a year, and make green cards easier to obtain.
"H–1B visa numbers are already completely inadequate. Raising further roadblocks for U.S. employers trying to hire top talent is shortsighted and anticompetitive," he said.
The Oracle executive was joined by Ralph Hellman, a lobbyist for the Information Technology Industry Council, whose members include Microsoft, IBM, Dell, Apple, Cisco Systems, and Intel.
"Europe has laid down a challenge to the United States Congress. The E.U. will attract the best and brightest workers in the world if the United States continues to create new burdens to hiring these valuable workers," Mr. Hellman said in a statement.
If America fails to counter the European measure, American high-tech companies will be obliged to outsource skilled jobs, Mr. Hoffman said. Oracle already employs 20% of its research and development staff abroad, and that number is sure to rise unless reforms are made.
"If the U.S. immigration policy continues on this path, what choice do we have?" Mr. Hoffman asked. Foreigners make up more than 40% of scientists and engineers graduating with a Ph.D., half of those with doctoral computer science and math degrees, 56% of computer science doctorates, and 65% of those with doctorates in engineering, according to 2005 figures provided by the National Science Foundation.
The European blue card system is due to come into operation in 2009 and will be accompanied by a global advertising campaign financed by the European Union to attract qualified immigrants. A blue card will be considerably easier to obtain than an American green card.
Those applying for a blue card must have a one-year employment contract with a salary of three times the E.U. minimum wage. The card, which would be issued within three months of the application, would allow the applicant and his or her family to live and work in Europe for two years, and would allow a grace period to find similar high skilled employment when the contract ends. After five years blue card holders would be entitled to become permanent E.U. residents.
The green card offers immediate permanent residency and American citizenship after five years. However, green cards are expensive to apply for, are severely restricted in numbers, and can take years to be approved.
The architect of the blue card proposals is the E.U. justice commissioner, Franco Frattini. "Europe is an immigration continent," he said in a recent speech. "We are attractive to many. But we are not good enough at attracting highly skilled people. Nor are we young or numerous enough to keep the wheels of our societies and economies turning on our own."
Mr. Frattini said he wants to change the trend whereby 55% of highly qualified migrants apply to work in America and only 5% head for Europe. If the blue card scheme is adopted, the European Union expects to attract 20 million workers from outside Europe over the next 20 years.
"The European Union clearly recognizes the challenges of an aging population and that highly talented individuals are job generators," Mr. Hoffman said. "The competition for talent is truly global."

lacrossegc

10-29-2007, 01:10 PM

Finally ...

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,305841,00.html

gdilla

11-05-2007, 12:09 PM

Dartmouth Coach's Fiancée Faces Deportation Over Visa Flap
By Peter Jamison
Valley News Staff Writer

Hanover -- On Friday, Oct. 12, Dartmouth assistant squash coach Hansi Wiens was sitting in the lobby of the Highgate Springs customs office on the U.S.-Canada border, waiting for agents to finish interviewing his fiancÐe, Valeria Vinnikova. The pair had been in the U.S. for three months, and they were crossing into Canada hoping to secure an extension of Vinnikova's visa.

That didn't happen. Instead, Vinnikova rushed out to Wiens, weeping, and pressed a necklace into his hands. The couple spent about two minutes together, Wiens recalls. Then a group of uniformed officers put Vinnikova in handcuffs and leg shackles and told Wiens to drive away.

Vinnikova, 21, was arrested for a minor infraction related to her visa paperwork, Wiens and lawyers involved in the case say, and now faces a deportation order that would bar her from returning to the U.S. for 10 years. The scenario is a nightmare for the German couple, who were just settling into Hanover as Wiens begins his coaching career with Dartmouth's athletics department.

“I can't live for 10 years without her,” Wiens said.

Vinnikova's lawyer, Cynthia Arn, of Portland, Maine, called Vinnikova's arrest a “ridiculous” excess of the new age of border enforcement that took hold after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

“Everybody is so afraid they're going to make a mistake and let the wrong person in, there's just massive overkill in the other direction,” said Arn, an immigration law specialist. “People are so busy running around with crazy, stupid cases like this, we don't have the time or the energy or the money to actually implement something that would keep us safer,” she said.

A spokesperson for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirmed that Vinnikova was in custody at the jail in Cumberland County, Maine, but referred all other questions to Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Both are branches of the Department of Homeland Security. Later, a CBP spokesman responded to a request for comment with an e-mail referring questions to ICE.

***

According to Wiens, Arn, and a statement that Vinnikova penned from jail on Oct. 19, here's what led up to the arrest:

Wiens and Vinnikova came to the U.S. on July 5 through visa waivers -- a program with friendly (and mostly European) countries that allows foreign nationals without any special immigration paperwork to stay in the U.S. for up to 90 days. In August, the couple traveled to Canada so that Wiens, who had secured a job coaching squash at Dartmouth, could apply for a yearlong work visa in the U.S. (The rules governing visa waivers require foreign citizens to leave the country before applying for a longer stay.)

Wiens obtained his work visa, and the two returned to Hanover. On the way back into the U.S., Vinnikova said in her statement, she was told by an American border guard that she could renew her stay for another 90 days if she returned the week before her visa waiver was due to expire. Wiens said the guard told them that they could spend an hour or two in Canada, cross back into the U.S., and thus renew Vinnikova's visa waiver for another 90 days. The guard read her customs form (called an I-94) and confirmed that she had until Oct. 13, Vinnikova and Wiens said.

(Arn acknowledged that the practice of re-triggering 90-day visa waivers in this fashion is “not really proper,” but noted that a border guard suggested it in the first place.)

The extension was important, Wiens said in an interview, because Vinnikova was having trouble setting up an appointment at the U.S. embassy in Canada to procure her own yearlong visa, a counterpart to his, which she could obtain once they were married. Once they had an appointment, they planned to get married and travel to Canada to get her visa, but she couldn't get in at the embassy until later in the fall, Wiens said.

On Friday, Oct. 12, following the guard's instructions, the pair returned to the border crossing at Highgate Springs. Canadian guards, seeing on her I-94 that her stay ended on Oct. 13, questioned whether they should let her into Canada and sent her to talk to American authorities.

It was there, in the American customs office, that guards finally figured out that the form read Oct. 3, not Oct. 13 -- and that Vinnikova had thus overstayed by nine days. They arrested her and put her in jail.

***

Prison has not been pleasant for Vinnikova, according to Wiens, who borrowed his boss's car to visit his fiancÐe on Sunday. She was initially held at Northern State Correctional Facility in Newport, Vt., but is now at the Cumberland County jail in Maine. At Northern State, Vinnikova told Wiens, she saw a fight between two women and was unable to sleep at night.

The visit on Sunday was an emotional one, Wiens said, as the pair mused on the absurdity of their situation.

“It was between crying and laughing, crying and laughing, crying and crying,” he said. “She never thought she was going to end up in a prison.”

The 21-year-old, who like Wiens is an accomplished squash player and speaks fluent English, has no criminal record and no past immigration violations, according to Arn. The lawyer said it's clear her client was trying to follow the rules in extending her time within the U.S. -- unlike other immigrants who simply overstay their visas without seeking to renew them.

“What this all really boils down to is bad handwriting, and that's going to wreck this girl's life, potentially,” Arn said.

Arn said she is trying to get Homeland Security to grant Vinnikova a 30-day grace period to leave the U.S. so that she doesn't incur the 10-year banishment that comes with deportation. So far, she said, she has had no luck, and Vinnikova could be put on a plane in the next few days.

“My biggest concern is that I want to be able to get the correct visa and return to the U.S.,” Vinnikova said in her statement. “(Wiens) and I are engaged and plan to marry. He has a good job at Dartmouth College as assistant squash coach, a highly competitive position. He could not get another job like this.”

Wiens, a 39-year-old who once ranked eighth on the world squash circuit, said he had heard stories about the American customs bureaucracy but never expected this. He said that if Vinnikova is prevented from returning, he would have to eventually give up his job at Dartmouth and return to Europe to be with her, much as the two like life in Hanover.

“It's not like this is a country that we're at war with. Germany and the U.S. are supposed to be friends,” Wiens said. “We love it here, and we'd like to live here if it’s possible.”

moveahead123

11-05-2007, 12:16 PM

http://www.competeamerica.org/hill/l...ess/index.html

manderson

11-05-2007, 07:27 PM

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5799.html

The Changing Face of American Innovation

Q&A with:William R. KerrPublished:November 5, 2007Author:Sarah Jane Gilbert Executive Summary:

Chinese and Indian scientists and engineers have made an unexpectedly large contribution to U.S. technology formation over the last 30 years, according to new research by HBS professor William R. Kerr. But that trend may be ebbing, with potentially harmful effects on future growth in American innovation. Key concepts include:
Chinese contributions to U.S. innovation as recorded in patent and trademark data increased from under 2 percent of U.S. domestic inventors in 1975 to over 8 percent today.
In the same period, Indian inventors also rose, to almost 5 percent of the total in 2000.
Since 2000, Chinese scientists' contributions have leveled off, and Indian contributions have declined slightly. Will American innovation suffer?
<p>Chinese and Indian scientists and engineers have made an unexpectedly large contribution to U.S. technology formation over the last 30 years, according to new research by HBS professor <strong>William R. Kerr</strong>. But that trend may be ebbing, with potentially harmful effects on future growth in American innovation.</p>
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/images/site/tool-email.gif (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5799.html#)
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/images/site/tool-email-editor.gif (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/forms/email-editor.html)
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/images/site/tool-pdf.gif (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/pdf/item/5799.pdf)About Faculty in this Article:

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/images/faculty/wkerr.jpg
William Kerr is an assistant professor in the Entrepreneurial Management unit at Harvard Business School.
More Working Knowledge from William R. Kerr (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/faculty/wkerr.html)
William R. Kerr - Faculty Research Page (http://pine.hbs.edu/external/facPersonalShow.do?pid=337265) http://hbswk.hbs.edu/images/site/ico-external.gif
The contributions made by immigrant scientists and engineers for developing new U.S. technologies have been formidable—but not always well described.
What we do know: While the foreign-born account for just over 10 percent of the U.S. working population, they represent 25 percent of the U.S. science and engineering workforce and nearly 50 percent of those with science and engineering doctorates. And at the Ph.D. level, ethnic researchers make an exceptional contribution to science as measured by Nobel Prizes, election to the National Academy of Sciences, patent citation counts, and so on.
Now new research based on patent and trademark data by Harvard Business School professor William Kerr drills down to further identify the probable ethnic composition of U.S. inventors, the industries they influence, and the geographies they work in.
But the paper, "The Ethnic Composition of U.S. Inventors (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5761.html)," also documents a significant transformation in ethnic composition of U.S. scientists and engineers over the last 30 years, as Chinese and Indian inventors grew in importance as drivers of U.S. innovation. "The most striking trend is the strong growth in Chinese contributions to U.S. innovation."Since 2000, however, the contributions of Chinese scientists have leveled off, while Indian contributions showed a slight decline. This may be raising a red flag about America's capability to innovate in the future.
Says Kerr: "The magnitude of these ethnic contributions raises many research and policy questions on issues such as the appropriate quota for H1-B temporary visas, the possible crowding out of native students from the science and engineering fields, the brain-drain or brain-circulation effect on sending countries, and the future prospects for U.S. technology leadership."
We asked him to discuss his findings and where his work is heading next.
Sarah Jane Gilbert: What led to your interest in this area?
William Kerr: In the late 1990s, I worked with a large Korean chaebol on a spin-off venture to commercialize a wireless telecom technology invented by a Korean entrepreneur living in Silicon Valley. I was impressed during this project with both the importance of foreign-born scientists and entrepreneurs for U.S. technology formation, and the close ties that some of these expatriates maintained with their home countries.
For the Korean inventor, his home country was clearly his default choice when looking for a partner. As Silicon Valley is a special place on many dimensions, I sought to characterize how well this case study generalized to other cities, industries, and ethnic groups.

manderson

11-05-2007, 07:27 PM

Q: Your study used a unique name-matching technique to identify ethnic patterns. Why did you choose this methodology?
A: This project employs the names on U.S. patents to determine probable ethnicities of the inventors. For example, inventors with the surnames Wang and Ming are more likely Chinese than Hispanic.
The central advantage of this approach is that the ethnic assignment is at the individual patent level. There are over 7 million inventors associated with U.S. patents since 1975. This micro-level assignment allows us to characterize ethnic contributions at levels of detail not otherwise possible: For example, the annual Chinese percentage of U.S. inventors can be refined down to the 1992 Chinese share of IBM's inventors in Silicon Valley working in semiconductors.
This exceptional detail, especially within individual firms and schools, allows us to answer many more questions than previous data sources.
Q: What trends did your findings reveal?
A: The most striking trend is the strong growth in Chinese contributions to U.S. innovation, building from under 2 percent of U.S. domestic inventors in 1975 to over 8 percent today.
Indian inventors also rose dramatically during this 30-year period, to almost 5 percent in 2000, before slightly declining thereafter.
During this period, English and European contributions declined somewhat in magnitude."Recent trends may be a warning flag."The increased contribution by Asian ethnicities is evident within many institutions, especially public corporations and universities. Ethnic inventors are also becoming more concentrated geographically—for example, Chinese inventors in San Francisco—and appear to play an important role for shifts in the spatial distributions of U.S. innovation.
Q: Is there a direct or indirect impact on the U.S. workforce or economy?
A: Immigrants are a strong impetus for U.S. technology development through their quantity and quality. They account for nearly 50 percent of our science and engineering doctorates, while being just over 10 percent of the overall U.S. workforce.
In terms of quality, immigrants have made exceptional contributions at the very top, for example, in terms of Nobel Prizes. These contributions are an overall boon to U.S. innovation, but more research is required to characterize the details and mechanisms, including important issues such as the impact for native scientists and engineers.
Q: Which industries are the patents focused on? Are they concentrated in a specific industry or business type?
A: Inventors can file for patents in many technology fields, ranging from chemicals and drugs to computer software to agricultural machinery. Immigrant contributions are especially strong in high-tech fields compared with more traditional applications like mechanical patents.
Quantifying these technology differences is very important for business managers and public policymakers, but these differences also provide researchers an empirical foothold for disentangling the role of immigrant inventor contributions from other factors. A better understanding of these deeper relationships is the most important outcome of this work.
Q: Your data shows the ethnic composition of U.S. scientists and engineers undergoing a significant transformation, with contributions of Chinese and Indian scientists to U.S. technology formation leveling off after 2000 and, in the case of India, declining. What accounts for this trend, and what are the potential ramifications for U.S. technology formation in the future?
A: Explaining these trends and their long-term implications will be a central theme of my future research. A couple of factors are likely to play important roles in the post-2000 leveling off.
The first is recent U.S. immigration restrictions following 9/11 and the reduction in the number of H1-B visas available for temporary, high-skilled workers. Second, both India and China have become more attractive places for technology development and entrepreneurship, leading to less initial migration to the United States and greater return migration.
More mechanical explanations may also exist—for example, stronger relative growth of innovation in technology fields that did not employ as many Chinese or Indian inventors.
Only with a complete characterization of these mechanisms can we begin to forecast future implications with accuracy. We can nevertheless agree that attracting and retaining these ethnic researchers is an important facet for maintaining U.S. technology leadership, and recent trends may be a warning flag.
Q: What are you working on next?
A: This paper is a presentation of the methodology and a collection of descriptive statistics. I also have a series of papers that return to the case study of the Korean entrepreneur, characterizing how ethnic inventors in the United States aid the technology development and manufacturing growth of their home countries. The most recent work here, with my HBS colleague Fritz Foley, studies how U.S. ethnic inventors aid the FDI and foreign R&D sourcing of U.S. multinationals in their home countries. A second set of projects returns to the immigrants' role for U.S. technology development, specifically evaluating the impact of recent H1-B visa reforms on the pace of U.S. innovation. http://hbswk.hbs.edu/images/site/tack-wk.gif
About the author

Sarah Jane Gilbert is a product manager at Harvard Business School's Knowledge and Library Services.

paskal

11-06-2007, 02:20 AM

http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/11/01/mitt-romney/

see interview
also says he'd like to have people "permanently"

saketkapur

11-07-2007, 04:32 PM

Here is an article i LA times today by By Andrés Martinez.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-martinez7nov07,0,3955340.story?coll=la-opinion-rightrail

gc_check

11-07-2007, 05:33 PM

Immigration Petitions/Applications Pending Statistics at the End of September 2007

http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/APPLICATIONS%20FOR%20IMMIGRATION%20BENEFITS_Septem ber07.pdf

Major volumes of pending applications at the end of September 2007 include: 1,383,975 I-130 spouse/relative petitions; 654,864 applications to adjust status; 281,122 I-765 employment authorizations; 188,559 I-131 reentry permit/advance parole; 63,083 I-90 Green Card renewals/replacements.

Not sure if this is the right thread o post, Found this link from immigration-law website

If per the old data/update, we know 320,000 + applicaiton (485) were filed in July/August. Do the math to know the the old applications pending.

gc_check

11-07-2007, 07:44 PM

I understamd that there were 654,864 AOSs at the end of Sep 2007. This includes AOSs submitted before June and in June, July & Aug. The only AOSs not included in 654,864 are AOSs reciepted after Sep.

If we have 654,864 AOS applications pending as of September 2007, and if the only AOSs not included in 654,864 are AOSs receipted after Sep. Then we see close to 850,000+ applications, assuming at least 50% or more (of 320000+ application from July VB) got receipt after October (few still not got the receipt notice). Also this does not include the applicaiton filed for Consular Processing as most of them file AOS, a good assumption is One Million application pending approval for GC, Also most of the AOS will be employee based AOS, as most people are already here in NIV.

Looking at this, makes me feel skeptical if the dates will move in December VB. Unless a legislative change is done, I do not see how this is going to change.

wizind77

11-11-2007, 07:17 PM

Thought of sharing this with my fellow members!! This is my first post .Please excuse me if this is a repost.

I follow programmers Guild blogspot once in every 2 days to know about their anti immigration campaign . Refer to the following link to know their views .[ nothing new ....]

http://programmersguild.blogspot.com/

Kim Berry responded to an article in THe Patriot-News about immigration visas.

He even has a list of some people who applied for H1-B visas in his anti immigration response...

-Wizind77.

manderson

11-15-2007, 07:41 AM

DerKevorkian v. Lionbridge Techs, Inc.

http://www.ilw.com/articles/2007,1115-rotterman.shtm

gsc999

11-16-2007, 10:53 AM

http://www.migrationinformation.org/USfocus/display.cfm?id=651

From: immigrationinformation.org

gsc999

11-16-2007, 11:02 AM

http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB119515461427494522.html?mod=blog

:eek::D

Source: Online Wall Street Journal

nat23

11-20-2007, 10:04 AM

Commentary
Speaking Of Competition
Michael E. Marks 11.20.07, 6:00 AM ET

http://www.forbes.com/opinions/2007/11/19/marks-mfg-visas-oped-cx_mem_1120marks.html

In my last column, I wrote about the problems with the General Motors contract with the UAW, in that they won some very important concessions, but they also agreed to guarantee a certain number of jobs in the U.S. That provision alone insures, in my view, that the UAW workforce will not be competitive with that of other automakers, which continue to take share from the Big 3.

Since I wrote that, Chrysler and Ford have also settled with the UAW. Now that the results are in, we can draw some conclusions and look at the impacts of these widely reported negotiations on the rest of the economy.

As we now know, GM settled after a very quick two-day walkout, and at Chrysler the walkout was only six hours. But interestingly, Chrysler, which gave fewer guarantees of jobs (according to what was reported), had more trouble getting ratification from its workers than did GM, proving the point that job guarantees continue to be a focus of the unions.

Unfortunately, that focus is completely misplaced. The world has changed and U.S. job guarantees just don't work. Let's look at some of the statistics. In 1978, the UAW membership peaked at just over 1.5 million workers. Today that figure is just north of 500,000. In 1978, the Big 3 U.S. automakers employed 693,000 UAW workers; at the end of this year that figure is expected to be just 177,000. Clearly the focus on wages and job guarantees isn't working.

So does any of this matter to the U.S. economy? You would think so, given how much reporting there is on the negotiations, strikes, and so on. But once again, let's look at some statistics: 177,000 jobs in these three companies. In October alone, the U.S. economy created 166,000 new jobs, or almost exactly the number of UAW workers employed at the Big 3. One month! The U.S. economy has also created 1.68 million jobs in the last 12 months, and 8.31 million jobs since August 2003. And the U.S. economy in total has 146 million jobs. Interestingly, many companies employ far more than any of the Big 3. Flextronics, for example, has nearly 250,000 employees in a single company.

So, while many people write and fret over a relatively small number of autoworkers who strike if their jobs aren't guaranteed, very little is written about all of the higher value design jobs that go begging in the U.S. These are the jobs that create innovation and growth, enabling companies to increase employment around the world, and certainly so in the U.S. Without the ability to fill design and engineering jobs, U.S. growth companies are forced to develop overseas options.

While I have stated my bias that global supply chains are critical to corporate success, it is shameful that our government cannot sort out how to lower the barriers for companies that want to employ foreign professionals. To add these workers, potential hires have to apply for an H-1B visa. These critical visas are limited to just 65,000 per year (again out of 146 million jobs). On the first day these visas were available in 2007, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service received applications for 120,000!

There are changes being proposed to the laws governing these visas, by Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa. He wants to increase the cost per visa, while not increasing the number of visas, as originally proposed. This compares to the European Union's efforts to streamline their immigration laws to allow for more skilled workers. Or contrast this to Singapore, where the government offered immediate citizenship to any engineer wishing to leave Hong Kong when the Chinese government took over that nation state in 1997. There was a considerable exodus of people leaving the island because of fear that their freedoms would be limited. And Singapore had the wisdom to offer to take all of the skilled workers who were willing to start anew in their country. In the most recent quarter, Singapore unemployment fell to a 10-year low of 1.7%.

The good news here is that somehow, we generally get this right. Despite job guarantees being negotiated in some industries, despite government bureaucrats who propose and sometimes pass laws that impede our economy’s ability to create the right kinds of jobs, we still boast a very robust economy with current unemployment of only 4.7%. When I was a child in the 1950s, unemployment was expected to never go below 6%, for "structural" reasons. Fortunately, we've found better ways to manage these structural issues. Now if we would only set Singapore's numbers as our goals, wouldn't that be something.

One last thing: In lieu of compensation for writing this column, I would ask that those of you who appreciate any insights I might provide consider making a contribution to the V Foundation, a charity which endeavors to fill a funding gap in cancer research, by supporting young researchers who would otherwise have difficulty pursuing a wide range of promising technologies. The charity is named for Jimmy Valvano, the legendary basketball coach. You can learn more at www.jimmyv.org .

Michael E. Marks manages a private equity fund, Bigwood Capital, which invests in rapidly growing private companies in North America and emerging markets. He is also interim CEO of Tesla Motors, a Bigwood Capital investment, which is in the process of launching an all-electric sports car. After spending a year as a member of KKR, Marks now serves as a senior adviser to the firm. Earlier, he served as CEO of Flextronics and now sits on the boards of SanDisk, Crocs, Schlumberger, Sun Microsystems and the V Foundation for Cancer Research. He also teaches a course in global supply chain management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

grupak

11-21-2007, 11:47 AM

shows a study by economics professor at UC, Davis http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/734

Study we can use?

Source: Greg Siskind's blog

manderson

11-24-2007, 07:28 AM

Immigration paperwork piling high
Fee increase triggers surge in applications
By The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Millions of people who applied for naturalization and other immigration benefits to beat a midsummer fee increase are caught in a paperwork pileup that threatens the chance for some to become U.S. citizens in time to vote in next year's presidential election.

The application backlog is so large that Citizenship and Immigration Services, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, is months behind schedule in returning receipts for checks written to cover fees -- an early step in the process.

"Were we caught off guard by the volume? Let's just say it was anticipated it would increase. It was not anticipated it would increase by that much," said Emilio Gonzalez, director of Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The immigration agency would not say how many applications it has received. The American Immigration Lawyers Association, a private legal advocacy group, said it was told by agency officials that 3.5 million applications had come in over a two-month period. The agency projected a workload of 3.2 million applications for fiscal

years 2008 and 2009.

Gonzalez ordered his staff to give priority to naturalizations, but some applicants will miss voting in primaries, which begin in January.

"I really want to target the elections," Gonzalez said. "I really want to get as many people out there to vote as possible."

The onslaught of applications has led to some files being sent back with errors or mistakenly rejected, while others seem lost in the system, applicants and attorneys say. Service centers in Nebraska and Texas have the longest delays. The Texas Service Center is working on applications from July 26, according to the agency's latest Web posting.

Boston janitor Betsy Camacho, 44, applied for U.S. citizenship on July 27. On Nov. 9, she got a receipt acknowledging the check she wrote for her fees had been deposited and her information was logged in the agency's computer.

Normally such receipts are returned to applicants within a week to 10 days, immigration attorneys said.

"I would like to vote, to participate, to travel with a passport, have freedom of expression," Camacho said. A native of El Salvador, she has lived in the United States for nearly 25 years.

Some groups that have been waging national campaign to help 1 million legal residents become citizens and vote in 2008 fear the pileup will hurt their efforts.

"Everybody keeps saying immigrants don't want to be part of this country, they don't want to assimilate, and here people are coming in droves to show how much they want to be part of this country and here are these barriers. I think it's unconscionable," said Eliseo Medina, executive vice president of Service Employees International Union.

The application crush was worsened by another flood of about 300,000 applications from skilled workers wanting to become legal residents. The agency initially said it wouldn't accept the visa applications but changed its mind amid public outrage.

The agency also set up hot lines and is posting progress updates on its Web site. Files are being sent to Vermont and California for processing there. The agency has asked staff members to volunteer to help clear the delayed paperwork, just as the State Department did when confronted with a passport application backlog because of a change in law requiring Americans to show a passport when flying to and from Mexico, Canada and the Bahamas.

At least 110 immigration workers have volunteered to help process applications and are being sent to Texas and Nebraska, said agency spokesman Chris Bentley.

After businesses began to complain that their employees were being grounded, officials also changed regulations to allow immigrants who hold visas for skilled workers and visas for employees of international companies to travel without a receipt.

Still, the situation is hardly under control.

Ashish Bansal applied for a green card on July 2. His application was returned to him twice, citing issues that had not been a problem for other clients of his attorney. The bureaucratic snag forced Bansal to delay plans to travel with his family.

"My application seems to be in a black hole. I don't know when it's going to be accepted," said Bansal, originally from India and now living in Silver Spring, Md., on a skilled worker visa.

Immigration application fees were raised in part so the agency could increase its work force. But the additional workers won't be on board in time to deal with the pileup. They are intended to be on board to adjudicate the applications.

Congress appropriated $460 million in recent years to Citizenship and Immigration Services to cut previous application backlogs to six months. But that funding ended last fiscal year.

Rendell Jones, the agency's chief financial officer, said the agency could not afford to delay the fee increase until after the presidential elections.

Without the fee increase, the agency estimated it would receive about $1.25 billion in annual revenue in fiscal years 2008 and 2009. It projected a funding gap of about $1 billion, but that includes about $524.3 million in planned improvements. Those include spending $124.3 million on improved information technology; $14 million to pay for humanitarian programs such as one resettling Haitians and Cubans and $41.2 million to provide professional development and training for employees.

To cover the costs, the agency increased fees charged applicants, which can include citizens, rather than ask Congress for more money.

The failure to anticipate the swamp of applications has left some skeptical of the agency and uncertain whether the pileup is political.

"I hope there is no politics involved, but it makes me wonder when it's a Republican administration and those pushing anti-immigrant legislation are Republicans and the ones managing this process are Republicans," Medina said.

Source: http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=181298

xlr8r

11-28-2007, 08:57 AM

Pay Cuts for Immigration App. Workers (http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/apwire/bc1bdf97cb49d208d1ef2495e4d582e3.htm)
Workers Struggling to Ease Immigration Backlog Facing Pay Cuts
November 27, 2007: 06:16 PM EST

NEW YORK (Associated Press) - Contract workers trying to alleviate immigration application backlogs are facing pay cuts.

Next week, Stanley Inc., of Arlington, Va., will take over the job of opening the mail and handling initial processing of citizenship and other applications at U.S. Agency of Citizenship and Immigration Services centers in St. Albans and Laguna Niguel, Calif.

Stanley is planning to use a different job classification system than the current contractor, which will result in a number of employees being paid about 12 percent less than they make now, officials said.

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said Tuesday it didn't make sense to be cutting salaries. He wants the U.S. Department of Labor to investigate.

"You are dealing with some of the most sensitive issues facing our country. In the midst of all that, what we are doing is cutting back on wages of workers who do this extremely important work," Sanders said. "I think they must be well compensated. The idea that people are seeing significant wage cuts is outrageous."

But Stanley Vice President Eric Wolking said his company won the three-year, $225 million contract through open bidding and will give the government the best value for its money.

Before winning the bid on Sept. 24, Stanley officials didn't know how much the workers were being paid; that was proprietary information of the current contractor. After interviewing the workers, Stanley recognized their scale would end up cutting the pay of some workers, Wolking said.

"We have put into place a performance incentive plan that will hopefully mitigate some of these wage reductions," Wolking said. "We've wanted to establish a pay for performance program where the top performers will be rewarded accordingly."

About a quarter of the 400 workers who will become Stanley employees in Vermont will face the pay cuts; in California, it's about 30 percent of 600, Wolking said.

Wolking said the affected workers in Vermont could see their hourly pay drop from $14.54 and hour to $12.84 an hour. In California, the equivalent cut will be from $12.98 per hour to $10.69.

Under the plan, the top performers could see their base pay increased by $400 a month. The bonuses would decrease down through the top 50 percent of the workers. The lowest performing half of the workers would receive the lower pay, he said.

But after 60 days the company is going to re-evaluate the pay in Vermont and California, Wolking said. "We do hope to roll out a more comprehensive performance plan that will essentially reward everyone... for achieving higher efficiency rates," Wolking said.

The new contract comes at a time when Citizenship and Immigration Services is trying to work their way out from under a massive surge in applications filed before a series of fee increases took effect over the summer. The delay is expected to be so long that some people who applied to become citizens last June won't complete the process in time to vote in the presidential elections next November.

Saucier said that in July and August alone the agency received 2.5 million applications and petitions compared to 1.2 million for the entire last quarter of fiscal 2006.

Most of those applications are being received at the centers in Vermont, California, Texas and Nebraska. The people at the Texas and Nebraska centers won't become Stanley employees and are unaffected.

"They do what we call 'slit and peek.' They open the mail, determine what's in there and send it where it's supposed to go," Saucier said.

Saucier said Citizenship and Immigration Services didn't have any say in the workers' pay, as long as the contractor met federal law. "It's a dispute between the contractor and the employees," he said.

Sanders said the rules showed the flaws with the government privatizing critical jobs.

"You have had in the past this privatization mentality that it is always good to contract out, in a sense of the lower the wages the better it is," Sanders said. "We had this debate over airport security."

But Wolking said Stanley didn't want demoralized workers, either. The company has been recognized by Fortune magazine as one of the best 100 places to work in the country.

"We've got a long and distinguished track record of even with personnel that are at some of these lower pay rates, of establishing a very positive work environment with a promotion path and affording people an opportunity for career growth," he said.

iptel

11-28-2007, 03:28 PM

Cancer-resistant mouse discoveredhttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1930967/posts

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbaikar_develops_anti-cancer_gene_in_US/articleshow/2579604.cms

GCwaitforever

12-04-2007, 02:15 PM

http://money.cnn.com/2007/12/03/magazines/fortune/Battel_brainpower.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2007120409

The global fight for top talent
From the United States to Saudi Arabia, countries are finally recognizing that human capital is crucial.
By Geoff Colvin, senior editor at large

FORTUNE 500
Current Issue
Subscribe to Fortune

(Fortune Magazine) -- Three scenes from the new battle for global economic supremacy:

1. King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, the country that sits on 25% of the planet's oil, knows that oil is not his country's future. That's why he's spending $12.5 billion to found a graduate research university, which he'll endow with $10 billion - as big an endowment on day one as MIT has built in 142 years. The point of this project, on a grand scale even by Saudi standards: to attract the best researchers in science and technology.

2. The European Union has proposed new rules to attract the world's most highly skilled workers. If they can show that they're well educated and hold an offer of a lucrative job in Europe, they can get a two-year renewable permit to live there. The problem Europe is trying to solve: 85% of emigrating unskilled workers from developing countries go to Europe, but only 5% of skilled workers do so.

3. HCL Technologies, an Indian infotech services firm, has noticed a major change in its best young employees. Until two or three years ago, few of them would work for it unless they were promised an overseas assignment. Now it's just the opposite: They see India as the most compelling source of excitement and opportunity, and they don't want to be sent away.

We've known for a long time that this day was coming, and now it's here: Countries are finally realizing that their future prosperity depends not on natural resources or even on financial capital, but on human capital. Companies have been battling for years to attract and keep the best people. Now countries are engaging in the same fight.

The contenders
It wasn't much of a scrap until recently. Only the United States, Western Europe, and Japan - for a while - were even contenders. They didn't beat up on one another too badly vying for the best talent because there was enough to go around. Their economies weren't sufficiently info-based to make talent as critical an advantage as it has become, and the economy wasn't sufficiently global for human-capital supremacy to be crucial. Now all those factors have changed; many countries are in the hunt, and they're all after the same thing.

Since this is a fundamentally new fight, no one is sure what will win it. But we can already identify some fairly deep and difficult questions the fight raises. How countries answer them will help determine national wealth and power.

How long will any country tolerate Info Age protectionism? Notice that Europe's new proposal to attract highly skilled workers is pretty pathetic. It doesn't really offer any attractions; it just scales back rules that keep those workers out.

We have similar rules in the United States, such as our skinflint distribution of H-1B visas and immigration rules that favor family connections over skills. Why do such rules exist at all? In the Industrial Age we protected manufacturing workers with tariffs and quotas, but we can't put duties on bits and bytes, so in the Info Age we protect knowledge workers by restricting immigration.

No country can have world-class workers if it continually protects them from world-class competition. Cisco CEO John Chambers, who is passionate on this subject, says, "Anyone with a college degree should be welcome to come to our country, with appropriate security checks."

The U.S. may be rich, but we hardly have the best education system
Why isn't the United States more serious about the key competitive advantage of the Info Age, education? How to make human capital more valuable is no mystery, yet the world's richest country still has nowhere near the world's best education system. That means trouble that will only get worse.

Stephen Roach, former chief economist of Morgan Stanley and now head of the firm's Asian operations, says, "In the U.S. we've squandered our advantage by not investing in educational reform."

What, ultimately, is a national economy? Is it good for a country if its companies prosper by offshoring high-value intellectual work? What if a nation's high-value employees are working in that nation for other nations' companies? Or if highly skilled immigrants perform high-value work and send their earnings home? The answers aren't obvious, but they are important.

This international fight for talent will get much more serious. With luck, it will lead to something new: a free market in brainpower. That may not come to pass- but wise nations will prepare for it.

manderson

12-04-2007, 02:59 PM

High-tech visa debate comes to Congress via 'blue cards'

By Heather Greenfield Technology Daily (http://nationaljournal.com/pubs/techdaily/) December 3, 2007 To highlight the problems that high--tech workers face getting green cards, all members of Congress now have "blue cards." The Compete America coalition has been distributing the cards to lawmakers during meetings, one of several industry lobbying efforts on competitiveness issues in the last few weeks of the year.
On one side, the cards highlight Europe's blue-card immigration provisions, which allow highly educated workers to apply for renewable two-year visas. The European visas take just one or two months to process.
On the flip side, lawmakers are given a summary of the U.S. green-card system that the European Union is targeting to lure high-tech workers. The lobbying cards note that there are not enough green cards for highly skilled workers who want to work in the United States, and the wait time is five to 10 years.
"The highly educated will just have to wait," the cards say.
Robert Hoffman, a co-chairman of Compete America and a lobbyist for Oracle, said the hope is that lawmakers can easily share the information on the cards with their colleagues. So far, the feedback has been good, with sympathetic lawmakers saying the cards help make the case.
Compete America also sent a letter to House and Senate leaders, urging them to address H-1B visas and green cards for highly skilled workers this year. "At a time when other nations are aggressively taking steps to improve their own competitive position, the United States is failing to do so by sustaining a highly-skilled visa system that turns away future innovators," they wrote.
Broad immigration legislation stalled in the Senate earlier this year, but there is fairly widespread support on Capitol Hill among Democrats and Republicans for a visa fix for highly skilled workers. Republicans in the high-tech caucus sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., advocating a list of competitiveness provisions they want to help pass this year. Green cards for highly skilled workers and H-1Bs are on the list.
Hoffman said there is growing recognition that human capital is a major driver of the economy, and that idea is being cited by presidential candidates like Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mitt Romney. Even former Federal Reserve Board chief Alan Greenspan mentioned the issue in the opening chapter of his recent biography.
With immigration a controversial issue on Capitol Hill, there are lawmakers who would like to separate H-1B visas and green cards for highly skilled workers. The problem is that is only one of several short-term fixes like visas for agriculture workers that are being discussed.
Hoffman said the challenge is drafting a bill that addresses all the issues up for short-term fixes that still maintains bipartisan support, and then finding a legislative vehicle to move it.
"As long as Congress is in session and they're talking to us," Hoffman said, he sees reason to remain optimistic about action on green cards this year.

VIEW ALL COMMENTS (http://www.govexec.com/mailbagDetails.cfm?aid=38729) POST COMMENT (http://www.govexec.com/mailbagDetails.cfm?aid=38729#comments-form-area) COMMENTS

FACTS: WHY BLUE CARD IS MORE ATTRACTIVE THAN GREEN CARD BLUE CARD - Renew every 2 years, AUTOMATIC PERMANENT RESIDENCY AFTER 5 YEARS, NO ADDITIONAL APPLICATIONS NEEDED! - It is NOT limited to an employer. - Employee has full portability between employers and EU member countries. -Dependents of BC holders are allowed to work. GREEN CARD - 3 stages to green card and at least 6 different applications -Employee cannot change jobs. -Employee cannot be promoted. -Waiting period is not equal for all. The green card process can take 6 - 12 years! -Dependents cannot work. -There are restrictions on travel outside US Rob Sanchez should be happy that a lot of highly skilled immigrants will no longer choose the US as their preferred destination. Niloufer Bustani Posted December 4, 2007 1:21 PM
How does bringing in foreign workers make dollar weak? America has nothing to export but Technology these days and guess who is creating the technology in multi-nationals? Case in point: winners of this Nobel price were children of immigrants - Pepsi, Google and Coke all had immigrants who became CEOs. Improving exports and allowing legal immigration will help the dollar and keep prices low. SuperUser Posted December 4, 2007 12:52 PM
Please read about the Blue Card (use Google) before posting BS ! If US needs foreign workers it's due to "highly skilled" nativists like Rob Sanches of Zazona, who are yet to learn how to use Google ! (poor things) Blue Card is NOT limited to an employer. BC employee has full portability between employers and EU member countries. Dependents of BC holders are allowed to work. Though BC is given for 2 years, after 5 years BC holder AUTOMATICALLY becomes a 'Permanent Resident' without submitting any additional application. In contrast US laws have 3 stages (just for PR) and at least 6 different applications. Employee cannot change jobs. Dependents cannot work. For obvious reasons, highly-skilled employment-based immigrants are finding BCs more attractive than GCs. Rob Sanches should actually be happy as many immigrants will be leaving US soon, instead of whining here like a brat

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1207/120307tdpm1.htm

manderson

12-04-2007, 03:01 PM

Senator Asks U.S. Agencies to Explain High H-1B Use
December 4, 2007

By Deborah Perelman, eWEEK (http://www.eweek.com/)
Sen. Chuck Grassley, long an advocate of transparency in the H-1B program, has found a new target: the Federal government. The Iowa Republican has fired off two letters to two federal agencies--the only two among the top 200 users of H-1B temporary worker visas in 2006--asking them to disclose why they made these hires.
"While the H-1B program has served a valuable purpose in allowing companies to bring in temporary workers for high-skilled jobs, Congress has a responsibility to make sure that Americans are not overlooked in the process," Grassley wrote. "I'm asking questions today to find out how many taxpayer dollars are being used to recruit foreign workers and how invested our government-backed entities are in this visa program."

From Fannie Mae and the National Institutes of Health, Grassley requests a better understanding of the way they use H-1B visas in their workplaces by asking them to provide him with an annual listing of H-1B workers they employ, the job titles under which those workers are employed and a detailed description of the efforts that the two organizations make, if any, to hire a domestic worker before hiring an H-1B worker.
It is this last point that has been the stickiest issue for H-1B proponents, who claim that due to a shortage of available U.S. workers, typically in engineering and technology, they have little choice but to hire foreigners to fill their talent gaps.
Grassley, along with Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, sent letters to the nine Indian firms that were issued nearly 20,000 of the 65,000 visas issued in 2006, requesting details on the way they use their H-1B visas. In April, the two senators proposed a bill that would give U.S. workers first dibs on jobs that were to go to H-1B visa holders.
In June, Grassley asked the Department of Labor to review a video in which an immigration law firm offered advice on how companies could avoid hiring U.S. workers when foreign workers were preferred, and investigate the law firm's "unethical procedures."

Copyright (c) 2007Ziff Davis Enterprise Inc. All Rights Reserved.

http://www.cioinsight.com/article2/0,1540,2227853,00.asp

rajusk

12-05-2007, 12:37 PM

(Fortune Magazine) -- Three scenes from the new battle for global economic supremacy:

1. King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, the country that sits on 25% of the planet's oil, knows that oil is not his country's future. That's why he's spending $12.5 billion to found a graduate research university, which he'll endow with $10 billion - as big an endowment on day one as MIT has built in 142 years. The point of this project, on a grand scale even by Saudi standards: to attract the best researchers in science and technology.

2. The European Union has proposed new rules to attract the world's most highly skilled workers. If they can show that they're well educated and hold an offer of a lucrative job in Europe, they can get a two-year renewable permit to live there. The problem Europe is trying to solve: 85% of emigrating unskilled workers from developing countries go to Europe, but only 5% of skilled workers do so.

3. HCL Technologies, an Indian infotech services firm, has noticed a major change in its best young employees. Until two or three years ago, few of them would work for it unless they were promised an overseas assignment. Now it's just the opposite: They see India as the most compelling source of excitement and opportunity, and they don't want to be sent away.

We've known for a long time that this day was coming, and now it's here: Countries are finally realizing that their future prosperity depends not on natural resources or even on financial capital, but on human capital. Companies have been battling for years to attract and keep the best people. Now countries are engaging in the same fight.
The contenders

It wasn't much of a scrap until recently. Only the United States, Western Europe, and Japan - for a while - were even contenders. They didn't beat up on one another too badly vying for the best talent because there was enough to go around. Their economies weren't sufficiently info-based to make talent as critical an advantage as it has become, and the economy wasn't sufficiently global for human-capital supremacy to be crucial. Now all those factors have changed; many countries are in the hunt, and they're all after the same thing.

Since this is a fundamentally new fight, no one is sure what will win it. But we can already identify some fairly deep and difficult questions the fight raises. How countries answer them will help determine national wealth and power.

How long will any country tolerate Info Age protectionism? Notice that Europe's new proposal to attract highly skilled workers is pretty pathetic. It doesn't really offer any attractions; it just scales back rules that keep those workers out.

We have similar rules in the United States, such as our skinflint distribution of H-1B visas and immigration rules that favor family connections over skills. Why do such rules exist at all? In the Industrial Age we protected manufacturing workers with tariffs and quotas, but we can't put duties on bits and bytes, so in the Info Age we protect knowledge workers by restricting immigration.

No country can have world-class workers if it continually protects them from world-class competition. Cisco CEO John Chambers, who is passionate on this subject, says, "Anyone with a college degree should be welcome to come to our country, with appropriate security checks."
The U.S. may be rich, but we hardly have the best education system

Why isn't the United States more serious about the key competitive advantage of the Info Age, education? How to make human capital more valuable is no mystery, yet the world's richest country still has nowhere near the world's best education system. That means trouble that will only get worse.

Stephen Roach, former chief economist of Morgan Stanley and now head of the firm's Asian operations, says, "In the U.S. we've squandered our advantage by not investing in educational reform."

What, ultimately, is a national economy? Is it good for a country if its companies prosper by offshoring high-value intellectual work? What if a nation's high-value employees are working in that nation for other nations' companies? Or if highly skilled immigrants perform high-value work and send their earnings home? The answers aren't obvious, but they are important.

This international fight for talent will get much more serious. With luck, it will lead to something new: a free market in brainpower. That may not come to pass- but wise nations will prepare for it

lacrossegc

12-07-2007, 01:25 PM

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1692059,00.html
by MICHAEL KINSLEY

What you are supposed to say about immigration--what most of the presidential candidates say, what the radio talk jocks say--is that you are not against immigration. Not at all. You salute the hard work and noble aspirations of those who are lining up at American consulates around the world. But that is legal immigration. What you oppose is illegal immigration.

This formula is not very helpful. We all oppose breaking the law, or we ought to. Saying that you oppose illegal immigration is like saying you oppose illegal drug use or illegal speeding. Of course you do, or should. The question is whether you think the law draws the line in the right place. Should using marijuana be illegal? Should the speed limit be raised--or lowered? The fact that you believe in obeying the law reveals nothing about what you think the law ought to be, or why.

Another question: Why are you so upset about this particular form of lawbreaking? After all, there are lots of laws, not all of them enforced with vigor. The suspicion naturally arises that the illegality is not what bothers you. What bothers you is the immigration. There is an easy way to test this. Reducing illegal immigration is hard, but increasing legal immigration would be easy. If your view is that legal immigration is good and illegal immigration is bad, how about increasing legal immigration? How about doubling it? Any takers? So in the end, this is not really a debate about illegal immigration. This is a debate about immigration.

And it's barely a debate at all. On the Democratic side, the arcane issue of whether illegals should be able to get a driver's license has bitten both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. On the Republican side, the candidates take turns accusing one another of committing some act of human decency toward illegals, and indignantly denying that they did any such thing. Immigration has long divided both parties, with advocates and opponents in each. Among Republicans, support for immigration was economic (corporations), while opposition was cultural (nativists). Among Democrats, it was the reverse: support for immigration was cultural (ethnic groups), while opposition was economic (unions). Now, for whatever reason, support for immigration is limited to an eccentric alliance of high-minded Council on Foreign Relations types, the mainstream media, high-tech entrepreneurs, Latinos, the Wall Street Journal editorial page and President George W. Bush. Everyone else, it seems, is agin.

Maybe the aginners are right, and immigration is now damaging our country, stealing jobs and opportunity, ripping off taxpayers, fragmenting our culture. I doubt it, but maybe so. Certainly, it's true that we can't let in everyone who wants to come. There is some number of immigrants that is too many. I don't believe we're past that point, but maybe we are. In any event, a democracy has the right to decide that it has reached such a point. There is no obligation to be fair to foreigners.

But let's not kid ourselves that all we care about is obeying the law and all we are asking illegals to do is go home and get in line like everybody else. We know perfectly well that the line is too long, and we are basically telling people to go home and not come back.

Let's not kid ourselves, either, about who we are telling this to. To characterize illegal immigrants as queue-jumping, lawbreaking scum is seriously unjust. The motives of illegal immigrants--which can be summarized as "a better life"--are identical to those of legal immigrants. In fact, they are largely identical to the motives of our own parents, grandparents and great-grandparents when they immigrated. And not just that. Ask yourself, of these three groups--today's legal and illegal immigrants and the immigrants of generations ago--which one has proven most dramatically its appreciation of our country? Which one has shown the most gumption, the most willingness to risk all to get to the U.S. and the most willingness to work hard once here? Well, everyone's story is unique. But who loves the U.S. most? On average, probably, the winners of this American-values contest would be the illegals, doing our dirty work under constant fear of eviction, getting thrown out and returning again and again.

And how about those of us lucky enough to have been born here? How would we do against the typical illegal alien in a "prove how much you love America" reality TV show?

gc28262

12-08-2007, 08:53 AM

Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos, a Democrat in the Washington State House of Representatives, argued that a lack of federal action on immigration had also affected large firms.She said software giant Microsoft decided to move one of its units to British Columbia, Canada, after an effort to legalize an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants and create a temporary worker program sought by business groups failed in the U.S. Senate in June.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22152820/

swamy

12-08-2007, 08:56 AM

Spies LikeYou and Me (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/08/opinion/08herbert.html?ref=opinionl) -Op-Ed Columnist

By BOB HERBERT
Let the witch hunt begin. Are you now or have you ever been an illegal immigrant?

Are any of your friends illegal? Relatives?

The last place you’d expect to encounter a chilling moment is at a presidential debate sponsored by National Public Radio. But on Tuesday, there was the NPR moderator, Steve Inskeep, asking the Democratic candidates whether American citizens have an obligation to turn in people they suspect are illegal immigrants.

It was not just a question asked in passing. Mr. Inskeep pressed the issue. He asked Senator Chris Dodd, for example, about the hypothetical situation of a “citizen” interviewing for a nanny.

“You interview a number of applicants,” Mr. Inskeep said. “They all seem very nice. They seem like they would take care of the kids. But it would appear that their documents may not be in order. What would you want an American to do?”

Their documents may not be in order.

Mr. Inskeep didn’t make clear what should trigger the suspicions of such oh-so-solidly American parents, causing them to scrutinize an applicant’s papers with a thoroughness worthy of Sherlock Holmes. Might it be a skin tone darker than Paris Hilton’s? Or maybe an accent, like that of my Aunt Lottie, who came here from Barbados?

You wouldn’t have wanted to face my family if you were some rat who tried to turn in my Aunt Lottie.

I have no idea how Mr. Inskeep feels about this issue. He was just asking questions. But the last thing in the world that the United States needs is a signal from presidential wannabes that it’s a good idea to turn ordinary American citizens into immigrant-hunting busybodies.

The Democrats did not rise to the bait. Senator Hillary Clinton was especially good. Mr. Inskeep said to her, “If a citizen witnessed some other kind of crime, wouldn’t you want them to report it?”

Senator Clinton replied: “It’s a very clever question, Steve, but I think it really begs the question, because what we’re looking at here is 12 to 14 million people. They live in our neighborhoods, they take care of our elderly parents, they probably made the beds in the hotels that some of us stayed in last night. They are embedded in our society.”

She warned that listening to the “demagogues and the calls for us to begin to try to round up people and turn every American into a suspicious vigilante” would do grave harm “to the fabric of our nation.”

She couldn’t have been more correct. Enlisting ordinary Americans in a nationwide hunt for so-called illegals is a recipe for violence and hysteria, a guarantee of tragedy.

We’ve already got radio-active talk show hosts spewing anti-immigrant venom from one coast to another. Media Matters for America, a monitoring group, has noted that Michael Savage, who has the third-most-listened-to show in the nation, said the following on his July 2 broadcast:

“When I see a woman walking around with a burqa, I see a Nazi. That’s what I see. How do you like that? A hateful Nazi who would like to cut your throat and kill your children.”

When a woman wears a burqa, said Mr. Savage, “She’s doing it to spit in your face. She’s saying, ‘You white moron, you, I’m going to kill you if I can.’”

That’s what’s already out there. We don’t need national leaders adding fuel to the fires of bigotry by calling for recruits to join in a national dragnet for people who look or sound a certain way.

That kind of insidious leadership helps drive people to irrational fury over neighbors speaking Spanish at a barbecue, or a Muslim co-worker competing for a coveted promotion, or a schoolteacher with a Hispanic surname who gives a failing grade to little Sally.

This country needs to cool it on the immigration front. Solutions to immigration problems need to come from rationally thought-out and compassionate government policies, not a witch hunt by all and sundry.

It was beyond ironic to listen Thursday to Mitt Romney as he went on national television to ask Americans to view his candidacy with a sense of tolerance. “We believe that every single human being is a child of God,” he said. “We are all part of the human family.”

At the same time, Mr. Romney’s political operatives were distributing campaign material (some of it inaccurate) beating up on his opponents for being insufficiently intolerant on the immigration issue.

The U.S. has a chance in this presidential campaign to emulate the best in its history, not the worst. I have a recommendation for anyone who thinks a witch hunt for undocumented immigrants is a good idea:

Don’t go there.

widad2020

12-11-2007, 08:49 PM

Europe Wants World's Brightest As America Keeps Limits Tight
BY JAMES DETAR

INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY

Posted 12/11/2007

Europe is rolling out the blue carpet for foreign-born high-tech workers.

The European Union recently proposed a "blue card" for skilled workers around the world.

In the land of opportunity, the U.S. has stiff limits on high-skill workers and is moving toward further restrictions.

That has U.S. business groups worried.

Companies, especially high-tech ones, rely heavily on immigration to bring them the best and brightest talent. They look to immigrants for new ideas and sometimes to start companies. Loss of this source of talent could hurt U.S. industry.

Still, immigration, especially illegal immigration, is a hot button. According to a recent Pew Research Center report, while expressing strong support for global trade, 75% of Americans surveyed agreed with the statement "We should further restrict and control immigration." Only 23% disagreed.

Even more so than the U.S., Europe has a rapidly aging population. By 2050, analysts say, two working people will have to support one retired worker in the EU, compared with a four-to-one ratio today. Europe sees immigration as one way to get skilled workers.

Bringing in driven foreigners also might encourage more entrepreneurial activity in Europe, which has relatively few startups compared with America.

U.S. tech firms have struggled to find qualified engineers for years. The blue card could make the situation much worse, says analyst Will Strauss.

"There are only so many brains available," Strauss said. "And either they're going to get them or we are." Strauss is president of Forward Concepts, a Tempe, Ariz., high-tech market research firm.

All 27 EU members have to agree to any major policy changes. So analysts don't expect action on the proposed blue card until 2009.

Keeping The Best

But if the U.S. doesn't act quickly, it could lose the lead in high tech, say government and industry officials.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., says the U.S. has always done a good job of attracting bright people. That's not the problem.

"Where we fall down is keeping those people," said Lofgren, whose district covers most of Silicon Valley. That's not because they don't want to stay, but because there's a thicket of red tape that often prevents them from staying, she says.

U.S. universities attract tens of thousands of students from China, India and other countries studying for advanced degrees.

Foreign nationals account for a majority of U.S. doctoral degrees in math, computer science and engineering.

Traditionally, many have stayed here to work.

But with emerging markets surging and developing their own tech markets, going home is a lot more attractive now, especially compared with going through the hoops to stay in the U.S.

Immigrants have played a key role in developing the tech hub.

Sergey Brin, born in Russia, co-founded Google while getting his master's degree at Stanford.

Andy Grove was Intel's third employee and later became CEO and chairman. He was born in Hungary but studied in the U.S.

The EU's blue card would compete against a type of U.S. temporary work visa called the H-1B. Despite its name, the blue card isn't like the green card (or U.S. Permanent Resident card).

The H-1B visa lets U.S. employers file a request with immigration services on behalf of prospective workers. Most H-1B candidates must have at least a bachelor's degree and work in a "specialty occupation." Visas last for three years and can be extended for three more.

Legal Supply Limit

There's a cap of 65,000 H-1B visa workers allowed in the U.S. today. After pressure from industry, Congress has temporarily allowed an extra 20,000, raising the limit to 85,000 H-1Bs a year.

By law, the first Monday in April is the first day companies can apply on behalf of workers for the next fiscal year.

This year, there were a record 125,000 applications on that first day, says Robert Hoffman, co-chairman of Compete America, which has lobbied Congress to raise the H-1B cap.

Hoffman is also vice president for government affairs at software maker Oracle. While Europe is trying to streamline the process to bring in foreign engineers, Hoffman says, Congress has been trying to throw up roadblocks in the U.S.

For example, today it costs $1,500 for a company to apply for an H-1B visa on behalf of a worker. In October the Senate passed a fee hike of $3,500, on top of the $1,500, as part of a larger spending bill.

"We're open to paying a little more if that's what's needed," Hoffman said. "But to more than triple the fee is ludicrous."

After pressure from Compete America and others, the Senate killed the fee increase.

One problem with the H-1B program is that it's too broad. It not only covers engineers and scientists, but also other specialty jobs such as "fashion models of national or international acclaim," the immigration service says.

"The H-1B is a real mishmash," Lofgren said. "The refinement of that program would be appropriate."

Earlier this year, tech firms had hoped Congress would increase the number of H-1B visas as part of comprehensive immigration reform.

But that overall bill spawned a backlash, as critics tagged the bill a de facto amnesty for illegal immigrants. The momentum now is for stiffer restrictions on immigration.

So advocates of highly skilled foreign workers now say that issue should be separated from questions of low-skill illegal immigrants.

The U.S. needs to make it easier for people who are educated in the U.S. in basic science, tech and engineering to stay here, says Lofgren, who chairs a House immigration subcommittee.

The U.S. needs to focus on K-12 education and getting a level playing field in terms of tax breaks, says George Scalise, president of the Semiconductor Industry Association. But the H-1B program is the top priority. It must be fixed now, he says.

"It's urgent in the sense that we're already losing people" because they go elsewhere rather than wade through red tape, Scalise said. "It's unfortunate that Congress has truly failed us" in dealing with reform, he added.

The SIA wants to see the cap on visas for families of skilled workers raised, too. That way, once foreign- born students get a degree and H-1B visa job, they'll be able to stay here with their families and become citizens.

The SIA is one of 32 companies and trade groups working under the Compete America alliance to revise H-1B rules.

Compete America also includes the Business Roundtable, Business Software Alliance, National Association of Manufacturers and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Companies that have joined include Boeing, (BA) Coca-Cola, (KO) Intel, (INTC) Oracle, (ORCL) Sun Microsystems, (JAVA) Motorola (MOT) and Texas Instruments. (TXN)

crazy_apple

12-12-2007, 10:56 AM

I came across this really well written article in Time Magazine - thought it might be worth reading. The author is MICHAEL KINSLEY. You can access the web version here - http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1692059,00.html

What you are supposed to say about immigration--what most of the presidential candidates say, what the radio talk jocks say--is that you are not against immigration. Not at all. You salute the hard work and noble aspirations of those who are lining up at American consulates around the world. But that is legal immigration. What you oppose is illegal immigration.

This formula is not very helpful. We all oppose breaking the law, or we ought to. Saying that you oppose illegal immigration is like saying you oppose illegal drug use or illegal speeding. Of course you do, or should. The question is whether you think the law draws the line in the right place. Should using marijuana be illegal? Should the speed limit be raised--or lowered? The fact that you believe in obeying the law reveals nothing about what you think the law ought to be, or why.

Another question: Why are you so upset about this particular form of lawbreaking? After all, there are lots of laws, not all of them enforced with vigor. The suspicion naturally arises that the illegality is not what bothers you. What bothers you is the immigration. There is an easy way to test this. Reducing illegal immigration is hard, but increasing legal immigration would be easy. If your view is that legal immigration is good and illegal immigration is bad, how about increasing legal immigration? How about doubling it? Any takers? So in the end, this is not really a debate about illegal immigration. This is a debate about immigration.

And it's barely a debate at all. On the Democratic side, the arcane issue of whether illegals should be able to get a driver's license has bitten both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. On the Republican side, the candidates take turns accusing one another of committing some act of human decency toward illegals, and indignantly denying that they did any such thing. Immigration has long divided both parties, with advocates and opponents in each. Among Republicans, support for immigration was economic (corporations), while opposition was cultural (nativists). Among Democrats, it was the reverse: support for immigration was cultural (ethnic groups), while opposition was economic (unions). Now, for whatever reason, support for immigration is limited to an eccentric alliance of high-minded Council on Foreign Relations types, the mainstream media, high-tech entrepreneurs, Latinos, the Wall Street Journal editorial page and President George W. Bush. Everyone else, it seems, is agin.

Maybe the aginners are right, and immigration is now damaging our country, stealing jobs and opportunity, ripping off taxpayers, fragmenting our culture. I doubt it, but maybe so. Certainly, it's true that we can't let in everyone who wants to come. There is some number of immigrants that is too many. I don't believe we're past that point, but maybe we are. In any event, a democracy has the right to decide that it has reached such a point. There is no obligation to be fair to foreigners.

But let's not kid ourselves that all we care about is obeying the law and all we are asking illegals to do is go home and get in line like everybody else. We know perfectly well that the line is too long, and we are basically telling people to go home and not come back.

Let's not kid ourselves, either, about who we are telling this to. To characterize illegal immigrants as queue-jumping, lawbreaking scum is seriously unjust. The motives of illegal immigrants--which can be summarized as "a better life"--are identical to those of legal immigrants. In fact, they are largely identical to the motives of our own parents, grandparents and great-grandparents when they immigrated. And not just that. Ask yourself, of these three groups--today's legal and illegal immigrants and the immigrants of generations ago--which one has proven most dramatically its appreciation of our country? Which one has shown the most gumption, the most willingness to risk all to get to the U.S. and the most willingness to work hard once here? Well, everyone's story is unique. But who loves the U.S. most? On average, probably, the winners of this American-values contest would be the illegals, doing our dirty work under constant fear of eviction, getting thrown out and returning again and again.

And how about those of us lucky enough to have been born here? How would we do against the typical illegal alien in a "prove how much you love America" reality TV show?

gsc999

12-12-2007, 04:22 PM

Source:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/12/12/151150/42/843/421222

sunny1000

12-15-2007, 09:54 PM

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/pelosi-expects-tuesday-vote-on-omnibus-new-continuing-resolution-expires-dec.-21.-2007-12-13.html

Pelosi expects Tuesday vote on omnibus; new continuing resolution expires Dec. 21.
By Alex Bolton | Posted: 12/13/07 5:03 PM [ET]
December 13, 2007

Democratic leaders hope to finish the 11 annual spending bills over the weekend and vote on an omnibus package early next week.

At a press conference Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) sketched a tentative schedule for legislation funding the government next year.

“Right now we’re engaged in a four-way negotiation on what the bill will be,” said Pelosi, in reference to talks between Senate Democrats, Senate Republicans, House Democrats and House Republicans. “And we will wait and see what emerges from that, and I hope it would be soon.”

“We would love to have it up on the Internet over the weekend and in the Rules Committee on Monday and on the floor on Tuesday,” said Pelosi of the omnibus. “That is our hope.”

But that does not mean necessarily the Congress will adjourn early next week. The House has passed a stopgap measure funding government until Dec. 21.

White House press secretary Dana Perino said a final spending deal with Democrats is coming into focus, although she cautioned that lawmakers must resolve important details.

“We don’t know what their top line would be; we don’t know what policies they might try to put into the bill; we don’t know what tax increases they might try to put into the bill,” said Perino. “But in general we’re encouraged that we can get to an endgame here.”

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), however, sounded a note of caution.

“As we speak, there is no agreement on spending,” he said.

The prospects of an agreement between Congress and the White House improved substantially Wednesday when Democratic leaders announced they would cut spending in the omnibus to the $933 billion overall limit set by President Bush.

Democrats have also floated the possibility of adding $3.7 billion in emergency spending for veterans’ healthcare.

“I think there’s a lot of rumors and a lot of discussion out there,” said Perino, when asked whether the president might accept added funding for veterans. “And the president has said his number is $933 billion, and we’ll see what they come up with.”

The House held its last vote of the week Thursday afternoon.

Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, said he believed the Senate would likely finish its work on the farm bill Thursday evening.

virtual55

12-20-2007, 07:43 AM

http://biz.yahoo.com/bizwk/071218/dec2007db20071214881757.html?.v=1&.pf=career-work

Mark Gould has been a lifelong Republican. The self-described libertarian and president of Gould Construction in Glenwood Springs, Colo., has been a registered Republican for 30 years, and he served a six-year stint as the chairman of his county's Republican Party.
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But Gould is a Republican no longer. Exasperated over the GOP's increasingly harsh rhetoric about restricting immigration, Gould switched his registration to Independent two weeks ago. "Extremists have hijacked the Republican Party," says Gould, who says he employs a staff of 125, including legal immigrants. "If I had to pick today, I'd go with (Senator Barack) Obama (for President). He's the most outspoken and realistic about reform."

Switching Sides

Gould isn't the only employer growing disenchanted with Republican candidates' stances on immigration. A number of business owners in the U.S. -- many of them longtime Republicans -- say that talk of severe crackdowns on illegal immigration and restrictions on legal immigration are pushing them away from the party. Some are even switching to actively support Democrats, including Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.).

"The Republican candidates just don't get it," says Maureen Torrey, owner of Torrey Farms in Elba, N.Y. "They need to understand that immigration helps drive economic growth, and that without it a lot of industries are in trouble." Torrey, a lifelong Republican, is now backing Clinton.

These days, the Republican candidates appear to be competing for who can claim the toughest position on immigration. While Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor, and Rudolph Giuliani, former mayor of New York City, had both long been moderates on the issue, they are now stressing border enforcement and employer verification systems as they trade jabs about "sanctuary" for illegal immigrants. Mike Huckabee, the up-and-coming former governor of Arkansas, held back on the tough talk for months, but changed his stance in recent days and is now calling for the 12 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. to register with the federal government and return to their home countries before applying to return legally. Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.) is the one exception to the trend.

Tancredo's Tough Talk

Much of the change can be attributed to the success of U.S. Representative Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.), who is centering his entire campaign on stricter immigration policy. He's in favor of deporting the illegal immigrants in this country, and has run ads attacking "spineless" and "gutless" politicians who let drug pushers, murderers, and terrorists come across the border with ease. One ad closes with a hooded figure leaving a backpack near a bench, followed by the sound of an explosion. The words "Tancredo, before it's too late" flash on the screen.

Plenty of business people think the harsh stance on immigration by Republican candidates, especially Romney and Giuliani, is simply positioning for the primaries. But employers worry that the rhetoric may box the candidates into problematic positions. Particularly in industries like agriculture, construction, landscaping, and restaurants, most employers want comprehensive immigration reform that allows undocumented workers to join a guest worker program or pursue a path to citizenship, as well as an effective way for new immigrants to work in the U.S. The Democratic front-runners already voice support for such reforms, albeit with some additional security.

Arizona Goes After Employers

One state where employers are becoming especially concerned is Arizona. A new state law (BusinessWeek.com, 12/13/07) scheduled to go into effect Jan. 1 will suspend for up to 10 days the operating license of any company caught knowingly employing an undocumented worker. If caught a second time, the company loses its license altogether. Business groups -- including the Arizona Contractors' Assn. and an employer coalition called Wake Up Arizona -- tried to fight the law on legal grounds, but their case was thrown out by a U.S. District Court. The business groups are asking for a preliminary injunction while the case is under appeal.

In the meantime, employers are looking to make a statement with their votes. "The Republican Party has held a corner of support from the business community, but the level of frustration is high," says David Jones, president and chief executive of the Arizona Contractors' Assn., which represents about 300 general subcontractors and suppliers. "They're so wrapped up in ideology that they're willing to throw anything else out the window. That's why the Democrats are starting to realize a potential friend in the Arizona business community."

Farmers and other employers of agricultural workers also worry that Republicans' hard line could prove disastrous for business. Torrey has been so frustrated that she traveled from New York to Iowa to encourage farmers there to join her in supporting Clinton. "She understands the need for comprehensive reform," says Torrey.

Of course, immigration is just one of many issues, and Republicans enjoy the support of business on a number of other topics, such as tax policy. Still, some business leaders are also disturbed by the growth in the federal government under the Republicans' watch and the Administration's lack of action on global warming. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - News) Chairman John Mack, a longtime supporter of President George W. Bush, is backing Clinton for President (BusinessWeek.com, 4/27/07). In a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll in September, only 37% of professionals and managers identify themselves as Republican or leaning Republican, down from 44% three years ago.

Tech Titans Hedge Bets

Some industry leaders who want immigration reform say it simply doesn't make sense to pick one party over the other. Compete America, a coalition that includes Oracle (NasdaqGS:ORCL - News), Google (NasdaqGS:GOOG - News), Microsoft (NasdaqGS:MSFT - News), and Yahoo! (NasdaqGS:YHOO - News), is pushing for the expansion of a temporary work visa program and the acceleration of green-card processing. But the group is not endorsing a Presidential candidate of either party in an effort to stay out of the polarized debate.

"Our issue is being held hostage to the broader illegal immigration debate," says Robert Hoffman, a spokesman for Compete America. "In reality the reforms we're advocating aren't hugely controversial, and we've seen strong bipartisan support."

But employers like Gould in Colorado see a reason to take sides. "The Republican Presidential candidates are being irresponsible," he says. "If you suddenly remove 12 million immigrants, the U.S. economy won't survive."

lost_in_migration

12-20-2007, 10:13 AM

Tancredo set to quit race
Immigration-reform champion failed to gain traction in presidential bid
By Anne C. Mulkern (amulkern@denverpost.com)
The Denver Post

http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_7764132

swamy

12-21-2007, 08:38 PM

The story of Eva Ósk Arnardóttir: (http://www.sott.net/articles/show/145536-A-young-blonde-Icelandic-woman-s-recent-experience-visiting-the-US) Best of the Web, Scott.net, Mon, 17 Dec 2007

During the last twenty-four hours I have probably experienced the greatest humiliation to which I have ever been subjected. During these last twenty-four hours I have been handcuffed and chained, denied the chance to sleep, been without food and drink and been confined to a place without anyone knowing my whereabouts, imprisoned. Now I am beginning to try to understand all this, rest and review the events which began as innocently as possible.

Last Sunday I and a few other girls began our trip to New York. We were going to shop and enjoy the Christmas spirit. We made ourselves comfortable on first class, drank white wine and looked forward to go shopping, eat good food and enjoy life. When we landed at JFK airport the traditional clearance process began.

We were screened and went on to passport control. As I waited for them to finish examining my passport I heard an official say that there was something which needed to be looked at more closely and I was directed to the work station of Homeland Security. There I was told that according to their records I had overstayed my visa by 3 weeks in 1995. For this reason I would not be admitted to the country and would be sent home on the next flight. I looked at the official in disbelief and told him that I had in fact visited New York after the trip in 1995 without encountering any difficulties. A detailed interrogation session ensued.

I was photographed and fingerprinted. I was asked questions which I felt had nothing to do with the issue at hand. I was forbidden to contact anyone to advise of my predicament and although I was invited at the outset to contact the Icelandic consul or embassy, that invitation was later withdrawn. I don't know why.

I was then made to wait while they sought further information, and sat on a chair before the authority for 5 hours. I saw the officials in this section handle other cases and it was clear that these were men anxious to demonstrate their power. Small kings with megalomania. I was careful to remain completely cooperative, for I did not yet believe that they planned to deport me because of my "crime".

When 5 hours had passed and I had been awake for 24 hours, I was told that they were waiting for officials who would take me to a kind of waiting room. There I would be given a bed to rest in, some food and I would be searched. What they thought they might find I cannot possibly imagine. Finally guards appeared who transported me to the new place. I saw the bed as if in a mirage, for I was absolutely exhausted.

What turned out was something else. I was taken to another office exactly like the one where I had been before and once again along wait ensued. In all, it turned out to be 5 hours. At this office all my things were taken from me. I succeeded in sending a single sms to worried relatives and friends when I was granted a bathroom break. After that the cell phone was taken from me. After I had been sitting for 5 hours I was told that they were now waiting for guards who would take me to a place where I could rest and eat. Then I was placed in a cubicle which looked like an operating room. Attached to the walls were 4 steel plates, probably intended to serve as bed and a toilet.

I was exhausted, tired and hungry. I didn't understand the officials' conduct, for they were treating me like a very dangerous criminal. Soon thereafter I was removed from the cubicle and two armed guards placed me up against a wall. A chain was fastened around my waist and I was handcuffed to the chain. Then my legs were placed in chains. I asked for permission to make a telephone call but they refused. So secured, I was taken from the airport terminal in full sight of everybody. I have seldom felt so bad, so humiliated and all because I had taken a longer vacation than allowed under the law.

They would not tell me where they were taking me. The trip took close to one hour and although I couldn't see clearly outside the vehicle I knew that we had crossed over into New Jersey. We ended up in front of a jail. I could hardly believe that this was happening. Was I really about to be jailed? I was led inside in the chains and there yet another interrogation session ensued. I was fingerprinted once again and photographed. I was made to undergo a medical examnination, I was searched and then I was placed in a jail cell. I was asked absurd questions such as: When did you have your last period? What do you believe in? Have you ever tried to commit suicide?

I was completely exhausted, tired and cold. Fourteen hours after I had landed I had something to eat and drink for the first time. I was given porridge and bread. But it did not help much. I was afraid and the attitude of all who handled me was abysmal to say the least. They did not speak to me as much as snap at me. Once again I asked to make a telephone call and this time the answer was positive. I was relieved but the relief was short-lived. For the telephone was setup for collect calls only and it was not possible to make overseas calls. The jailguard held my cell phone in his hand. I explained to him that I could not make a call from the jail telephone and asked to be allowed to make one call from my own phone. That was out of the question. I spent the next 9 hours in a small, dirty cell. The only thing in there was a narrow steel board which extended out from the wall, a sink and toilet. I wish I never experience again in my life the feeling of confinement and helplessness which I experienced there.

I was hugely relieved when, at last, I was told that I was to be taken to the airport, that is to say until I was again handcuffed and chained.Then I could take no more and broke down and cried. I begged them at least to leave out the leg chains but my request was ignored. When we arrived at the airport, another jail guard took pity on me and removed the leg chains. Even so I was led through a full airport terminal handcuffed and escorted by armed men. I felt terrible. On seeing this, people must think that there goes a very dangerous criminal. In this condition I was led up into the Icelandair waiting room, and was kept handcuffed until I entered the embarkation corridor. I was completely run down by all this in both body and spirit. Fortunately I could count on good people and both Einar (the captain) and the crew did all which they could to try to assist me. My friend Auður was in close contact with my sister and the consul and embassy had been contacted. However, all had received misleading information and all had been told that I had been detained at the airport terminal, not that I had been put in jail. Now the Foreign Ministry is looking into the matter and I hope to receive some explanation why I was treated this way.

(English Translation: Gunnar Tómasson, Certified translator)

vivekm1309

12-28-2007, 12:48 PM

I apologise if it is a repitition...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/21/AR2007122101919.html

A Talent Contest We're Losing

By Craig Barrett
Sunday, December 23, 2007; Page B07

The European Union took a step recently that the U.S. Congress can't seem to muster the courage to take. By proposing a simple change in immigration policy, E.U. politicians served notice that they are serious about competing with the United States and Asia to attract the world's top talent to live, work and innovate in Europe. With Congress gridlocked on immigration, it's clear that the next Silicon Valley will not be in the United States.

European politicians face many of the same political pressures surrounding immigration as their U.S. counterparts, and they, too, are not immune to those pressures. Nationalist and anti-immigrant factions in several Western European countries have made political gains in recent elections and are widely viewed as mainstream. Despite the hot-button nature of immigration issues, though, E.U. politicians advanced the "Blue Card" proposal in late October.

The plan is designed to attract highly educated workers by creating a temporary but renewable two-year visa. A streamlined application process would allow qualified prospective workers to navigate the system and start working in high-need jobs within one to three months.

This contrasts starkly with the byzantine system in place in the United States, which increasingly threatens America's long-term competitiveness.

The United States relies primarily on two programs to augment its workforce with highly educated, highly skilled foreign professionals. The H-1B visa is a three-year temporary visa that can be renewed once. The employment-based (EB) green card is the program for permanent residency. Both programs serve the needs of U.S. employers seeking to fill job vacancies in highly skilled professions. Extreme shortages of visas in both these programs are well documented.

H-1B visas, which are capped at 85,000 per year, are now gone in one day, with the "winners" determined by lottery.

The EB green card program has an annual allotment of 140,000 visas; these are allocated equally across all countries around the world, regardless of population. The inflexible country quotas mean that professionals from countries such as China and India are almost always at a disadvantage, finding themselves stuck in a system -- often for five to 10 years -- in which they cannot seek promotions and raises. Spouses and children count against the quota, which has not been raised since 1990. And even though they count against the quota of foreign workers allowed to come here, spouses are inexplicably forbidden to work, no matter their level of education and skill.

The U.S. system forces thousands of valuable foreign-born professionals -- including badly needed researchers, scientists, teachers and engineers -- into legal and professional limbo for years. Not surprisingly, many are considering opportunities in competitor nations -- even those who have lived in the United States for years and have graduated from American universities.

To be competitive in the global economy, U.S. companies depend on specialized talent coming out of U.S. graduate schools. These scientists and engineers are often foreign-born, as more than half of U.S. engineering master's students and PhD recipients are international students. Yet America shuts the door on many of these highly educated graduates, forcing them to look abroad for opportunities -- and our competitors are capitalizing on our failed policies.

E.U. leaders recognize that the top minds coming out of universities in the United States and other countries can help to reinvigorate European industry and enable it to create the next wave of businesses that drive innovation and economic growth.

While its Blue Card proposal still requires approval by member countries, Europe has sent a message. It intends to aggressively pursue the professional talent necessary to compete on the global stage. The United States, on the other hand, seems intent on driving away the very same talent the European Union is rolling out the red carpet to welcome.

The writer is chairman of Intel Corp., which employs about 2,000 employees with H-1B visas among its 86,000 workers worldwide.

cnag

12-31-2007, 10:49 AM

http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1231/p09s02-coop.html

styrum

01-10-2008, 02:01 PM

The below text is from:

http://www.workpermit.com/news/2008-01-04/world/immigration-encourages-prosperity.htm

Go to http://www.economist.com and search for "immigration encourages prosperity"

You will find that most likely the actual article was called "Keep the borders open" from Jan 3rd 2008 The Economist print edition. The same issue contains another good article, "Open up", which will also be returned as a result for the above mentioned search.

'Immigration encourages prosperity'

Limiting immigration is a threat to prosperity across the globe, according to a recent article in the Economist.

The author highlighted recent events such as the Italian backlash against its migrant Romanian population. Voters in France, Switzerland, and Denmark have also been rewarding their politicians for anti-immigration stances.

While politicians in most developed nations make gestures towards limiting immigration in a bid to attract support, the major forces that drive migration are not likely to diminish anytime soon.

Immigration is mainly driven by economic factors; the countries that encourage economic migration have benefitted from the inflow of skills and talent from around the world.

Nations such as New Zealand and Australia have systems in place for the migration of skilled individuals because they recognize the need to attract talent when borders are not easily crossed. Both nations allow skilled migrants to get residence in their country without the need of a job offer if they qualify under their respective points based systems.

Even the European Union, while faced with waves of illegal immigration on its southern borders, realizes the economic reality that most developed nations face. The European Commission recently proposed a "blue card" that would allow skilled migrants with a job offer to live and work anywhere in the 27-member bloc, and even bring their family.

"History has shown that immigration encourages prosperity," the Economist article states. "Tens of millions of Europeans who made it to the New World in the 19th and 20th centuries improved their lot, just as the near 40m foreign-born are doing in America today."

And it's not just the United States and other developed nations that are benefitting. Migrants have been sending billions of dollars to their home countries, according to recent figures from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

And while some argue that increased immigration can create brain drain in developing nations, migrants are also studying abroad and bringing their skills back home. Money sent home is also funding education for family members.

Still, the article states that there is no guarentee that migration will continue at the current record rates.

"But easier movement of capital and goods has helped to make the world a much richer place in the past decade or two, and more human mobility has both created wealth and helped to share it out more equally," the author said.

styrum

01-10-2008, 02:08 PM

Open up
Jan 3rd 2008
From The Economist print edition

Despite a growing backlash, the boom in migration has been mostly good for both sending and recipient countries, says Adam Roberts (interviewed here)

ENOCH POWELL had a point. The Conservative British politician gave warning, nearly four decades ago, that immigrants were causing such strife that “like the Roman, I seem to see the River Tiber foaming with much blood.” That proved to be nonsense, as did his advice that migrants should be encouraged to leave. Had they done so, Britain and other rich countries that depend heavily on foreign labour would be in a dreadful state. But one prediction he made was spot on: that by about now, one in ten people in Britain would be migrants. And indeed, at the last count in 2005, the foreign-born made up 9.7% of the British population.

By historical standards, that is high. It is a lot more than a decade ago, and the trend is resolutely upwards. Yet it is not dissimilar to that in many other rich countries, which have mostly seen equally rapid increases. And it is still lower than in America, where the proportion is now about 13%, not far off the 15% peak reached just before the first world war, in the previous great era of migration. What is particularly striking in Europe is that many countries which until recently had known only emigration, such as Ireland or Greece, are now seeing the sort of influx more typical of countries such as Australia and America.

This special report will argue that both emigration and immigration countries, as well as the migrants themselves, have been coping remarkably well with this new force that is reshaping our world. Yet there are now signs of a serious backlash against immigration on both sides of the Atlantic. In 2007 activists in America smashed a bill to make immigration easier that had the backing of the president and the leaders of both big parties in Congress. In France, Nicolas Sarkozy won the presidential elections partly thanks to his anti-migrant rhetoric. But this is still a far cry from Mr Powell's doom-mongering.

Politicians in rich countries may tinker with migration policies. They will certainly, under public pressure, put extra resources and energy into building more fences and walls to keep people out. And by making a connection between immigration and terrorism, they may cause their societies to become more heavily policed. But the basic forces driving migration are unlikely to ebb.

Counting the ways
People who cross international borders are often categorised by their motives, and some of these categories are seen as less desirable than others. Most migrants move for economic reasons, many in search of jobs, some to be united with relatives. Most appear to be doing so legally. America in 2002-06 allowed in an average of just over 1m legal immigrants a year who planned to settle permanently, more than half of them sponsored by relatives. Another 320,000 a year entered temporarily.

The number of illegal migrants is by definition hard to ascertain, but likely to be smaller than the legal sort. The illegals also go for economic reasons, and they probably make up the bulk of people seen floating on rafts in the Mediterranean or scrabbling over the fence from Mexico to America. Many illegal migrants do not risk the high seas or physical borders but instead enter under some other guise, perhaps as tourists, and then stay on. In that same period of 2002-06, America's population is thought to have seen a net gain of 500,000 illegal migrants every year. Within the European Union it has become impossible to keep a tally because people can move legally among most of the member countries without asking anyone. Britain, as an island, should find it easier than most to know how many foreigners it has allowed in, but its statistics on migrants have recently turned out to be way off the mark.

Lastly, there are refugees and asylum-seekers, strictly defined as those escaping persecution but often including anybody forced to flee, for example from a war. According to the UN's refugee agency, at the close of 2006 some 10m people fell into this category. Many go through legal channels, applying for refugee status and then asylum. But others join illegal migrants in trying to reach host countries by raft or by jumping over a fence. Genuine refugees may have no alternative.

The 200m question
The number of migrants in the world today, both legal and illegal, is thought to total perhaps 200m (though many of the figures, even those used by governments, are at best educated guesses). That sounds a lot, but it adds up to only 3% of the world's population, so there is great potential for growth. Migration has turned out to be a successful strategy for the world's poor to make their lives a little better. Nor is it the very poorest who travel. You need money to move to another part of the world. Thus as Africa, China and other emerging countries become less poor, many more people can aspire to travel in search of a better life.

In the 100 years to 1920, such prospects encouraged some 60m Europeans to uproot themselves and move to the New World. A European who crossed the Atlantic could expect to double his income. Today the incentives are even more enticing. Those who move from a poor country to a rich one can expect to see their income rise fivefold or more. As long as such differentials persist, the draw will continue.

These days, too, demography is playing a big part in migration. Not every migrant is aiming for America or Europe: perhaps two in every five move to another poor or middle-income country. But those who go to the richest parts of the world do their inhabitants a favour. Without migrants, the greying and increasingly choosy populations in much of the rich world would already be on the decline today. That matters for their fast-changing economies, which increasingly demand either highly skilled workers or people willing to do unpleasant and tiring jobs.

One reason why much of the world has enjoyed a sustained economic boom with low inflation in the past decade is that the effective global workforce is expanding so fast. The IMF says it has quadrupled since 1980 as China and India have plugged their huge young populations into the world economy. It is likely to keep on growing, though at a slower pace, with a 40% increase in the world's working-age population forecast by 2050. According to the UN,the global stock of migrants has more than doubled in the past four decades. Not enough young natives have the right skills or motivation, so the rich must hope that outsiders will keep coming.

And they will. Luckily for Europe and America, there are huge pools of eager workers ready to jump on the next plane, train or leaking raft to work abroad. This can be beneficial for their home countries as well, at least as long as the population is growing fast. The IMF says that emigration from Belize, El Salvador, Guyana and Jamaica, for example, may have led to higher wages and less poverty. Some Chinese from the heavily populated east coast are moving out, despite a fast-growing economy. Researchers in Africa report a recent rapid inflow of Chinese workers.

If exporting brawn generally makes sense for a poor country, sending its better brains away may not. Most, perhaps all, poor and middle-income countries face chronic shortages of skilled workers. In South Africa, although universities churn out graduates at a fast clip, many well-qualified people promptly depart for Britain or Australia, leaving tens of thousands of jobs unfilled at home. In Morocco those with science and engineering degrees, computer skills and languages go to France, the Netherlands and Canada, whereas the students of literature and public administration stay at home. Professor Mohamed Khachami, of AMERM, a migration think-tank in Rabat, laments that his country lacks people to build better internet connections, yet Paris now has an association for Moroccan IT engineers. Hospitals and clinics in southern Africa struggle to cope with huge public-health problems as doctors and nurses pack their bags for jobs in the Gulf, Europe and elsewhere. It is a similar story for schools.

Those in demand abroad are the hardest people to keep at home. Some European countries tried, and failed, to stop artisans emigrating to America in the early 19th century. In fact it is almost impossible to block the exit for the highly skilled if the lure is strong enough. Small countries such as Jamaica, Trinidad and Senegal have seen half to three-quarters of all their graduates move abroad.

Rich countries have taken in more highly skilled migrants than ever before. The World Bank looked at a sample drawn from 52m migrants in 20 rich countries in 2000 and found that 36% of them had a college education, a sharp rise on a decade earlier. Yet emigration of skilled workers may be a consequence rather than a cause of problems in the sending country. For example, nurses may be quitting Malawi because their salaries are not being paid or because hospitals are crumbling; entrepreneurs may be moving abroad because the business climate back home is wretched. Stopping emigration, even if you could, would not solve the problems. The nurses might still leave their jobs, the would-be entrepreneur might sit on his hands.

Indeed, some argue that emigration can help to add to the stock of brainpower. Migrants who go abroad may spend more time studying, pick up more skills and experience and then bring them all home again. Remittances are often used to fund schooling. And the prospect of emigration and prosperity abroad may be an inducement for many more to get an education. All this suggests that the consequences of skilled emigration are difficult to calculate, even if they are not negligible.

styrum

01-10-2008, 02:08 PM

Governments of sending countries would do well to tackle whatever factors are pushing their skilled people out in the first place. Malawi, which exports a lot of nurses, should of course worry that it lacks medical staff. It is said that there are more Malawian nurses in Manchester than back home. But, perhaps with donors' help, more investment in public health could be combined with a strategy of training many more nurses than are needed, allowing for future emigration and the other benefits that brings. If migrants can be tempted back home, even for short spells, all the better. Ghana, for example, has raised wages for some medical staff and offered incentives to the highest-skilled to come back. Money is not the only concern: staff are also allowed parts of the year to work abroad, giving a boost to their careers.

There is no guarantee that migration will carry on at record rates. It is possible to seal borders tightly enough to keep more people out if those inside are ready to pay the price. An earlier period of great migration came to an end, for example, when America some 90 years ago shut its doors to immigrants for a while.

But easier movement of capital and goods has helped to make the world a much richer place in the past decade or two, and more human mobility has both created wealth and helped to share it out more equally. The billions sent around the world in remittances each year is testimony to that. The price of keeping people out would be high.

And unexpected things keep happening. Wars can suddenly displace millions of people who may start off as refugees but end up as migrants. Some people think that climate change might force tens of millions of people to get moving within just a few decades. Misguided policies, a backlash over terrorism or a failure to integrate migrants could all cause serious problems. All the same, it seems clear, 40 years on, that Mr Powell got everything but his sums completely wrong.

styrum

01-10-2008, 02:11 PM

Keep the borders open
Jan 3rd 2008
From The Economist print edition

The backlash against immigrants in the rich world is a threat to prosperity everywhere

ITALIANS blame gypsies from Romania for a spate of crime. British politicians of all stripes promise to curb the rapid immigration of recent years. Voters in France, Switzerland and Denmark last year rewarded politicians who promised to keep out strangers. In America, too, huddled masses are less welcome as many presidential candidates promise to fence off Mexico. And around the rich world, immigration has been rising to the top of voters' lists of concerns—which, for those who believe that migration greatly benefits both recipient and donor countries, is a worry in itself.

As our special report this week argues, immigration takes many forms. The influx of Poles to Britain, of Mexicans to America, of Zimbabweans to South Africa and of Bangladeshis to the Persian Gulf has different causes and consequences in each case. But most often migration is about young, motivated, dynamic people seeking to better themselves by hard work.

History has shown that immigration encourages prosperity. Tens of millions of Europeans who made it to the New World in the 19th and 20th centuries improved their lot, just as the near 40m foreign-born are doing in America today. Many migrants return home with new skills, savings, technology and bright ideas. Remittances to poor countries in 2006 were worth at least $260 billion—more, in many countries, than aid and foreign investment combined. Letting in migrants does vastly more good for the world's poor than stuffing any number of notes into Oxfam tins.

The movement of people also helps the rich world. Prosperous countries with greying workforces rely ever more on young foreigners. Indeed, advanced economies compete vigorously for outsiders' skills. Around a third of the Americans who won Nobel prizes in physics in the past seven years were born abroad. About 40% of science and engineering PhDs working in America are immigrants. Around a third of Silicon Valley companies were started by Indians and Chinese. The low-skilled are needed too, especially in farming, services and care for children and the elderly. It is no coincidence that countries that welcome immigrants—such as Sweden, Ireland, America and Britain—have better economic records than those that shun them.

Face the fears
Given all these gains, why the backlash? Partly because politicians prefer to pander to xenophobic fears than to explain immigration's benefits. But not all fear of foreigners is irrational. Voters have genuine concerns. Large numbers of incomers may be unsettling; economic gloom makes natives fear for their jobs; sharp disparities of income across borders threaten rich countries with floods of foreigners; outsiders who look and sound notably different from their hosts may find it hard to integrate. To keep borders open, such fears have to be acknowledged and dealt with, not swept under the carpet.

Immigration can, for instance, hurt the least skilled by depressing their wages. But these workers are at greater risk from new technology and foreign goods. The answer is not to impoverish the whole economy by keeping out immigrants but to equip this group with the skills it anyway needs.

Americans object to the presence of around 12m illegal migrant workers in a country with high rates of legal migration. But given the American economy's reliance on them, it is not just futile but also foolish to build taller fences to keep them out. Better for Congress to resume its efforts to bring such workers out of the shadows, by opening more routes for legal, perhaps temporary, migration, and an amnesty for long-standing, law-abiding workers already in the country. Politicians in rich countries should also be honest about, and quicker to raise spending to deal with, the strains that immigrants place on public services.

It is not all about money, however. As the London Tube bombers and Paris's burning banlieues have shown, the social integration of new arrivals is also crucial. The advent of Islamist terrorism has sharpened old fears that incoming foreigners may fail to adopt the basic values of the host country. Tackling this threat will never be simple. But nor would blocking migration do much to stop the dedicated terrorist. Better to seek ways to isolate the extremist fringe, by making a greater effort to inculcate common values of citizenship where these are lacking, and through a flexible labour market to provide the disaffected with rewarding jobs.

Above all, perspective is needed. The vast population movements of the past four decades have not brought the social strife the scaremongers predicted. On the contrary, they have offered a better life for millions of migrants and enriched the receiving countries both culturally and materially. But to preserve these great benefits in the future, politicians need the courage not only to speak up against the populist tide in favour of the gains immigration can bring, but also to deal honestly with the problems it can sometimes cause.

immigrationvoice1

01-18-2008, 11:57 AM

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ilb1VQgAW9BzBhEh3m65jsusxvjgD8U7T6AO1

Lawmakers Criticize Immigration Backup
By SUZANNE GAMBOA – 18 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — A deluge of immigration applications in the months preceding a filing fee increase last year should have been foreseen, lawmakers on Thursday told Bush administration officials.

Previous increases in immigration application fees have been preceded by spikes in applications, said Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif. Application increases have also been seen in years before elections because people want to vote, she said.

Some 1.4 million people applied for naturalization in the 2007 fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30.

More than half were submitted in the summer months, just before Citizenship and Immigration Services, a Homeland Security Department agency, significantly increased applications fees. The flood of applications means people who applied after June 1, 2007 to become citizens won't naturalize in time to vote in November's elections.

"This should not have been a surprise. It was totally predictable," Lofgren said after presiding over a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on the applications backlog.

Emilio Gonzalez, Citizenship and Immigration Services director, said his agency did anticipate an increase in applications and the increase was manageable. "What we did not anticipate, and I'll be honest with you, is a 350 percent increase in one month," Gonzalez told the subcommittee.

Members of immigration groups said they warned Citizenship and Immigration Services as early as November 2006, about likely application increases. The groups raised the issue because they were launching a national campaign to help eligible immigrants in the U.S. become citizens and eventually register to vote.

"With the fee increases announced, with the kind of debate this nation was having on the role of immigrants, we could have seen this coming ourselves," said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund.

Vargas said the agency was expecting increases to be confined to California.

Gonzalez said the agency will soon conduct six classes of 48 students each to train workers to deal with the increased workload. Also, the agency is hiring an additional 1,500 workers, about half of whom will be trained to adjudicate files. The agency has asked the White House for permission to transfer money between accounts to address the backlog, Lofgren said.

But the agency faces the challenge of a backlog of FBI name checks that slow down application processing.

styrum

01-18-2008, 04:35 PM

Here is the link to full texts of the testimonies during that hearing mentioned in NY Times article:

Thursday 01/17/2008 - 10:00 AM
2141 Rayburn House Office Building
Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law
Hearing on Naturalization Delays: Causes, Consequences and Solutions

http://judiciary.house.gov/oversight.aspx?ID=403

Panel I:

Emilio T. Gonzalez Ph.D.
Director U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Department of Homeland Security
http://judiciary.house.gov/media/pdfs/Gonzalez080117.pdf

Panel II:

Arturo Vargas
Executive Director
NALEO Educational Fund
http://judiciary.house.gov/media/pdfs/Vargas080117.pdf

Fred Tsao
Policy Director
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
http://judiciary.house.gov/media/pdfs/Tsao080117.pdf

Rosemary Jenks
Director of Government Relations Numbers USA
http://judiciary.house.gov/media/pdfs/Jenks080117.pdf

A rep from our long-term friends, an anti-immigrant hate group, was invited to this hearing as a witness!!!!!!!!

akred

01-27-2008, 09:31 PM

http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/career/article.php/11067_3722876_1

Who Killed the Software Engineer? (Hint: It Happened in College)
January 21, 2008
By James Maguire

A conversation with Robert Dewar is enough to make you wonder about the future of the American software engineer. Dewar, a professor emeritus of computer science at New York University, believes that U.S. colleges are turning out programmers who are – there’s no nice way to say this – essentially incompetent.

To support his claim, Dewar penned a scathing broadside decrying today’s college-level computer science training. (The article was co-authored by Edmond Schonberg, also a CS professor emeritus at NYU.) Entitled Computer Science Education: Where are the Software Engineers of Tomorrow?, the widely read article has prompted heated discussion throughout the tech industry.

To sum up Dewar’s argument: today’s college computer science programs aren’t rigorous enough, and don’t promote in-depth thinking and problem solving. Instead, in an effort to boost enrollment, CS programs focus on easily accessible curricula, and so fail to prepare students to compete with their international peers.

One of the article’s main points (one that was misunderstood, Dewar tells me) is that the adoption of Java as a first programming language in college courses has led to this decline. Not exactly. Yes, Dewar believes that Java’s graphic libraries allow students to cobble together software without understanding the underlying source code.

But the problem with CS programs goes far beyond their focus on Java, he says.
“A lot of it is, ‘Let’s make this all more fun.’ You know, ‘Math is not fun, let’s reduce math requirements. Algorithms are not fun, let’s get rid of them. Ewww – graphic libraries, they’re fun. Let’s have people mess with libraries. And [forget] all this business about ‘command line’ – we’ll have people use nice visual interfaces where they can point and click and do fancy graphic stuff and have fun."

Dewar says his email in-box is crammed full of positive responses to his article, from students as well as employers. Many readers have thanked him for speaking up about a situation they believe needs addressing, he says.
One email was from an IT staffer who is working with a junior programmer. The older worker suggested that the young engineer check the call stack to see about a problem, but unfortunately, “he’d never heard of a call stack.”

Mama, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys (or Computer Programmers)

At fault, in Dewar’s view, are universities that are desperate to make up for lower enrollment in CS programs – even if that means gutting the programs.
It’s widely acknowledged that enrollments in computer science programs have declined. The chief causes: the dotcom crash made a CS career seem scary, and the never-ending headlines about outsourcing makes it seem even scarier. Once seen as a reliable meal ticket, some concerned parents now view CS with an anxiety usually reserved for Sociology or Philosophy degrees.

Why waste your time?

College administrators are understandably alarmed by smaller student head counts. “Universities tend to be in the raw numbers mode,” Dewar says. “‘Oh my God, the number of computer science majors has dropped by a factor of two, how are we going to reverse that?’”

They’ve responded, he claims, by dumbing down programs, hoping to make them more accessible and popular. Aspects of curriculum that are too demanding, or perceived as tedious, are downplayed in favor of simplified material that attracts a larger enrollment. This effort is counterproductive, Dewar says.

“To me, raw numbers are not necessarily the first concern. The first concern is that people get a good education.”
These students who have been spoon-fed easy material aren’t prepared to compete globally. Dewar, who also co-owns a software company and so deals with clients and programmers internationally, says, “We see French engineers much better trained than American engineers,” coming out of school.

Okay, So He’s Not Fond of Java

One of the most ill-considered steps that universities took was to adopt Java as the most widely used language in introductory programming courses, Dewar says. Driving this change was a desire to make CS programs more popular.

He recalls a discussion among the NYU faculty several years ago when they decided to switch the introductory language from Pascal to Java. Pascal had never been that successful in industry, yet this lack of market acceptance didn’t matter; learning Pascal tended to promote solid programming practices.
“They taught Pascal because it seemed to be pedagogically the best choice,” Dewar says.

Yet the switch to Java was made “purely on the basis of perceived student demand.” To be sure, it’s a popular code for Web applications and is relatively easy for novices to navigate. Yet it is exactly this ease that goes to the core of what’s wrong with today’s CS curriculums.

“If you go into a store and buy a Java book, it’s 1,200 pages; 300 pages are the language and 900 pages are miscellaneous libraries. And it is true that you can sort of cobble things together in Java very easily…so you can sort of throw things together with minimal knowledge,” he says. “But to me, that’s not software engineering, that’s some kind of consuming-level programming.”
In Dewar’s view, today’s young Java jockey is not so much a programmer as a Programmer Wanna-Be. For example, “Many Java developers have no idea what storage management is about. So consequently they’re quite surprised if they have a storage leak which results from them not being careful about purging junk from their accumulating data structures.”

Furthermore, “The trouble with Java is that it hides a lot of stuff…it hides the issue of compiling – what is a compiler doing? I think if I was to talk to a Java student coming out, they might not even know the word ‘compiler.’ If they do, I’m sure I won’t get a clear picture if I asked, ‘What does a compiler do?’”
The most pressing problem, in Dewar’s view: “If people come out of school and they know Java and web programming, and they know how to put things together from libraries, that’s just the kind of skills that are not going to be demand.” Jobs requiring nothing more than these low-level skills set can easily be shipped off to low wage countries.

In short, today’s Java library cobbler is tomorrow’s pizza delivery man.

Who should (and Shouldn’t) be in Computer Science?

It takes a person with a very specific set of inclinations and talents to be a computer programmer, Dewar notes. It’s these specific people who colleges should gear their CS programs for – not the mass of semi-interested people who use pre-built libraries to create uninspired apps.

“Most of us who got into programming really did it because we find it fun. We find the intellectual challenge fun. We find being faced with tricky problems, then figuring out interesting algorithmic solutions, fun. We find clever data structures that solve some interesting problem fun.”

“Maybe it’s not fun to a bigger audience, but computer science education should be more about finding those people who like that kind of fun, and catering to them, rather than [making it all easy].”

“If people find it boring to compute some interesting value, then run that program and get a value of 42 when it should be 83, and figure out why they’ve gotten 42 instead of 83, if they find that tedious and boring, they really aren’t the kind of people we need.”

purgan

01-31-2008, 02:35 AM

http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/fromcomments/220164.php

Grijalva is a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus

Opinion
Immigration reform needn't wait until '09
Our view: U.S. lawmakers should look for chances to enact meaningful changes
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 01.14.2008
advertisementWhen Congress failed to pass a comprehensive immigration-reform bill last summer, many observers, including us, thought overhauling the nation's broken immigration system would have to wait until after this year's elections. That still might be the case, but we're encouraged to hear that our local representatives would welcome the opportunity to do something before 2009.
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., told the Star's editorial board last week that immigration reform is one of her top priorities for 2008.
Giffords' statement was surprising because the rhetoric surrounding illegal immigration remains red hot, and it doesn't help that presidential hopefuls like Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney seem to be competing for the title of "most anti-immigrant candidate."
Despite the charged political climate, Giffords, who supported last year's failed STRIVE Act, said, "I'm hopeful. I really think we can get something done. I don't control the agenda, but I'm going to push for reform. For me, it's a keystone issue. We have to make progress."
Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., also said he would look for opportunities this year to fix the immigration system, but he cautioned that they have to be the right opportunities.
Grijalva said, for instance, that he likely wouldn't support legislation to increase the number of H-1B visas and other permits for highly-skilled technical workers, nurses and researchers without also increasing the number of visas for low-skilled workers that are needed by the agriculture and service industries.Giffords said she is working on a bill to increase the number of H-1B visas the country gives out each year.
"The number of H-1B visas is a legitimate issue, but it's too narrow a focus," Grijalva said. "If we're going to open up the box and take care of one industry, there's no reason we can't help other industries as well."
We agree.
While Congress doesn't necessarily need to pass a huge bill like STRIVE, which, in effect, tried to fix the illegal immigration problem in one fell swoop, it does need to make meaningful changes. If universities and technology companies get more access to foreign labor, so should farmers and the hospitality industry.
Passing any sort of immigration-reform bill this year will be a challenge, but we encourage lawmakers to try and to make sure they pass good policy in the process.

Administrator2

02-02-2008, 07:42 AM

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-immigration_11bus.ART0.State.Edition2.37b4ce6.html

valuablehurdle

02-09-2008, 09:33 AM

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080209/ap_on_go_pr_wh/immigration_backlogs

By SUZANNE GAMBOA, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 56 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - President Bush is asking Congress to spend money to help businesses root out illegal workers but he did not request additional funds to help legal immigrants become American citizens more quickly.

ADVERTISEMENT

In his budget proposal issued this week, Bush asked for $100 million to expand E-Verify, the system employers use to check whether they are hiring documented workers. He didn't ask Congress to allocate money to chip away at millions of citizenship and other immigration applications that flooded the government last summer, before an increase in the agency's filing fees.

Instead, Citizenship and Immigration Services will rely on $468 million in fees to pay for reducing the backlog by 2010. Those funds are a portion of the total fees that came in with the applications this summer.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the summer's fee increases will give the agency the money it needs to get back on track.

"People always argue well you ought to fund this, you ought to fund that. That's great, but the pie is only as big as it is and no one ever comes up with this slice they want to give back in return for this," Chertoff said.

A total 7.7 million applications for various immigration benefits poured into Citizenship and Immigration Services in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2007. That's 1.4 million more than the previous fiscal year.

"The backlogs are pretty much back where they were when they started and the agency is back to doing what it used to do, which is robbing Peter to pay Paul. Right now they are taking resources from permanent residence to do citizenship," said Crystal Williams, associate director for programs at the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

The immigration agency increased fees in July largely to raise about $1.5 billion to pay for modernizing computer equipment, hiring and training more workers, improving field offices and other spending.

Becoming a citizen now costs $595, up from $330. The price to get a green card is $1,010, up from $395. Applicants for both pay another $80 each for digital fingerprinting, a $10 increase.

Congress gave the immigration agency $100 million a year over five years through 2006 to reduce the immigration backlogs. Agency Director Emilio Gonzalez announced in September 2006 the backlog had fallen to about 139,0000 cases. About 1 million applications in the backlog that were incomplete, from people still awaiting visas or whose FBI name check was delayed, were not counted.

The administration deserves credit for securing the $500 million from Congress for the backlog, said Doris Meissner, former Immigration and Naturalization Service Commissioner under President Clinton.

"They broke through the idea that this should just be purely financed by the applicant fees themselves," said Meissner, a senior fellow with Migration Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. "But it was finite."

Since 1988, the work of Citizenship and Immigration Services and its predecessor, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, has been largely paid for by revenue from application fees. Congress has provided money for specific projects over the years, but generally those have been limited to a few years. Sometimes fee money has been diverted for things like detention centers.

The result has been an agency constantly shifting resources to respond to the latest crisis, critics say.

"Every time the system breaks down, they are incentivizing people to say, 'Screw the system, I'll just overstay my visa.'" said James Jay Carifano, a research fellow with the conservative Heritage Foundation think tank.

Immigration officials say they will be able to chip away at the backlogs as 1,500 new workers are hired and trained. Things should be back where they were before the application spike by 2010, the agency's spokeswoman Chris Rhatigan said.

Williams thinks that's an optimistic prediction. The 7.7 million applications the agency received last year amount to about three years of work, she said.

___

GCisLottery

02-11-2008, 09:45 PM

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/12/washington/12checks.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

Rules Eased to Expedite Green Card Applications

By JULIA PRESTON
Published: February 12, 2008

If an immigrant’s application for a residence visa has been in the system for more than six months and the only missing piece is a name check by the F.B.I., immigration officers will now be allowed to approve the application, according to a memorandum posted Monday on the Web site of the federal Citizenship and Immigration Services agency.

The document was written by Michael Aytes, the agency’s associate director for domestic operations.

.....will still be required to complete two other security checks: an F.B.I. criminal fingerprint check and a search in a federal criminal and anti-terrorist database known as Interagency Border Inspection Services.

....Representative Zoe Lofgren, Democrat of California and chairwoman of the House immigration subcommittee, said the number of immigrants who had ever been rejected solely as a result of an F.B.I. name check was “microscopic.”

manderson

02-12-2008, 09:09 AM

http://www.rollcall.com/issues/53_92/news/22035-1.html

Immigration Moves Eyed
By Steven T. Dennis, Roll Call Staff

House Democrats are crafting scaled-down immigration reform legislation despite the political minefields that surround the issue, with Hispanic Members seeking five-year visas for illegal immigrants who pay fines and pass criminal background checks.

Immigration reform had been left for dead after last year's Senate train wreck, but pressures for at least stopgap immigration legislation have bubbled up within the Democratic Caucus.

It's unclear if the behind-the-scenes discussions will actually result in a bill coming to the floor, but Democrats say drafts of legislation already have been written and are being vetted behind the scenes.

"There is the formation of a consensus," said Rep. Joe Baca (D-Calif.), chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, who said he's seen a draft bill. "We're looking at some kind of a compromise. It's still comprehensive in nature but not to the extent we would like."

Baca said the prospects for a compromise package were discussed in high-level meetings Wednesday that included Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel (Ill.) and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), who chairs the Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security and International Law. Baca said the emerging legislation did not have the broader reforms included in last year's failed Senate immigration overhaul or in earlier measures backed by Hispanics, such as the DREAM Act.

But Baca said the key piece for Hispanics is a five-year visa for illegal immigrants who can prove they have a job. The visa is well short of past bills that would grant permanent legal status, which critics decried as "amnesty."

"There is no path towards citizenship," Baca said. "There are still fines and criminal background checks and you have to pay back taxes. This is what the taxpayers want."

Baca said Democrats still are trying to work out exactly how the new visas would work or be enforced.

Baca said there also would be an expansion of visas for technical, temporary and agricultural workers -- measures strongly backed by businesses and many Republicans.

But whether House leaders will actually put immigration on the floor with such a controversial provision as visas for illegal immigrants in an election year remains an open question.

Just last month at a Jan. 25 press conference, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) predicted nothing would happen this year on immigration, blaming the president for failing to get enough Republican support last year.

"I don't think we'll get anything done this year," Reid said at a National Press Club event with Pelosi. "We have the presidential election, we have a number of very important House and Senate races, and our time is really squeezed."

Pelosi also sounded a pessimistic note at the press conference. "If it isn't going to happen in the Senate, it's not going to happen. But it doesn't mean that it doesn't need to happen, and we have to continue to work together because there are too many aspects of our economy, if we're just talking pragmatically, that depend on a comprehensive immigration reform."

Emanuel said Thursday at a press conference that House Democrats are looking to address both the issues of legal and illegal immigration without waiting on the Senate, although he did not discuss specifics.

"There are things that are happening in our respective communities and districts around the country and businesses that we have to address and we can't wait for the Senate," he said.

Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.) said Republican support will be key. "We think there's a bipartisan desire to do something on immigration that deals with our sovereign right to regulate our borders, to deal with the workplace, and to deal with the 10 million to 12 million people who are here, many of whom don't deserve to stay, many of whom have earned a chance, if we require them to learn English and abide by all of our laws. But we have to have some bipartisan support."

Lofgren confirmed Thursday that she is in negotiations over new legislation, but she declined to discuss the details of the new bill, other than to say, "It's not comprehensive immigration reform." Lofgren added that she is reaching out to Republicans on the issue and hopes to reach a compromise.

Hispanics have resisted expanding visas sought by businesses unless broader immigration issues are addressed.

The immigration issue also could be affected by the emergence of Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) as the Republican frontrunner for president, given his support for last year's failed immigration deal. That appeared to offer just a sliver of daylight to the issue.

A re-emergence of immigration in the coming months would put McCain in a politically awkward position, as he has been seeking to repair ties to conservatives who despise his past support for a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, and yet he will be looking ahead to a general election in which the Hispanic vote could prove critical.

"It depends on which John McCain steps forward," Becerra said of whether McCain's emergence will help move the issue.

Pelosi's office also highlighted the bipartisan angle.

"The Democratic Caucus is continuing to discuss a wide variety of immigration issues, but long-term immigration reform must be comprehensive and bipartisan," said Pelosi spokesman Nadeam Elshami.

But even Republicans who have backed past bipartisan reform efforts are not optimistic anything will happen this election year. Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), the co-author of comprehensive legislation backed by Hispanics last year, said he doesn't see anything happening beyond some tweaking of the level of work visas until the next Congress.

A House GOP leadership aide also dismissed the idea that such legislation would move.

Even if Democratic leaders wanted to ignore the issue wholesale until after the elections, they may not be able to, given the pressure bubbling up within the party. In addition to Hispanics, leaders face pressure from more conservative Democrats who back a package of enforcement measures sponsored by Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.).

"A lot of Members in more conservative districts want to be able to cast a vote they can run on," said Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala.), who supports the Shuler legislation. But, Davis asserted, action on that measure should not preclude other legislation from moving ahead.

Democratic leaders could conceivably face a discharge petition on the issue, although any enforcement-only measure would be sure to invite a revolt by Hispanics.

Baca said the legislation under consideration could have some enforcement measures, adding that too much could bog it down.

Jennifer Yachnin contributed to this report.

crystal

02-13-2008, 03:53 PM

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/13/opinion/13reich.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&oref=slogin

WE’RE sliding into recession, or worse, and Washington is turning to the normal remedies for economic downturns. But the normal remedies are not likely to work this time, because this isn’t a normal downturn.

The problem lies deeper. It is the culmination of three decades during which American consumers have spent beyond their means. That era is now coming to an end. Consumers have run out of ways to keep the spending binge going.

The only lasting remedy, other than for Americans to accept a lower standard of living and for businesses to adjust to a smaller economy, is to give middle- and lower-income Americans more buying power — and not just temporarily.

Much of the current debate is irrelevant. Even with more tax breaks for business like accelerated depreciation, companies won’t invest in more factories or equipment when demand is dropping for products and services across the board, as it is now. And temporary fixes like a stimulus package that would give households a one-time cash infusion won’t get consumers back to the malls, because consumers know the assistance is temporary. The problems most consumers face are permanent, so they are likely to pocket the extra money instead of spending it.

Another Fed rate cut might unfreeze credit markets and give consumers access to somewhat cheaper loans, but there’s no going back to the easy money of a few years ago. Lenders and borrowers have been badly burned, and the values of houses and other assets are dropping faster than interest rates can be lowered.

The underlying problem has been building for decades. America’s median hourly wage is barely higher than it was 35 years ago, adjusted for inflation. The income of a man in his 30s is now 12 percent below that of a man his age three decades ago. Most of what’s been earned in America since then has gone to the richest 5 percent.

Yet the rich devote a smaller percentage of their earnings to buying things than the rest of us because, after all, they’re rich. They already have most of what they want. Instead of buying, and thus stimulating the American economy, the rich are more likely to invest their earnings wherever around the world they can get the highest return.

The problem has been masked for years as middle- and lower-income Americans found ways to live beyond their paychecks. But now they have run out of ways.

The first way was to send more women into paid work. Most women streamed into the work force in the 1970s less because new professional opportunities opened up to them than because they had to prop up family incomes. The percentage of American working mothers with school-age children has almost doubled since 1970 — to more than 70 percent. But there’s a limit to how many mothers can maintain paying jobs.

So Americans turned to a second way of spending beyond their hourly wages. They worked more hours. The typical American now works more each year than he or she did three decades ago. Americans became veritable workaholics, putting in 350 more hours a year than the average European, more even than the notoriously industrious Japanese.

But there’s also a limit to how many hours Americans can put into work, so Americans turned to a third way of spending beyond their wages. They began to borrow. With housing prices rising briskly through the 1990s and even faster from 2002 to 2006, they turned their homes into piggy banks by refinancing home mortgages and taking out home-equity loans. But this third strategy also had a built-in limit. With the bursting of the housing bubble, the piggy banks are closing.

The binge seems to be over. We’re finally reaping the whirlwind of widening inequality and ever more concentrated wealth.

The only way to keep the economy going over the long run is to increase the wages of the bottom two-thirds of Americans. The answer is not to protect jobs through trade protection. That would only drive up the prices of everything purchased from abroad. Most routine jobs are being automated anyway.

A larger earned-income tax credit, financed by a higher marginal income tax on top earners, is required. The tax credit functions like a reverse income tax. Enlarging it would mean giving workers at the bottom a bigger wage supplement, as well as phasing it out at a higher wage. The current supplement for a worker with two children who earns up to $16,000 a year is about $5,000. That amount declines as earnings increase and is eliminated at about $38,000. It should be increased to, say, $8,000 at the low end and phased out at an income of $46,000.

We also need stronger unions, especially in the local service sector that’s sheltered from global competition. Employees should be able to form a union without the current protracted certification process that gives employers too much opportunity to intimidate or coerce them. Workers should be able to decide whether to form a union with a simple majority vote.

And employers who fire workers for trying to organize should have to pay substantial fines. Right now, the typical penalty is back pay for the worker, plus interest — a slap on the wrist.

Over the longer term, inequality can be reversed only through better schools for children in lower- and moderate-income communities. This will require, at the least, good preschools, fewer students per classroom and better pay for teachers in such schools, in order to attract the teaching talent these students need.

These measures are necessary to give Americans enough buying power to keep the American economy going. They are also needed to overcome widening inequality, and thereby keep America in one piece.

Robert B. Reich, a professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, is the author, most recently, of “Supercapitalism.”

madhu345

02-13-2008, 10:19 PM

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/bestoftv/2008/02/04/intv.dobbs.vs.murguia.cnn?iref=24hours

manderson

02-17-2008, 10:59 AM

(Found this link to a Washington Times article in Siskind's Blog)

http://video1.washingtontimes.com/dinan/2008/02/mccain_nomination_could_give_d.html
(http://video1.washingtontimes.com/dinan/)
Dems could see immigration silver lining in McCain

Could McCain's nomination mean an immigration deal this year?

Greg Siskind has come up with a scenario (http://www.visalaw.com/08feb1/1feb108.html)that argues Democrats should be tempted, now that John McCain is the likely Republican nominee, is to rush an immigration bill through this year.
"Do you think the GOP is going to allow their rank-and-file members to attack their nominee day in day out over the immigration issue? If they do, the results could be disastrous as McCain will be going around the country trying to unite a very fractured party that is already pretty suspicious of his conservative bona fides. Can you imagine one Republican after another having to come to the microphone to denounce the McCain-Kennedy bill (and that's what Reid and Pelosi need to call it every chance they get)? And then McCain being dogged by reporters asking about it multiple times each day?"In his scenario, immigration could also be the tail that wags the dog — a way for Democrats to distract from their own intraparty presidential battle, particularly if the Clinton-Obama race goes all the way to a convention.

"[T]hrowing the immigration 'grenade' and stirring up the immigration storm in the GOP may make the Democrats bickering look pretty tame," he writes, adding that that would put pressure on Republican leaders to cut a deal on Democrats' terms to keep their own fight under wraps. Siskind says bringing back the bill this year "would have virtually no drawbacks" for Democrats.

It's an intriguing scenario, though it doesn't strike me as working out as easily as he puts it. In the first place, McCain has had to shift somewhat, embracing both an enforcement-first position that his own campaign manager says is now the consensus of the party (http://video1.washingtontimes.com/dinan/2008/02/the_kumbayah_convergence_on_im.html). It would be impossible for McCain to back away from that now.

Second, it wasn't just Republicans that killed the bill. More than a dozen Democratic senators were happy to have a chance to vote against it, and on the House side, plenty of conservative-leaning Democrats will be begging their leaders not to go Siskind's recommended route.

Still, given that McCain has said he still supports the bill he wrote with Sen. Ted Kennedy — yet also says that bill is dead — Democrats must be at least a little tempted to prove him wrong and bring it back, just to see what he does.

— Stephen Dinan, national political reporter, The Washington Times

Posted on February 15, 2008 6:37 PM | 1 blog reaction (http://technorati.com/search/http%253A%252F%252Fvideo1.washingtontimes.com%252F dinan%252F2008%252F02%252Fmccain_nomination_could_ give_d.html?sub=jscosmos) | Digg It (http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo1.washingtontimes.com%2Fdina n%2F2008%2F02%2Fmccain_nomination_could_give_d.htm l&title=Dems%20could%20see%20immigration%20silver%20 lining%20in%20McCain&bodytext=)

Comments (4)

Who wants to pay more taxes? I don't mind paying for the military, but do mind paying for lazy people who are just waiting for government to give them food and money. They should stop making excuse not to work. Even just for tax issue, I will not go with Democrats. But if Huckabee gets the GOP nod, I will stay home.

Posted by Aiko | February 16, 2008 1:43 AM (http://video1.washingtontimes.com/dinan/2008/02/mccain_nomination_could_give_d.html#comment-22054)

Bring back the bill that everyone in government agreed on and the voters didn't. Yeah, good strategic move. Maryland voted out its incumbents, lets hope this will start a revolt against the deaf arrogance that is bureaucratic Washington.

Posted by Larry Stone | February 16, 2008 12:14 PM (http://video1.washingtontimes.com/dinan/2008/02/mccain_nomination_could_give_d.html#comment-22127)

I think it would be a great temptation for Pelosi and Reid, but it would be a disaster to ram that issue down the throats of the blue Dogs. The immigration bill was probably the only issue since 9-11 that nearly united the country. 80+% against it is the thing that draws the attention of politicians running for office. I can't think of any other subject that had such a strong showing by the public.
McCain can side step the issue by calling for the fence to be completed first then address the comprehensive bill (amnisty) after the election. He can appear stateman like and mature. It would also be the Democrats bringing it up for political points and putting a spotlight on the negtives about their congressional management. It would also put Obama in a fix since blacks opposed the bill as much as whites.
The other issue, quite simply, is this election is turning into the McGovernites verses the the Republicans. Immigration is a strong wedge issue that will ripple through the election and can fire up the conservative base to go after congressional and senate seats. The conservatives KNOW they beat the bill in Congress and it will highlight the fact that they can contain McCain very well if they control the House of Representatives.
On the surface, this is a Republican problem and a far-left wet dream. In reality, this could be a nightmare for mainstream democrats.

Posted by James Barends | February 16, 2008 1:29 PM (http://video1.washingtontimes.com/dinan/2008/02/mccain_nomination_could_give_d.html#comment-22135)

Democrats came up with an inane bill so that CIR would die this year. What they want is to wait until after the 2008 election and hope for Democrat in office. And if a Republican wins, then they have rolled the dice and tried, and at least they can prevent Bush from getting an immigration bill signed.
Anti-immigrant conservatives who don't realize this don't really understand CIR.
Siskend, as is typical of immigration lawyers who are clueless drolls, doesn't understand this as well.

Posted by GA Poster |

manderson

02-22-2008, 08:33 AM

Former INS chief says reviving immigration reform difficult

DALLAS — Reviving talks about reforming immigration law will prove difficult even after a new president and members of Congress take office, the former head of immigration services said Thursday.
Doris Meissner, the Immigration and Naturalization Service Commissioner under President Clinton, said the next president will want to first tackle issues that have broad support and are likely to glide through Congress.
"And unfortunately, immigration, unless something changes very dramatically ... does not qualify as one of those issues," Meissner told an immigration conference held by the National Council of Jewish Women. "It is a polarized issue."
Strong Latino turnout in the upcoming election could grab lawmakers' attention and get immigration reform back on the agenda, said Meissner, now a senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank.
"It is an issue that is basically in the throes of the extremes and the extreme voices in both parties," she said.
Immigration reform is key to strengthening the nation's economy, Meissner said.
For example, she said, technology and engineering keep the U.S. competitive, but about half the students pursuing careers in those fields are foreign-born. And nearly a dozen of the fastest-growing occupations don't require a high school diploma and attract few American-born workers, she added.
"It is not possible for people to come here legally if they want ... to work and if there is a job here for them, particularly if it is in the low skilled sector," Meissner said.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/5560313.html

lost_in_migration

02-22-2008, 08:53 AM

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080222/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/border_fence

By EILEEN SULLIVAN, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - A 28-mile "virtual fence" that will use radars and surveillance cameras to try to catch people entering the country illegally has gotten final government approval.
ADVERTISEMENT

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff on Friday was to announce approval of the fence, built by the Boeing Co. and using technology the Bush administration plans to extend to other areas of the Arizona border, as well as sections of Texas. These projects could get under way as early as this summer, officials said.

The virtual fence is part of a national plan to secure the southwest border with physical barriers and high-tech detection capabilities intended to stop illegal immigrants on foot and drug smugglers in vehicles. As of Feb. 8, 295 miles of fencing had been constructed.

The virtual fence already is working.

On Feb. 13, an officer in a Tucson command center — 70 miles from the border — noticed a group of about 100 people gathered at the border. The officer notified agents on the ground and in the air. Border Patrol caught 38 of the 100 people who tried to cross illegally, and the others went back into Mexico, a Homeland Security official said.

The virtual fence system includes 98-foot unmanned surveillance towers that are equipped with an array of sophisticated technology including radar, sensor devices and cameras capable of distinguishing people from cattle at a distance of about 10 miles. The cameras are powerful enough to tell group sizes and whether people are carrying backpacks that may contain weapons or drugs.

Last year the government withheld some of Boeing's payments for the system because technology the company used in the test project did not work properly. Boeing also was late in delivering the final product, known as Project 28. Because of this, the department received a $2 million credit from the company to go toward maintenance and logistical support of the system, the Homeland Security officials said.

The government paid Boeing $15 million of its initial $20 million contract before determining that there were glitches in the test project. The department gave a conditional acceptance in December.

Lawmakers have been skeptical of the product Boeing delivered.

"This is not the end of the Project 28 story," Rep. Christopher Carney, D-Pa., said in a statement Thursday. "We need to understand what went wrong with Project 28 to ensure that the mistakes of the past are not repeated and taxpayer dollars are not squandered."

Carney chairs the House Homeland Security management subcommittee.

imneedy

02-22-2008, 11:48 AM

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-02-21-namecheck_N.htm

rockstart

02-26-2008, 10:23 AM

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0226/p02s01-usgn.html

485Mbe4001

02-29-2008, 12:13 PM

Govt launches new immigration points system
Fri Feb 29, 7:53 AM ET

LONDON (AFP) - The government introduced a new immigration points regime on Friday in order to control the number of non-EU workers entering the country.

The much talked about measures are designed to make it easier for highly-skilled foreign workers to enter Britain, but more difficult for those with fewer or lower skills.

Applicants under the new system will be given points on their skills and to what extent they could benefit the economy.

The first stage of the five tier system, expected to be fully operational by the end of summer, will cover highly skilled individuals who can apply to come to Britain without any concrete job offers. They would be judged on their professional skills and educational qualifications.

"The introduction of our Australian-style points system will ensure that only those with skills the country needs can come to work and study," said Home Secretary Jacqui Smith.

"Today's proposals are part of the biggest changes to British immigration policy in a generation, which includes a new deal for those migrants seeking citizenship here, a new UK Border Agency to strengthen controls at the border and the introduction of ID cards for foreign nationals," she added.

Subsequent levels of the new system will cover skilled people with job offers and temporary workers allowed to stay for a limited period of time.

It has been specified by the Home Office that companies intending to bring in foreign workers from autumn will require licenses from the Border and Immigration Agency (BIA).

Students who come to study in universities will be brought under the new regulations from next year but a date has yet to be decided for the admission of low skilled workers, a step which would effect a large number of people from poorer countries.

The government also gave a stern warning to employers who consciously hire illegal immigrants. Such practices from now on will invite an unlimited fine and a jail sentence for two years.

The points regime exempts workers from the European Union and the new Eastern European member states.

ihabosman

03-02-2008, 09:26 AM

A very good article re. EB immigration by Christian Science Monitor:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0226/p02s01-usgn.html

manderson

03-02-2008, 09:00 PM

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/29/confidential-study-sugges_n_89077.html

Democrats may soon be taking a tougher public position on immigration, according to a confidential study put together by key think tanks close to the party leadership.
The study urges Democrats to adopt more rigid rhetoric when discussing immigration by encouraging office-holders to emphasize "requiring immigrants to become legal" rather than stressing border enforcement and the opening of a path to legalization for the undocumented already here.
Implicit in the report is the notion that Democrats can win wider public support for immigration reform by framing the issue in harsher-sound verbiage and, perhaps, policy.
This message places the focus where voters want it, on what's best for the United States, not what we can/should do for illegal immigrants. Titled "Winning The Immigration Debate," the study was put together by the Coalition for Comprehensive Immigration Reform and the Center for American Progress. Its findings, which have been sent to Capitol Hill and have been part of briefing sessions in both the House and the Senate, are based off of polling conducted by Peter Hart Research Associates.
Taken as a whole, the report presents a new prism through which the Democrats should approach the immigration debate. "It is unacceptable to have 12 million people in our country who are outside the system," it reads. "We must require illegal immigrants to become legal, and reform the laws so this can happen."
Polling for the study revealed that a larger swath of the public was supportive of "requiring" undocumented immigrants already in the country to normalize their status than there was for only offering them legalization as an option. In addition, the report pushes Democrats to argue that immigrants should be required to pay taxes, learn English, and pass criminal background checks to remain in the country. Those who have a criminal record should be deported. All of these policies were included in last year's immigration reform compromise legislation, which ultimately failed.
"Our view is that this argument threads the needle in favor of comprehensive reform in the most effective way," Jen Palmieri, communications chief for the Center for American Progress, told the Huffington Post.
Added Cecilia Muñoz, senior vice president of policy at the National Council of La Raza and chair of the board at CCIR: "We are not asking people to be for legalization out of altruism. It is perfectly okay for them to be for legalization because that is what fixes the problem... Rather than educate [the public], you can convince them to do the right thing if you call it a requirement as opposed to an effort."
And yet, for some, the new frame represents exactly the wrong direction that the Democrats should be taking, reinforcing the notion that immigrants were problematic and "the offenders."
"There has been no consensus around the Democratic rhetoric in regard to immigration," said one party official who had knowledge of the report. "But it has usually been framed around opportunity, and it was less framed around this punishment rhetoric. We are going to require these people to become legal or we are going to deport [them]? It doesn't challenge the immigrant scapegoating direction of the conversation. It plays right into it."
In support of their new message, the study notes that 88 percent of all voters as well as 84 percent of Hispanic voters had a favorable response to "requiring illegal immigrants to become legal, obey U.S. laws, pay taxes or face deportation." Those numbers changed to 66 percent and 87 percent, respectively, when it was merely "allowing" illegal immigrants to receive earned legal status.
"My sense is that the public is in a fairly tough mood about immigration though not as tough as Lou Dobbs is every night," said Guy Molyneux, who conducted research for the report.
On the campaign trail neither Democratic candidate has deployed the argument that immigrants should be "required" to obtain legal status. Both, in fact, have discussed immigration policy in a frame that the CCIR/CAP report discourages.
Sen. Hillary Clinton, her website reads (http://www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/immigration/), "believes comprehensive reform must have as essential ingredients a strengthening of our borders, greater cross-cooperation with our neighbors, strict but fair enforcement of our laws, federal assistance to our state and local governments, strict penalties for those who exploit undocumented workers, and a path to earned legal status for those who are here, working hard, paying taxes, respecting the law, and willing to meet a high bar."
And in the Democratic debate at Saint Anselm College on June 3, 2007, Sen. Barack Obama argued (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Barack_Obama_Immigration.htm), "We want to have a situation in which those who are already here, are playing by the rules, are willing to pay a fine and go through a rigorous process should have a pathway to legalization. Most Americans will support that if they have some sense that the border is also being secured."

Hinglish

03-04-2008, 05:15 PM

Source: ILW News Letter

Shenanigans In The House

Serious immigration legislation is in the air. Rep Shuler's (D-
NC) enforcement-only bill has attracted a fair number of supporters, and the rumor is that the House Republicans will try to force through a discharge petition necessitating a vote on the bill. While we are skeptical that a discharge petition has much chance of success, the House Democratic leadership is apparently not so sanguine (for info on discharge petitions, see here).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/discharge_petition
The House Hispanic Caucus has prepared a plan to meet the antis head on if they force a vote on the Shuler Bill.

The plan begins with the proposition that any serious discussion of immigration on the Hill will definitely harm Republican presidential nominee McCain. If he supports the "pros", the anti immigration fanatics in the Republican party will not support him in the general election; if he supports the "antis", it will weaken his appeal to the independents for the general election.
Second, should a vote on the Shuler bill come about, the House Hispanic caucus would seek to attach numerous benefit amendments to it - there is every likelihood that some of these amendments will succeed, a raising of the H cap, for example. Hopefully, so the thinking among the strategists among the House Democrats goes, the success of a few amendments will be a "poison-pill"
guaranteeing the defeat of the over-all measure since the antis are not in a mood to make any deal trading enforcement with benefits at this time. Ironically, the antis in the House may be forced to vote against the amended Shuler bill, thus positioning the Democrats as the real pro-enforcement party.

Our take is that once started down the Hill (pun intended), the momentum of an immigration bill would be hard to stop, and we might end up with something along the lines of the Kennedy-Kyl compromise of last spring, but without the point system which doomed it. To the surprise of many, Comprehensive Immigration Reform appears far from dead. And once again, it's the antis who deserve the credit for bringing benefits to the fore.

We welcome readers to share their opinion and ideas with us by writing to mailto:editor@ilw.com.
__________________________________________________ _______________

BEC_fog

03-11-2008, 09:30 AM

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/03/10/national/w153614D94.DTL

gsc999

03-18-2008, 02:17 PM

In response to a question about who'd get their votes if the election were "today," both Democrat Barack Obama and presumptive Republican nominee John McCain received 29 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton trailed behind them with 13 percent, according to results released Tuesday.

Check this out at CNET news blog link below:

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9896795-7.html?tag=nefd.lede

A_Paparelli

03-20-2008, 03:27 PM

[QUOTE=WaldenPond;74938]http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?t=3900&page=88

“Hurry Up And Let Them In” in Forbes.com (http://tinyurl.com/2o2pdd) Raises Anti-Immigration Hackles
From www.nationofimmigrators.com http://www.nationofimmigrators.com/?p=146
Judging from the response, this blogger’s commentary today in Forbes.com annoyed more than a few opponents of legal immigration. One writer thought the piece was funny, suggesting that my commentary earned me a spot on Jay Leno’s Tonight Show. Others suggested a pecuniary interest in that more work visas mean more work for immigration lawyers. But one writer, a foreign worker who gave up on the U.S. immigration system, tells of how he and other foreign transplants prospering at newfound jobs in London could no longer tolerate the unfairness and dysfunction of America’s broken system of legal immigration. In essence, that commenter proved the point of the article: Congress and the Administration should be ashamed that — in all their claimed concern for the failing economy — they have overlooked a readily available, jobs-based solution to our nation’s economic woes. Now more than ever, surgical corrections to the employment-based, legal immigration system are urgently needed. Scrap the ill-conceived visa quotas and allow our country to benefit from the job-creating talents of the foreign workers who we educate in America or who want to come and contribute to our country.

rawmuk7

03-20-2008, 04:29 PM

Liked the english with adverbs and the text. You are not Indian, my guess.

tiinap

03-21-2008, 01:26 PM

NY Times article from today:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/21/nyregion/21immigrant.html?_r=1&scp=3&sq=immigration&st=nyt&oref=slogin

USCIS green card adjudicator demands sex from a 22-year old green card applicant, threatening to deny her application otherwise.

That is the kind of organization we're dealing with!

archie116

03-26-2008, 04:13 PM

I saw following article in USA Today on 3/25.. Interesting.. Also please see the opposing viewpoint by Dan Stein.
Here's the link - http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2008/03/our-view-on-imm.html#more

amitga

04-05-2008, 03:46 PM

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120735994107991743.html?mod=todays_us_opinion

Scrap the Visa Cap
By SHIKHA DALMIA
April 5, 2008; Page A8

America's political leaders are so fixated on illegal immigration they've barely noticed that the U.S. is losing the race for the best high-tech minds. This country won't keep its edge in the global economy until legislators stop behaving like border sentries and start acting like international recruiters – a switch virtually every industrialized country is making.

A good way to begin is for Congress to pass pending legislation to scrap the cap on skilled worker (H1-B) visas. This cap is currently so low (65,000) that in April last year it got used up within a day of these visas becoming available, leaving thousands of left over engineers to be scooped up by America's competitors. Immigration authorities started accepting 2009 applications last Tuesday – and expect a similar flood.

Two decades ago, professionals from developing countries such an India and China who managed to obtain a visa from Uncle Sam and got a job from an American company – or admission in a U.S. graduate program – took a one-way flight across the Atlantic. Returning home, instead of landing a job and a coveted green card here, was a sure-fire way of being branded a loser. Only those who couldn't get to the U.S. tried other Western destinations or Australia.

But America's ability to attract new foreign-born workers – and just as importantly, to keep the existing ones – is diminishing, thanks to the enticing opportunities opening up for them elsewhere, including in their own countries.

A 2005 study by the Pew Hispanic Center's Jeffrey Passel showed that new temporary legal arrivals – the vast majority of them skilled workers, university students or their dependents -- dropped to 185,000 in 2004 from 268,000 in 2000. From 2001 to 2003, applications from foreign students to American universities dropped by 26% while they increased in the United Kingdom (36%), France (30%) and Australia (13%). While some of this might be due to the aftermath of 9/11, there's another, stunning trend: Many high-tech immigrants are voluntarily returning home.

There is no comprehensive data to quantify this trend, because the U.S. government does not track people who leave. But Indian and Chinese newspapers have been abuzz for three years with stories about returning compatriots. Bangalore, India's outsourcing capital, is home to over 35,000 returnees – many from America. Tata Consultancy Services, India's Information Technology giant, reports a seven-fold increase in resumes from expatriates.

The most compelling evidence of this reverse brain drain, however, comes from Vivek Wadhwa of Duke University: The preliminary results of a company survey he is conducting reveal that returnees constitute 10% to 50% of the R&D staff of Indian high-tech firms; he expects similar results in China. In a related study last year, he found that one in three new immigrants holding high-tech jobs in the U.S. plan to leave. Why? With comparable jobs available closer to home and family, the frustrating five-year wait for a green card or permanent residency is not worth it anymore.

The number of foreign professionals coming here no doubt still exceeds those leaving. But the new immigrants are less inclined to make America – or, for that matter, any country besides their own – their permanent home. Like Western professionals, they increasingly regard stints abroad as personal growth opportunities, not permanent moves – a change in attitude with profound implications.

In response, most industrialized countries, facing their own skills crunch, are liberalizing their immigration policies to make themselves more attractive. England recently scrapped its Byzantine work permit program in favor of a Canadian-style point system that will allow entry to some skilled workers even before they get a job. New Zealand has a remarkable program that gives accredited private companies fast-track access to work visas that they can hand to foreign workers along with a job offer. Australia is considering modifying its skilled visa program along similar lines.

Even more radical is the blue card program that the European Union proposed last year to bump up its skilled workforce by 20 million over 20 years. The card will admit not only skilled workers – but their entire families – and give spouses the legal right to work in all 27 EU countries within three months of applying. By contrast, the U.S. Congress recently questioned even a relatively modest suggestion by Bill Gates to raise or scrap the annual H-1B visa cap. Astoundingly, this cap was lowered to 1990 levels four years ago.

Not all that other industrialized countries are doing is worth emulating. Canada's point system, which is gaining popularity, often recruits foreigners whose skills don't match employers' needs. Yet at least they realize that the real immigration problem is not too many foreign workers knocking at their door -- but too few. America should worry less about keeping unskilled immigrants out -- and more about keeping skilled immigrants in. Otherwise, it'll lose the race for the most crucial resource in the knowledge economy: intellectual capital.

Ms Dalmia, who emigrated from India in 1985, is a senior analyst at the Reason Foundation.

Eternal_Hope

04-08-2008, 09:32 AM

Indians win HSMP case against UK govt

London: Tens of thousands of Indian immigrants Tuesday won the right to live and work in Britain after a British court ruled that retrospective changes made to their visas were illegal.

The landmark ruling by Justice Sir George Newman followed a legal challenge mounted by the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP) Forum, a pressure group consisting mostly of Indian migrants.

In his judgment, Newman said the terms of the original scheme "should be honoured" and that there was no good reason why those already on the scheme should not enjoy the benefits of it as originally offered to them.

"Good administration and straightforward dealing with the public require it. Not to restrain the impact of the changes would, in my judgment, give rise to unfairness and is an abuse of power," he added.

A majority of the 49,000 HSMP visa holders - most of them Indian - and their families faced the prospect of having to leave Britain and find jobs in other countries after the British government made abrupt and retrospective changes to the original visa regime.

Existing HSMP visa holders would have had to re-qualify under a new points based system, which makes it mandatory for applicants to have earned at least 40,000 pounds in the previous year and awards more points to younger applicants, conditions that the HSMP Forum described as "unfair."

"The immigration department was obsessed with defending their decision and were not open to any reasoning. We had no other recourse but to approach the judiciary and we are glad that our trust in the democratic system has finally been restored," said Forum executive director Amit Kapadia.

ritu_raj

04-17-2008, 10:50 AM

http://money.cnn.com/2008/04/16/smbusiness/immigrant_visa_tech.fsb/index.htm?postversion=2008041710

susie

05-07-2008, 01:37 AM

important memo from USCIS for age outs

see this memo

http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/CSPA_factsheet_050608.pdf

could benefit many and also sign and support
http://www.expatsvoice.org/forum/petition.php

gsc999

07-22-2008, 01:57 PM

Indian workers’ annual donations to the US social security fund — which currently has a $4.1 trillion deficit — may finally come to an end.

Over $1 billion contributed to Social Security by part-time Indian workers may get refunded after 3 years

http://www.indianexpress.com/story/332763.html

psvk

07-31-2008, 10:55 AM

http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20080731/ts_csm/adepart

485Mbe4001

08-08-2008, 03:44 PM

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-greencards8-2008aug08,0,2583629.story?track=rss

Tweaking immigration
Three narrowly targeted reforms could ease the green-card problem while helping the economy.
August 8, 2008

The public outcry that derailed last year's push for comprehensive immigration reform hasn't stopped lawmakers from trying to change immigration law. It has merely scaled back their ambitions. Prodded by advocacy groups on both sides of the issue, members of Congress are considering various narrowly targeted proposals -- "rifle shots," in Washington parlance -- to ease or tighten the limits on legal entry. These include bills to allow more guest workers to be hired by farmers and other seasonal employers, relieve the backlog in visa requests by foreign workers with high-tech skills, and reauthorize the program that verifies applicants' eligibility for employment.

We still believe that federal immigration law needs an overhaul, not just a tune-up. Some of the expansions sought in guest worker programs could help reduce illegal immigration, but they should be considered as part of a broader approach that addresses complaints about the current temporary-visa system. That's particularly true for skilled or specialty workers' H-1B visas, which in the last two years have been snapped up the first day applications could be filed. Supporters agitate for a huge increase in the H-1B program, but opponents say it drives down wages and prevents guest workers from leaving jobs they don't like. And it's hard for the public to accept the need for more short-term foreign workers when the economy is slowing and unemployment is mounting.

Nevertheless, there is an interim step Congress could take that would help the economy in general and the high-tech industry in particular: Make it easier for skilled foreign workers to obtain green cards and become permanent U.S. residents. Today, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services makes 140,000 green cards a year available to foreigners sponsored by American employers, with preference given to the most educated or talented applicants. About 226,000 more cards are available for foreigners sponsored by relatives here. Just because a card is available, however, doesn't mean it will be issued. Tech firms complain that thousands of foreign workers in the U.S. fail to receive green cards each year because of bureaucratic holdups, creating a vast backlog and increasing the demand for H-1B visas.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) and a handful of Republican allies have introduced three bills that would ease that backlog. One, HR 5882, would increase each year's allotment of green cards by the number left over from previous years, effectively turning the ceiling into a floor. The measure would apply to both employer-sponsored and family-related applicants. Another, HR 6039 (along with a matching Senate bill, S 3084), would provide employer-sponsored cards to any foreigner with a U.S. job offer who earns an advanced degree in science, technology, math or engineering from a U.S. college or university. And a third, HR 5921, would remove the per-country caps on employer-sponsored cards.

Because the first two measures would clearly increase the population of legal immigrants, they are opposed by groups such as NumbersUSA and the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which want Congress to push the limits in the other direction. One of their main arguments is that more U.S. jobs should be reserved for U.S. workers. But high-tech companies have long complained that U.S. schools aren't producing nearly enough graduates interested in or prepared for careers in math, science and engineering. A survey last year of 17 California colleges and universities lends credence to that argument; it found that nearly 40% of all master's degrees in engineering that year had gone to foreign students, as had almost two-thirds of the engineering PhDs.

Even if there were no shortage of Americans with high-tech skills, it would be a mistake to assume that limiting foreign workers automatically yields more jobs for citizens. The competition for jobs is increasingly global, and firms are chasing talent (and lower costs) wherever it's concentrated. Look at Microsoft -- it expanded into Vancouver, Canada, last year in part because of the problems posed by U.S. immigration caps. Increasing the supply of green cards would allow more talented foreigners to stay here, where they were educated and trained, and where their productivity and entrepreneurial drive can create jobs. Over the last 15 years, immigrants have launched a fourth of the start-ups in the U.S. that attracted venture capital dollars. With the economy slipping, that statistic alone makes a persuasive argument for more green cards.

sanjayc

08-22-2008, 08:10 PM

Editorial: U.S. must fix antiquated green card policy

09:11 AM CDT on Friday, August 22, 2008

When it comes to U.S. exports, big-ticket items like cars and aircraft come to mind. But America's No. 1 export is actually the tiny semiconductor. It's what creates thousands of jobs here and helps make Texas the top exporting state in the country.

Other nations are doing their best to take over our lead. They're trying to lure away the scholars, scientists and engineers whose research and innovation give America its competitive edge. A large percentage of these experts are foreign citizens who must endure the painstakingly slow process of obtaining permits to study and work here.

To eliminate any confusion, we're talking about legal immigrants, who are doing everything by the book – not the millions of illegal immigrants dominating the agenda in Washington. Highly skilled foreigners should be at the front of the line for the coveted "green card" that grants them permanent residency and work rights. But only 140,000 qualify because of annual limits Congress set in 1990.

Some highly skilled immigrants have had to wait up to 10 years to get their green cards. During that wait, they cannot move or be promoted. Their families live in limbo. More and more, countries in Europe and Asia are capitalizing on their frustrations and luring them away with offers of high pay and minimal visa hassles.

America's antiquated green card policy is driving one of our most precious assets – scientific and technological expertise – into the welcoming hands of our competitors. That's insanity.

Three bills with bipartisan sponsorship are awaiting a vote this fall in Congress to expand quotas or exempt foreign-born employees with advanced science or technology degrees from the employment-based green card limit. It's important that these measures pass without being drowned in the debate over illegal immigration.

CompeteAmerica, a 130-member alliance of employers, universities and trade associations, backs this legislation. One member of the alliance, Dallas-based Texas Instruments, employs more than 12,000 people in Texas – 800 of whom are foreigners in various stages of the green card waiting process.

TI staffing director Heidi Nagel says innovations by a single one of those employees can add millions of dollars to company revenue. That creates a multiplier effect, which can ripple positively through our economy. But if that foreign employee leaves, the positive effects move with him to another country.

The way America can maintain its edge is to retain, not drive away, its brightest talent. If Congress continues stalling, we might as well replace semiconductors with jobs on the list of our major exports.

55
percent

The portion of engineering

master's degrees awarded by

major Texas universities

that went to foreign citizens

75
percent

The portion of engineering

Ph.D.s that went to foreign citizens from those same universities

30
percent

The increase in skilled

foreign talent being sought

by Australia next year

30 to 90
days

The waiting time planned

by the European Union for

skilled immigrants to obtain

a new "blue card" work permit

10
years

The waiting time some skilled immigrants must wait in the

United States for a green card

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-greencards_22edi.ART.State.Edition1.4dcb989.html

gc_on_demand

08-26-2008, 08:18 PM

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2328933,00.asp

sandy_77

08-27-2008, 06:43 AM

http://www.pr-inside.com/visanow-poses-key-questions-for-presidential-r773904.htm

Is there any way we can get our IV representatives to ask questions at the presidential debates expected to happen soon. Two very critical questions about our future I think that need to be asked are:

1. In the light of fast track immigration reforms initiated in other large economies in the world, viz., UK, Australia, Canada and under consideration in EU region, is it morally, legally, economical justified for US to make highly skilled labor to wait for 3 or 6 or 10 or more years for a PR/Greencard?

2. Given the complexities of the new National Security related laws (Patriot Act and others) post 9/11 whereby everybody seems to be a threat to US and these laws causing enormous hardships to people going to US Consulates abroad for Visa application interviews, is it necessary to force highly skilled labor to go outside the country for their visa revalidation? Hundreds of candidates are waiting at a number of consulates, particularly in South Asia, for months on end (8 months average these days) to get their visa stamps leading to disruption to their normal life in US, loss of jobs due to long absence from work, loss of homes and belongings and kids remaining out of schools for such long times. All this because the Visa Officers at the consulates want to do more than due diligence due to National Security concerns in DOS (of course without regard to the sufferance of the helpless Visa revalidation applicants). VOs insist on implementing 221(g) rules of INA which was designed to be implemented only sparingly and that to when sufficient evidence is available for the same.

http://www.pr-inside.com/visanow-poses-key-questions-for-presidential-r773904.htm

vijayrudra

02-11-2009, 01:00 AM

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/11/opinion/11friedman.html

Leave it to a brainy Indian to come up with the cheapest and surest way to stimulate our economy: immigration.

“All you need to do is grant visas to two million Indians, Chinese and Koreans,” said Shekhar Gupta, editor of The Indian Express newspaper. “We will buy up all the subprime homes. We will work 18 hours a day to pay for them. We will immediately improve your savings rate — no Indian bank today has more than 2 percent nonperforming loans because not paying your mortgage is considered shameful here. And we will start new companies to create our own jobs and jobs for more Americans.”

While his tongue was slightly in cheek, Gupta and many other Indian business people I spoke to this week were trying to make a point that sometimes non-Americans can make best: “Dear America, please remember how you got to be the wealthiest country in history. It wasn’t through protectionism, or state-owned banks or fearing free trade. No, the formula was very simple: build this really flexible, really open economy, tolerate creative destruction so dead capital is quickly redeployed to better ideas and companies, pour into it the most diverse, smart and energetic immigrants from every corner of the world and then stir and repeat, stir and repeat, stir and repeat, stir and repeat.”

While I think President Obama has been doing his best to keep the worst protectionist impulses in Congress out of his stimulus plan, the U.S. Senate unfortunately voted on Feb. 6 to restrict banks and other financial institutions that receive taxpayer bailout money from hiring high-skilled immigrants on temporary work permits known as H-1B visas.

Bad signal. In an age when attracting the first-round intellectual draft choices from around the world is the most important competitive advantage a knowledge economy can have, why would we add barriers against such brainpower — anywhere? That’s called “Old Europe.” That’s spelled: S-T-U-P-I-D.

“If you do this, it will be one of the best things for India and one of the worst for Americans, [because] Indians will be forced to innovate at home,” said Subhash B. Dhar, a member of the executive council that runs Infosys, the well-known Indian technology company that sends Indian workers to the U.S. to support a wide range of firms. “We protected our jobs for many years and look where it got us. Do you know that for an Indian company, it is still easier to do business with a company in the U.S. than it is to do business today with another Indian state?”

Each Indian state tries to protect its little economy with its own rules. America should not be trying to copy that. “Your attitude,” said Dhar, should be “ ‘whoever can make us competitive and dominant, let’s bring them in.’ ”

If there is one thing we know for absolute certain, it’s this: Protectionism did not cause the Great Depression, but it sure helped to make it “Great.” From 1929 to 1934, world trade plunged by more than 60 percent — and we were all worse off.

We live in a technological age where every study shows that the more knowledge you have as a worker and the more knowledge workers you have as an economy, the faster your incomes will rise. Therefore, the centerpiece of our stimulus, the core driving principle, should be to stimulate everything that makes us smarter and attracts more smart people to our shores. That is the best way to create good jobs.

According to research by Vivek Wadhwa, a senior research associate at the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School, more than half of Silicon Valley start-ups were founded by immigrants over the last decade. These immigrant-founded tech companies employed 450,000 workers and had sales of $52 billion in 2005, said Wadhwa in an essay published this week on BusinessWeek.com.

He also cited a recent study by William R. Kerr of Harvard Business School and William F. Lincoln of the University of Michigan that “found that in periods when H-1B visa numbers went down, so did patent applications filed by immigrants [in the U.S.]. And when H-1B visa numbers went up, patent applications followed suit.”

We don’t want to come out of this crisis with just inflation, a mountain of debt and more shovel-ready jobs. We want to — we have to — come out of it with a new Intel, Google, Microsoft and Apple. I would have loved to have seen the stimulus package include a government-funded venture capital bank to help finance all the start-ups that are clearly not starting up today — in the clean-energy space they’re dying like flies — because of a lack of liquidity from traditional lending sources.

Newsweek had an essay this week that began: “Could Silicon Valley become another Detroit?” Well, yes, it could. When the best brains in the world are on sale, you don’t shut them out. You open your doors wider. We need to attack this financial crisis with green cards not just greenbacks, and with start-ups not just bailouts. One Detroit is enough.

a.j.2048

02-11-2009, 03:15 AM

Good to see an article on the H1-B amendment, but it seems a bit contrived as the opinions are sourced from people who stand to benefit from more immigration. Also not sure why someone like Mr. Dhar wouldn't want a halt to US immigration if he thinks it will ignite a wave of innovation in India.

mbawa2574

02-11-2009, 07:42 AM

sanju

03-11-2009, 01:28 PM

http://specials.rediff.com/money/2009/mar/09sde1-future-innovations-are-leaving-the-us.htm

Warning! Future innovations are leaving the US
Text: Vivek Wadhwa

March 9, 2009

Sandeep Nijsure came from Mumbai, India, to pursue a Masters degree in computer science at the University of North Texas. Degree in hand, he went to work for Microsoft as a software design engineer on an H1-B visa. He appreciated the education and enjoyed the work.
But Sandeep missed home. He felt distant from his parents and couldn't take proper care of them as they aged. He also missed watching cricket, celebrating Indian festivals and following the insane twists of Indian politics.

His wife missed home just as much and, due to her visa status, was unable to work. In the past, making a move home would have been difficult as it meant giving up economic opportunity and the chance for a coveted US citizenship.

Image: Microsoft has a cricket programme for its Indian employees; here, they play against a local team in Washington. | Photograph: Robert Sorbo/Reuters

neelu

03-12-2009, 07:24 PM

Is Obama for administrative fixes?
See the link below:

http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/2009/03/11/president_obama_southerners.html

Excerpt:
On immigration, Obama said that the meltdown of the U.S. economy and job opportunities “has slowed the flow” of illegal immigrants.

"But it remains a serious concern,” he said. “Our approach is to do some things administratively strengthen border security and to fix the legal immigration system - because a lot of the impetus toward illegal immigration involves a broken legal system. People want to reunify families and they don’t want to wait 10 years. I think we can make some progress on that front.”

m306m

03-15-2009, 06:56 PM

Please read this disturbing article on Immigrant detentions and rights.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090315/ap_on_re_us/detained_immigrants

sanju

04-09-2009, 11:16 AM

sledge_hammer

04-09-2009, 11:49 AM

If remember correctly there is already a type of category under which a legal immigrant can obtain permanent recidency if that immigrant invests some amount of money in a US business. Isn't this something similar, except that the type of investment proposed is real estate?

Apparently IV's idea is being picked up by the economist and real estate tycoons, and now they are teaming up for green card reform to fix housing crisis. Here is an article.

http://www.globalatlanta.com/article/17252/

.

bbct

04-09-2009, 12:01 PM

Apparently IV's idea is being picked up by the economist and real estate tycoons, and now they are teaming up for green card reform to fix housing crisis. Here is an article.

http://www.globalatlanta.com/article/17252/

.

...
...
The foreign investors, their spouses and minor children would then be granted temporary resident visas. If after a specified time period, two years or five years (pick a number) the investors still own the houses and otherwise still qualify for permanent residence, they and their families would be issued permanent resident visas. The investors would not be permitted to rent the houses to others. As U.S. permanent residents, they would be taxed by the U.S. on their worldwide income.
...
...

How different is this from somebody buying a house on EAD? There is still risk involved. What if they deny your I-485 for some mistake by Attorney/Employer? What if they issue an RFE?

gc_on_demand

04-14-2009, 11:02 AM

Bad part is here :

The accord endorses legalizing the status of illegal immigrants already in the United States and opposes any large new program for employers to bring in temporary immigrant workers, officials of both federations said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/14/us/14immig.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=us

The nation’s two major labor federations have agreed for the first time to join forces to support an overhaul of the immigration system, leaders of both organizations said on Monday. The accord could give President Obama significant support among unions as he revisits the stormy issue in the midst of the recession.

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John Sweeney, president of the A.F.L.-C.I.O., top, and Joe T. Hansen, leader of Change to Win, have agreed to join forces in the debate over overhauling immigration policies. When the issue last came up, the groups were divided, and legislation failed.
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Post a Comment »Read All Comments (119) »John Sweeney, president of the A.F.L.-C.I.O., and Joe T. Hansen, a leader of the rival Change to Win federation, will present the outlines of their new position on Tuesday in Washington. In 2007, when Congress last considered comprehensive immigration legislation, the two groups could not agree on a common approach. That legislation failed.

The accord endorses legalizing the status of illegal immigrants already in the United States and opposes any large new program for employers to bring in temporary immigrant workers, officials of both federations said.

“The labor movement will work together to make sure that the White House as well as Congress understand that we speak about immigration reform with one voice,” Mr. Sweeney said in a statement to The New York Times.

But while the compromise repaired one fissure in the coalition that has favored broad immigration legislation, it appeared to open another. An official from the United States Chamber of Commerce said Monday that the business community remained committed to a significant guest-worker program.

“If the unions think they’re going to push a bill through without the support of the business community, they’re crazy,” said Randel Johnson, the chamber’s vice president of labor, immigration and employee benefits. “There’s only going to be one shot at immigration reform. As part of the trade-off for legalization, we need to expand the temporary worker program.”

The common labor position is also unlikely to convince many opponents that an immigration overhaul would not harm American workers. When Obama administration officials said last week that the president intended to push Congress this year to take up an immigration bill that would include a path to legal status for the country’s estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, critics criticized the approach as amnesty for lawbreakers.

“In our current economic crisis, Americans cannot afford to lose more jobs to illegal workers,” said Representative Steve King, an Iowa Republican who sits on the House Judiciary subcommittee on immigration. “American workers are depending on President Obama to protect their jobs from those in America illegally.”

The two labor federations have agreed in the past to proposals that would give legal status to illegal immigrants. But in 2007 the A.F.L.-C.I.O. parted ways with the service employees and several other unions when it did not support legislation put forth by the Bush administration because it contained provisions for an expanded guest-worker program.

In the new accord, the A.F.L.-C.I.O. and Change to Win have called for managing future immigration of workers through a national commission. The commission would determine how many permanent and temporary foreign workers should be admitted each year based on demand in American labor markets. Union officials are confident that the result would reduce worker immigration during times of high unemployment like the present.

Mr. Hansen, who is president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, said in an interview that the joint proposal was a “building block to go forward to get immigration reform up on the agenda in Congress” sometime this year.

Thousands of immigrant farm workers and other low-wage laborers come to the United States through seasonal guest-worker programs that are subject to numerical visa limits and have been criticized by employers as rigid and inefficient. Many unions oppose the programs because the immigrants are tied to one employer and cannot change jobs no matter how abusive the conditions, so union officials say they undercut conditions for American workers. Highly skilled foreign technology engineers and medical specialists also come on temporary visas.

Advocates for immigrants said a unified labor movement could substantially bolster their position as they push for legislation to restructure the ailing immigration system.

“It shows how important the issue is to the representatives of American workers,” said Frank Sharry, executive director of America’s Voice, an advocate group.

A.F.L.-C.I.O. officials said they agreed with Change to Win leaders that, with more than seven million unauthorized immigrants already working across the nation, legalizing their status would be the most effective way to protect labor standards for all workers.

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Post a Comment »Read All Comments (127) »“We have developed a joint strategy with the approach framed around workers’ rights,” said Ana Avendaño, associate general counsel of the A.F.L.-C.I.O.

Labor leaders said that they would talk with other groups in coming weeks to nail down details of a common position, and that they would then would work in Congress and with the Obama administration to try to ensure that their proposal was part of any bill offered for debate.

Also supporting the compromise is Eliseo Medina, an executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union, a member of Change to Win with hundreds of thousands of members who are immigrants. The Change to Win federation was formed in 2005 with seven unions that broke away from the A.F.L.-C.I.O.

The plan for a labor commission to monitor and control levels of worker immigration was developed with help from Ray Marshall, a labor secretary under President Jimmy Carter. Over the past year, Mr. Marshall, at the request of the A.F.L.-C.I.O., has been consulting between the two federations and with a variety of Hispanic organizations and advocate groups for immigrants.

“All these groups understand that one of the main reasons they lost before was that they were not together,” Mr. Marshall said.

According to a list of principles the labor leaders will present on Tuesday, they are proposing a “depoliticized,” independent commission that “can assess labor market needs on an ongoing basis and — based on a methodology to be approved by Congress — determine the number of foreign workers to be admitted for employment purposes.”

Mr. Johnson, the Chamber of Commerce official, said, “A commission doesn’t get us there.”

Tamar Jacoby, president of ImmigrationWorks USA, a group that organizes businesses to support comprehensive immigration legislation, agreed that employers would have many questions about the approach.

“The question is, Will the commission work?” Ms. Jacoby said. “Will it be adequately attuned to and triggered by the labor market? A system that may — or may not — supply the workers that business will need in the future after the recession will be a cause of great concern to employers.”

Rb_newsletter

07-10-2009, 08:05 PM

H-1B, J-1 Immigrants More Productive Than Americans, Study Says - Real Time Economics - WSJ (http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2009/04/27/h-1b-j-1-immigrants-more-productive-than-americans-study-says/)

By Sara Murray

Immigrants who come to the U.S. on work or trainee visas ultimately outperform American-born workers and contribute to the country’s productivity, new research shows.

Examining measures such as earnings, patenting, commercializing and licensing patents, publishing books or papers and presenting at major conferences, McGill University economics professor Jennifer Hunt concluded that those who were most successful came to the U.S. on temporary work visas for the highly skilled, known as H-1Bs, or student/trainee visas, such as J-1s or F-1s.

Meanwhile, those immigrants that came to the U.S. as legal permanent residents performed as well as those who were born in the U.S. But, those immigrants who came to the U.S. as dependents of those with temporary visas — spouses, relatives, etc. — were less productive than native Americans.

Hunt concludes, “Firms, universities and teaching hospitals are successful in attracting and selecting immigrants who remain in the United States to outperform natives, thereby likely increasing U.S. total factor productivity. By contrast, natives and immigrants already in the United States sponsor college-educated immigrant spouses and family members who perform similarly to college-educated natives.”

Looking at hourly wages, Hunt’s study showed American workers, with a bachelor’s degree or higher, made $29.60 per hour compared to those, with the same education level, who came to the U.S. on a work visa and earned $34.20 per hour.

Besides earnings, Hunt primarily attributes the performance advantage to the immigrants’ higher education and tendency toward more lucrative fields of study. When it comes to earnings though, immigrants’ success is heavily dependent on when they come to the U.S. “Foreign education commands a lower wage return in the U.S. labor market, and the more foreign education an immigrant has, the older he or she is upon arrival in the United States, which further reduces wages and productivity. Only immigrants who arrived as college students (due to their young age at arrival and U.S. degrees) and immigrants who arrived on temporary work visas earn as much as similar natives.”

Hunt used the 2003 National Survey of College Graduates to examine college graduates in the U.S. for at least three years, 64 years old or younger. Her final conclusion was listed, from most to least productive: “postdoctoral fellows and medical residents; graduate students; temporary work visa holders; college students; other students/trainees; legal permanent residents; dependents of temporary visa holders; and other temporary visa holders.”

Hunt’s research comes as the hiring and recruitment of foreign workers becomes more controversial, against an 8.5% U.S. unemployment rate. For example, the State Department has encouraged sponsors of J-1 visas to bring in fewer workers, companies that accept Troubled Asset Relief Program funds can’t employ H-1B workers without proving they searched for an equally-skilled American and applications for H-1B visas trickled in slowly compared to the flood of them in previous years.

Eternal_Hope

07-20-2009, 05:53 AM

http://www.sba.gov/advo/research/rs349tot.pdf

Excellent report. It clearly shows the positive impact foreign-born high-skilled immigrants have on job creation and long-term competitiveness of this country.

Look at pages numbered 49 & 50. Also see pages 55 to 60.

Rb_newsletter

07-20-2009, 02:35 PM

The Hindu Business Line : TCS makes no H1B visa application this fiscal (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/07/19/stories/2009071950760200.htm)

TCS makes no H1B visa application this fiscal
Adith Charlie
Sagar Bhadra

Mumbai, July 18 Tata Consultancy Services has not filed for a single H1B visa this year mainly due to its focus on shifting more work to low-cost destinations such as India and China.

Moreover, the company already has around 18,000 employees with valid H1B visas, both in India and overseas, said Mr Ajoy Mukherjee, Vice-President and Head Global Human Resources.

TCS relocated over 1,000 of its overseas staff during the quarter ended June 30 to increase offshoring revenues. The move had a positive impact of about 95 basis points on the company’s margins.

According to him, bringing back staff to India is beneficial for TCS, its clients and its employees. “If you shift work offshore, the customer’s overall costs reduce. It is advantageous for TCS because margins are obviously higher when you deliver from an offshore location. For employees too, it is good as they get to work in their home base,” said Mr Mukherjee.

The people who were called back were stationed at its centres in the US, the UK, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

“These are not the sales people but those involved in actual projects and delivery. Instead of doing it from the customer’s location, they would now carry forward from our India location,” he said. TCS feels that there is ‘more scope left’ to move work and people onshore.

WeldonSprings

07-24-2009, 10:40 AM

Another Immigration Ponzi Scheme...This is when 60,000 Advanced degree candidates from India are waiting in line to get their GREEN CARD...God Bless America!
SEEKING A HAVEN
Bhutanese refugees find help in Houston
By RENÉE C. LEE Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
July 22, 2009, 8:52PM

Michael Paulsen Chronicle
Achut Mishra, a Bhutanese refugee, is learning computer skills from a local nonprofit group, Sewa International USA.

Ganga Chamlagai was just 8 years old when his family and thousands of other Nepali-speaking people were expelled from their native Bhutan in the early 1990s.

The ruling monarchy had declared a nationalist society in the small Asian country tucked between China and India. And Chamlagai's people, the Lhotsampas — an ethnic group that settled in the southern parts of Bhutan in the late 1800s — became the target of racist policies. New rules banned them from speaking their language and practicing their Hindu religion.

Persecuted and stripped of their citizenship, more than 100,000 Bhutanese people, including Chamlagai's family, fled to Nepal, where they have lived in refugee camps for the past 19 years.

Chamlagai, now 26, is embracing a new life in the United States. He is among the first wave of Bhutanese refugees to come to Houston as part of resettlement program started last year by the U.S. State Department.

As many as 60,000 are expected to enter the country over the next five years. So far, about 500 Bhutanese have settled in Houston, according to four local resettlement agencies.

The darks days in Bhutan still linger for Chamlagai. He remembers when his father was dragged from their home by army police. They thought he was an anti-national protester. They put him jail and beat him, Chamlagai said.

“Many of our parents died in the jails and our sisters and mothers were raped by army guards,” Chamlagai said.

Many refugees yearn to return to Bhutan and hope repatriations will come soon, he said.

The refugees have been placed in apartment complexes in southwest Houston. Because they are a tight-knit community, many refugees requested to live near other Bhutanese families.

Helping hands
The modern living quarters are in stark contrast to the one-room bamboo huts they lived in at the camps. Some refugees have moved to smaller units because they believe they have too much space.

The resettlement agencies are helping the refugees with rental assistance, food and other basic needs, using federal stipends. The money also covers the cost of agency programs to help them learn English and find work.

But the money does not meet all their needs, so community groups and churches have offered help.

The Houston chapter of the nonprofit Sewa International USA, for example, is providing additional education and job training for Bhutanese refugees. .

“We are constantly struggling to meet the needs,” said Dario Lipovac, resettlement director for YMCA International Services. “We are really pleading with donors to help us one way or another to alleviate some of the expenses.”

Refugees are expected to be self-sufficient and working within 90 to 180 days of resettlement. The recession has made it tougher to place refugees in jobs but they are getting work. It's just taking them much longer to get hired, agency workers said.

The Bhutanese seem to be faring better than other refugees in the job market because of their willingness to work and ability to speak English, they said.

“The Bhutanese happen to be very adjustable to resettlement,” said Oleg Jolic, director of resettlement for Catholic Charities. “Their advantage is that they have a higher level of English speaking than other refugee groups and they are fluent.” The refugees were taught English in their southern Bhutanese schools before they were closed by the government and turned into jails. English is also taught in schools at the refugee camps.

Cause of frustration
But some refugees say the language barrier is a problem for many in their community and it has caused some frustration when looking for work.

“Many people they are in tension or have disappointment,” said a college-educated Chamlagai, who found work at a postal service company about two months after arriving in Houston a year ago.

Those who grew up in the camps often were not taught by the best teachers, so they speak broken English and don't fully understand the language, said Meg Neopeney, a 38-year-old refugee who arrived here in November with his wife and two children.

‘No future' in Nepal
Neopeney, who has become a community leader of sorts, is a volunteer for The Alliance for Multicultural Community Services, a resettlement agency. He serves as a translator and helps refugees enroll their children in schools.

Neopeney said he likes living in the U.S. because it means his children have an opportunity for a better life. “They have no future or identity in Nepal,” he said.

Food supplies are scarce in the camps, and the refugees spend most of their days doing nothing, he said.

In March 2008, Bhutan's monarchy changed to a democracy.

Chamlagai said family members who still live there can now wear their cultural dress in and around their house, but they still must follow the dominant Buddhist culture.

Chamlagai said he would return even though things have not changed much.

“Our parents and our grandparents, our forefathers were born there,” he said. “They built the roads and buildings and died there. We were also born there. The motherland is lovelier than heaven.”

GC_dd

08-21-2009, 04:19 PM

World's Most Successful Immigrants: Immigrant Bosses Around the World - BusinessWeek (http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/08/0821_most_successful_immigrants/index.htm)

ummeed

08-21-2009, 04:29 PM

its strange. the argument that legal employment based immigrant use to make a case that -
the set of highly educated, qualified legal employment based immigrants have been seed innovators and enterpreneurs who actually create thousands of American jobs rather than take away, is misused in this article for the advantage of illegal immigrants .

read 1st para. -
"President Obama wants to turn many of these illegal immigrants into citizens, but the shaky economy and high unemployment rate make such liberalization of policy a hot-button issue. This despite the fact that immigrants run many of the top companies in the U.S. Here's a look (arranged in alphabetical order) ..."

vedicman

12-13-2010, 10:22 AM

The Startup Case For Immigration Reform - Maureen Farrell - Scaling Up - Forbes (http://blogs.forbes.com/maureenfarrell/2010/11/23/startups%E2%80%99-case-for-immigration/#more-140)

It’s not just Google that’s worried about attracting and retaining top technical talent. However, the search giant’s recent 10% raise for all its employees is a leading indicator of the talent and compensation war surging through Silicon Valley, and among tech startups around the US.

“It’s the worst I’ve seen since the late 1990s,” says Bessemer Venture Partner’s David Cowan, who estimates that salaries for experienced engineers are up about 20% from before the crisis. Charles River Partners’ George Zachary says it takes between $90,000 and $100,000 to land even starting engineers compared to $75,000 to $80,000 just six months ago.

Of the dozen venture capitalists and CEOs I spoke to who are seeing this trend, nearly all say a business-friendly immigration policy could help them find talent to help them grow startups.

“Everyone of my startups has an issue with trying to fill out their engineering headcount plan,” says Cowan. “There are lots of talented engineers around the world. If we invited them to participate in our industry here in the U.S. we would see more Googles and Facebooks.”

Large and small businesses are lining up behind an immigration policy that would make it easier for entrepreneurs and high-tech professionals to come or stay in the United States. Congress did not move forward on comprehensive immigration reform before the midterm election. It has also failed to pass several of the more specific immigration proposals made in recent years. One of these, the DREAM Act, would have allowed alien students who graduate from college or served for two years in the military to stay in the US. Another, the Startup Visa Act, sought to give a visa to anyone who’s received $1 million in equity investment in their company and would create 10 US jobs.

Expect a concerted push to reverse what’s seen as a brain drain from big business and the venture capital industry. Jim Turley, the CEO of Ernst and Young who serves on Obama’s National Export Council, advocates a policy of what he calls “staple diplomacy.” Explaining it he said: “Whenever there’s a student from anywhere in the world who is walking across the stage from a leading university getting his or her PhD or masters we should staple a visa there to him or her and say you’re welcome to stay.”

Immigration proponents cite studies by Duke Professor Vivek Wadhwa, who determined that immigrants created a quarter of all technology and engineering firms founded in the U.S. between 1995 and 2005. Foreign-born nationals residing in this country were part of nearly one-quarter of patents filed in 2006.

Right now entrepreneurs and businesses have two options to bring highly skilled international residents into the US: the EB-5 visa and the H1B visa. With the EB-5 visa, immigrant investors can obtain a green card if they invest $1 million into a new or existing business and create at least 10 jobs. Less than half of last year’s 10,000 EB-5 slots were filled. Eleanor Pelta, the President-Elect of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and a partner at the law firm Morgan Lewis in Washington says foreign nationals are wary of using these visas to start a new business because if a business runs into trouble and the company doesn’t employ 10 workers two years later, the investor will lose his or her provisional visa. “It’s a dicey proposition because you have to use your own money or secure it with your own assets and you might not get a visa at the end of it anyway,” she says.

The H-1B visa is for highly skilled foreign workers who will fill jobs that Americans can’t. US companies must sponsor these visas. The US caps this visa category at 65,000 individuals and it’s nearly always oversubscribed. Cleveland immigration attorney David Leopold and current President of the American Immigration Lawyers Association expects that this fiscal year’s (staring on October 1, 2010) visa slots will be filled by January of 2011. “So from January through next October, no companies can bring in skilled workers on these visas.”

The United States’ Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra says President Obama has tried to lower administrative barriers for bringing foreign nationals into the US for professional development. “In his first year the President wanted to make sure scientists around the world who wanted to visit the US to participate in conferences and seminars could do that,” says Chopra. “We have streamlined that process and efforts so they can participate in ways that are a lot more friendly to their participation.”

Many in Silicon Valley question how well even that move has worked. New Enterprise Associates Scott Sandell who invests in companies in Silicon Valley and China says it’s hard to bring in top executives from Chinese firms to meet with executives from his US companies. “Immigration agents are more overwhelmed and seem to have more trouble processing applications than they ever have,” says Sandell, noting that it’s been worse in the past six months.

Still both Chopra and Undersecretary of Commerce Francisco Sanchez say that Obama will put political capital behind immigration reform in the next Congress. “We are obviously committed to comprehensive solution for immigration reform,” asserts Chopra. “There are clear areas of consensus in this country around reform, and areas of high-growth entrepreneurship clearly might be one that we can take action on sooner.”