4 ms·

ppl also talk a lot about union for tech workers. Its not feasible in tech because a sizable majority of tech workers are on various visa's that precludes them

ppl also talk a lot about union for tech workers. Its not feasible in tech because a sizable majority of tech workers are on various visa's that precludes them from joining a strike, making the union essentially ineffective. This needs to be addressed first. Chicago has teachers union but filipino teachers on J1 cannot participate in a strike, it works for CTU because there are only a tiny fraction on J1 visa.

baddox 7y ago
A majority of tech workers are on visas? I find that hard to believe.
- en4bz 7y ago
  TCS, Wipro, etc. probably skew this but it seems true to some extent at least in the bay area. [1] [1] https://www.newsweek.com/h-1b-visa-row-foreign-workers-make-more-half-silicon-valleys-tech-industry-784272 https://www.newsweek.com/h-1b-visa-row-foreign-workers-make-...
- dominotw 7y ago
  Sorry I meant 'sizable' not 'sizable majority'.
- jacquesm 7y ago
  GP has a habit of exaggerating claims that have some basis in fact when looked at through your eyelashes but that fall apart on closer inspection: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21899843 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21899843 I don't think this will be any different.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
  - dominotw 7y ago
    one example = habit? As I said before you wrote this comment, i meant to use sizable here not sizable majority.
tehjoker 7y ago
You can strike if you're on a visa, but it does put you at enhanced risk of retaliation. You can strike even if it is illegal. The question is the balance of power. For example, if the company retaliates against visa workers, and the other workers strike in protest, the company will probably not continue to try that. This is why solidarity between workers of different dispositions is so important.
- dominotw 7y ago
  > You can strike if you're on a visa You are right, for some reason i thought it was not possible. But from what I've seen, lot of H1B people are subcontractors.
- pandaman 7y ago
  IANAL but when I had H1B visa it was for working for a particular company, not striking. I don't know if it's been tested yet but not working definitely had and it is a violation of H1B status. Google for "h1b bench NOIR".

baddox 7y ago

A majority of tech workers are on visas? I find that hard to believe.

en4bz 7y ago
TCS, Wipro, etc. probably skew this but it seems true to some extent at least in the bay area. [1] [1] https://www.newsweek.com/h-1b-visa-row-foreign-workers-make-more-half-silicon-valleys-tech-industry-784272 https://www.newsweek.com/h-1b-visa-row-foreign-workers-make-...
dominotw 7y ago
Sorry I meant 'sizable' not 'sizable majority'.
jacquesm 7y ago
GP has a habit of exaggerating claims that have some basis in fact when looked at through your eyelashes but that fall apart on closer inspection: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21899843 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21899843 I don't think this will be any different.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
- dominotw 7y ago
  one example = habit? As I said before you wrote this comment, i meant to use sizable here not sizable majority.

tehjoker 7y ago

You can strike if you're on a visa, but it does put you at enhanced risk of retaliation. You can strike even if it is illegal. The question is the balance of power. For example, if the company retaliates against visa workers, and the other workers strike in protest, the company will probably not continue to try that. This is why solidarity between workers of different dispositions is so important.

dominotw 7y ago
> You can strike if you're on a visa You are right, for some reason i thought it was not possible. But from what I've seen, lot of H1B people are subcontractors.
pandaman 7y ago
IANAL but when I had H1B visa it was for working for a particular company, not striking. I don't know if it's been tested yet but not working definitely had and it is a violation of H1B status. Google for "h1b bench NOIR".