12 ms·

As a Former H-1B holder I'm really surprised how few people think about the intention of the program: A temporary worker program to bring highly skilled labor i

As a Former H-1B holder I'm really surprised how few people think about the intention of the program: A temporary worker program to bring highly skilled labor into the country (or allow them to stay longer) (temporarily) as demonstrated by the needs of a specific employer. Let's not pretend there is some huge injustice here. This is a risk we must take into account as immigrants. None of us have the automatic right to stay and work here, and that isn't the intention of the program. Immigration is not a right, it is a privilege.

22SAS 4y ago
As a current H1B holder, I agree. I always say that visa workers may not realize it at first but the day they stand outside the consulate for their visa interview, they indirectly agree to whatever headaches come with being on an H1B (or any sort of work visa for that matter).
- commandlinefan 4y ago
  > As a current H1B holder, I agree It seems like the only people who do understand the program are the people who are directly participating in it.
  - ecdavis 4y ago
    I agree with the parent and grandparent comments. That said, when I was sponsored for an E-3 visa by a US company the recruiters made it clear that my position was permanent (subject to performance) and that the company would sponsor me for a Green Card. These representations were contradicted by the legal documents I presented in my interview at the US consulate. Nonetheless, I can imagine some employees on these sorts of visas might take their employer at their word and plan their lives accordingly.
miscaccount 4y ago
though i agree with you overall, right now the system is totally not working for indians and to a some extend chinese. The current wait time for indians is over 100 years whereas all other countries get their green card in a couple of years(after green card sponsorship). This makes the system crushing the Indians who have roots for more than decades. For people who would say , you should have seen it coming , recently the demand from other countries are too high that wait time for indians are in decades at minimum
- throwaway_9_7_5 4y ago
  I see your point. Yes for those born in countries with traditionally high immigration rates the system is broken. Even if an employer can demonstrate they need to retain a particular person if this employer later needs to terminate the employee for unrelated reasons you are screwed. I think the H-1B to EB-2 and EB-1 process should be improved to not be subject to immigration rates.
  - asdadsdad 4y ago
    well, it's broken because of a particular high demand from those countries that's different from the others. I don't think the system should explicitly discriminate one country from the other, but I think it's fair to give a chance to other countries at an equal rate.
    - miscaccount 4y ago
      Visas/green cards are given to people and not countries The people waiting in the employment green card lines are evaluated on the same set of criteria . Their ability to perform a particular task for their employer.
- 22SAS 4y ago
  I am an Indian H1b holder. The system is not meant to be beneficial for a nationality or a group of nationalities. Indians very well know that the green card waiting times are super long, and yet they'll come here, give birth to kids, buy a house, etc. All on a temporary visa with a very, very long waiting period for their green card. Maybe don't try to set roots if you know that you will not get permanent residency?
  - miscaccount 4y ago
    many are choosing not to come. The US student visa has been on decline especially from india and china. What about people who are already here for decades ? Some don't understand the complexity of the system and think their case will be different
UncleMeat 4y ago
Even though it is a privilege, I think it is still important to treat people with kindness and respect. The way that the US treats people on h1bs, especially if they are from countries with extremely long waits for green cards, is heartless, in my opinion. There are a lot of things that we don't have to do to help our fellow human but that we still should do.
- 22SAS 4y ago
  There is nothing heartless about it, if the system doesn't work for people born in one particular country. I say this as an Indian H1B holder. If anything, the US has given me opportunities that I wouldn't get in India. I work on a front office team at an HFT. In India, for front office roles, most of the HFT's don't hire anyone not from the IIT's. My resume would be thrown straight in the bin, if I were still in India. A while back, FAANG offices in India would only prefer hiring from the top tier Indian schools.
- asdadsdad 4y ago
  I think everyone is treated with respect. No country has to process permanent residency applications for everyone, and no country has to provide a visa for foreigners to work period. The system is overwhelmed and they get to make their policies. I've read something once that really struck me: if you have skills which you think are valuable, have gone through extensive education and training, and subject yourself to the whims of a random system to decide your future, you're not unlucky, you're just dumb.
  - gizmodo59 4y ago
    How is that dumb? May be their calculation of odds in making it big (financially or otherwise) resulted in taking that chance. It’s not just direct money when someone educated and smart wants to work here. There is indirect money that comes in form of connections that have significant dividends long term even if they get kicked out. Not to mention a new cultural experience.. So I’d say people make calculations. You have no idea about the decision making process.
- airocker 4y ago
throwaway2729 4y ago
There's a difference between temporary and sudden. Knowing you can stay only for 6 years is temporary. Finding out that you could theoretically be here for a long time but your life could be yanked away any minute is sudden and an uprooting that no one deserves.
- asdadsdad 4y ago
  that assumption is really "theoretical" and personal. The visa conditions don't tell you can stay for an arbitrarily long time. As others have pointed out, H1B is explicitly temporary and does not in itself lead to a permanent residency path. The US is not like others countries, say UK, where staying for 10 years in some visas or 5 years in a work visa lead you to PR. What they've transformed the H1B in is sort of "unwarranted"
thrown_22 4y ago

22SAS 4y ago

As a current H1B holder, I agree. I always say that visa workers may not realize it at first but the day they stand outside the consulate for their visa interview, they indirectly agree to whatever headaches come with being on an H1B (or any sort of work visa for that matter).

commandlinefan 4y ago
> As a current H1B holder, I agree It seems like the only people who do understand the program are the people who are directly participating in it.
- ecdavis 4y ago
  I agree with the parent and grandparent comments. That said, when I was sponsored for an E-3 visa by a US company the recruiters made it clear that my position was permanent (subject to performance) and that the company would sponsor me for a Green Card. These representations were contradicted by the legal documents I presented in my interview at the US consulate. Nonetheless, I can imagine some employees on these sorts of visas might take their employer at their word and plan their lives accordingly.

miscaccount 4y ago

though i agree with you overall, right now the system is totally not working for indians and to a some extend chinese. The current wait time for indians is over 100 years whereas all other countries get their green card in a couple of years(after green card sponsorship). This makes the system crushing the Indians who have roots for more than decades. For people who would say , you should have seen it coming , recently the demand from other countries are too high that wait time for indians are in decades at minimum

throwaway_9_7_5 4y ago
I see your point. Yes for those born in countries with traditionally high immigration rates the system is broken. Even if an employer can demonstrate they need to retain a particular person if this employer later needs to terminate the employee for unrelated reasons you are screwed. I think the H-1B to EB-2 and EB-1 process should be improved to not be subject to immigration rates.
- asdadsdad 4y ago
  well, it's broken because of a particular high demand from those countries that's different from the others. I don't think the system should explicitly discriminate one country from the other, but I think it's fair to give a chance to other countries at an equal rate.
  - miscaccount 4y ago
    Visas/green cards are given to people and not countries The people waiting in the employment green card lines are evaluated on the same set of criteria . Their ability to perform a particular task for their employer.
22SAS 4y ago
I am an Indian H1b holder. The system is not meant to be beneficial for a nationality or a group of nationalities. Indians very well know that the green card waiting times are super long, and yet they'll come here, give birth to kids, buy a house, etc. All on a temporary visa with a very, very long waiting period for their green card. Maybe don't try to set roots if you know that you will not get permanent residency?
- miscaccount 4y ago
  many are choosing not to come. The US student visa has been on decline especially from india and china. What about people who are already here for decades ? Some don't understand the complexity of the system and think their case will be different

UncleMeat 4y ago

Even though it is a privilege, I think it is still important to treat people with kindness and respect. The way that the US treats people on h1bs, especially if they are from countries with extremely long waits for green cards, is heartless, in my opinion. There are a lot of things that we don't have to do to help our fellow human but that we still should do.

22SAS 4y ago
There is nothing heartless about it, if the system doesn't work for people born in one particular country. I say this as an Indian H1B holder. If anything, the US has given me opportunities that I wouldn't get in India. I work on a front office team at an HFT. In India, for front office roles, most of the HFT's don't hire anyone not from the IIT's. My resume would be thrown straight in the bin, if I were still in India. A while back, FAANG offices in India would only prefer hiring from the top tier Indian schools.
asdadsdad 4y ago
I think everyone is treated with respect. No country has to process permanent residency applications for everyone, and no country has to provide a visa for foreigners to work period. The system is overwhelmed and they get to make their policies. I've read something once that really struck me: if you have skills which you think are valuable, have gone through extensive education and training, and subject yourself to the whims of a random system to decide your future, you're not unlucky, you're just dumb.
- gizmodo59 4y ago
  How is that dumb? May be their calculation of odds in making it big (financially or otherwise) resulted in taking that chance. It’s not just direct money when someone educated and smart wants to work here. There is indirect money that comes in form of connections that have significant dividends long term even if they get kicked out. Not to mention a new cultural experience.. So I’d say people make calculations. You have no idea about the decision making process.
airocker 4y ago

throwaway2729 4y ago

There's a difference between temporary and sudden. Knowing you can stay only for 6 years is temporary. Finding out that you could theoretically be here for a long time but your life could be yanked away any minute is sudden and an uprooting that no one deserves.

asdadsdad 4y ago
that assumption is really "theoretical" and personal. The visa conditions don't tell you can stay for an arbitrarily long time. As others have pointed out, H1B is explicitly temporary and does not in itself lead to a permanent residency path. The US is not like others countries, say UK, where staying for 10 years in some visas or 5 years in a work visa lead you to PR. What they've transformed the H1B in is sort of "unwarranted"

thrown_22 4y ago