3 ms·

While I'm generally all for the change you propose, you have to be realistic and realize this could be abused. I could set up a company that would, in exchange

While I'm generally all for the change you propose, you have to be realistic and realize this could be abused. I could set up a company that would, in exchange for buying $3000 of my plastic toys, hire someone and let them resign a month later. I can even let them do the month's work from their new home in the US. Then they can go off and do as they please. Granted this is just an enforcement issue, and enforcement is part of whatever system we have, but I think you could save a lot of effort by just instituting some kind of entrance exam system to certify them as a 'knowledge worker'. (At which point they can enter and leave freely, with full job mobility.) As an added bonus, you could administer this exam to citizens as well as a form of professional certification, which would probably be more useful to employers than the existing degree system.

sethg 18y ago
I could set up a company that would, in exchange for buying $3000 of my plastic toys, hire someone and let them resign a month later. There are ways to prevent that. For example, the government could require that (a) the employer sponsoring a new immigrant has to pay six months of the immigrant's unemployment insurance in advance (perhaps put into an escrow account), and (b) if the immigrant is neither employed nor collecting unemployment insurance for more than, say, two months, then the visa is terminated. Another possibility I've seen floated is that the government make only a fixed number of work visas available, but auction them off. Then the immigrants let in would be the ones who are likely to add the most value to their employers.
- potatolicious 18y ago
  Actually that's also how we solve it in Canada for relatives of immigrants. In order to bring kin over into Canada one must sign a commitment to cover their social welfare expenses (if any) for a period of 10 years. This has done wonders to curtail people bringing in elderly relatives who do nothing but sit on welfare checks. This also holds someone accountable without leaving someone behind.

sethg 18y ago

I could set up a company that would, in exchange for buying $3000 of my plastic toys, hire someone and let them resign a month later. There are ways to prevent that. For example, the government could require that (a) the employer sponsoring a new immigrant has to pay six months of the immigrant's unemployment insurance in advance (perhaps put into an escrow account), and (b) if the immigrant is neither employed nor collecting unemployment insurance for more than, say, two months, then the visa is terminated. Another possibility I've seen floated is that the government make only a fixed number of work visas available, but auction them off. Then the immigrants let in would be the ones who are likely to add the most value to their employers.

potatolicious 18y ago
Actually that's also how we solve it in Canada for relatives of immigrants. In order to bring kin over into Canada one must sign a commitment to cover their social welfare expenses (if any) for a period of 10 years. This has done wonders to curtail people bringing in elderly relatives who do nothing but sit on welfare checks. This also holds someone accountable without leaving someone behind.