Bill Adds Hurdles for Foreign Hires http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123517509078737427.html By JOHN D. MCKINNON WASHINGTON -- A little-noticed provision in the stimulus package discourages banks that receive federal bailouts from hiring skilled foreign workers, and it likely foreshadows broader efforts to restrict work-related visa programs this year. The provision imposes higher government scrutiny on banks and other businesses getting federal bailouts if they use the H-1B visa program to hire skilled workers. The program generally grants temporary visas to at least 85,000 workers a year, often more. Supporters say the program is needed to help companies obtain the most qualified workers, particularly in fields such as engineering. They say the program is designed with stringent protections, requiring employers to attest they aren't replacing U.S. workers and to pay prevailing wages to foreign workers. But critics say the program, initiated in 1990, undermines U.S. workers by encouraging companies to hire temporary workers. They also say many of the protections built into the H-1B law don't work as intended, allowing U.S. employers to pass over American workers and hire cheaper foreign ones. Lawmakers are concerned that the program is being abused by some companies that exploit loopholes to cheat their foreign workers. "While we are suffering through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, the very least we can do is to make sure that banks receiving a taxpayer bailout are not allowed to import cheaper labor from overseas while they are throwing American workers out on the street," said Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent who pushed for the restriction. Mr. Sanders's office estimates that major U.S. banks employed at least 1,200 foreign workers under the program in 2006. Other critics say the total number hired in recent years is likely several times higher. A list of companies receiving H-1B visa approvals in 2007 included J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (236) and Goldman Sachs & Co. (224) among the top 30, and Lehman Brothers Inc. (135), Merrill Lynch & Co. (131) and Morgan Stanley & Co. (119) among the top 100. The visas typically are for three years but can be extended to six. Another sponsor of the restriction for bailed-out banks, veteran Sen. Charles Grassley (R., Iowa), is planning further legislation to tighten up the H-1B visa program as well as other visa programs for temporary workers. He is working with Sen. Richard Durbin (D., Ill.). A spokesman for Sen. Durbin said the intent isn't to reduce the number of H-1B provisions, but to shut down abuses. One big concern for critics of the H-1B program is the practice of some companies that function as temporary-employment agencies, bringing employees to the U.S. and putting them to work for other companies. Sen. Grassley says these employers can locate in areas of the country such as his home state, where prevailing wages are low, and then underpay workers they assign to California's Silicon Valley or other high-wage regions. But concern over the H-1B program itself appears to be rising. Sen. Sanders is considering additional legislation that would prevent companies engaged in mass layoffs of U.S. workers from importing cheaper labor from abroad through temporary guest-worker programs, a spokesman said Friday. As originally proposed, the stimulus bill's provision would have barred bailout recipients from hiring foreign H-1B workers altogether. But it was watered-down in last-minute negotiations, amid protests by businesses. Business advocates argued that in 2007, less than 1% of the workers at major U.S. financial institutions were H-1B visa holders. "At a time when the economy is striving to rebound, barring U.S. companies access to the most qualified job applicants...will hinder recovery," the U.S. Chamber of Commerce argued in a letter to senators on Feb. 5. Instead of barring H-1B workers, the stimulus law temporarily increases the number of procedural hurdles that banks and other bailout recipients must clear. It also gives the government much greater ability to scrutinize companies' hiring practices when it comes to the foreign workers. Despite that partial victory, proponents of the H-1B program foresee more struggles ahead, particularly given the recession. "There will be more attempts to tighten not only H-1B but all the temporary worker programs," said Bob Sakaniwa, a business immigration advocate at the American Immigration Lawyers Association. "Especially with Democrats in charge on the Hill who have legitimate concerns for U.S. workers and are listening to labor's concerns...we'd be kidding ourselves if we thought more tightening and enforcement weren't in the wings." Supporters of the H-1B program concede some abuses and are hoping to focus the legislative efforts on addressing those, "while at the same time keeping the programs viable for legitimate uses," Mr. Sakaniwa said. He noted that many H-1B workers in the banking field are expensive. The program also requires employers to pay application fees and in some cases travel, he said. The stimulus bill's restriction already is drawing criticism in foreign media, and from some foreign officials. Angelo Amador, the U.S. Chamber's director of immigration policy, said he heard that Indian officials were complaining this week to U.S. visitors about the new restrictions. "At some point there has to be a realization that we're not in this alone," Mr. Amador said. -- 如果本版不適合貼相關新聞的話，請來信告知，我會自刪，感謝 --

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