Re: those H1B visas

[Skidmore]

Anyway, I caught part of the rebroadcast of Dobbs this morning and Kitty Pilgrim was talking about the number of these visas being offered to high tech has increased from something like in the 10,000 range annually to 95,000 annually. This coming at a time when we have large numbers of people displaced from work, funds for retraining being cut, and who knows how many unemployed tech workers out there who have been on the unemployment rolls for an extended period of time. Is there not some labor organization/union who could get these people together to protest this issue? Or, have the tech companies been as successful as institutions of higher learning at convincing white collar workers that they are professionals so don't need labor organizations to make certain that their rights as workers are protected?



Edited for correction of visa designator.

[Ohio Joe]

1. I believe it is H1B

10k seems like that was a small number, I seem to recall it closer to 50k during Y2K days... maybe it went down after that though ? Not sure.

[Skidmore]

2. Thanks. I'll correct it.

[Ohio Joe]

4. Also

I just found this:

http://uscis.gov/graphics/howdoi/h1b.htm

According to this site the number is currently (that being 2004) 65k and during 01,02, and 03 it was temporarily raised to 195k, way more then I thought.

[cornermouse]

3. Don't you know? They're just doing jobs that Americans refuse to do.

:sarcasm:

[Skidmore]

5. And I find it amazing that American workers are just taking this

and not standing up to either business or the government. Take away the benefits corporations are given and demand that they be citizens as well, or they loose customer. This idea that it is patriotic to consume for consumptions sake is ridiculous.