H1 B's Get To Change Jobs More Freely

merigold77 writes "Business2.com reports in H1-Bs on the Move that the bill allowing 80,000 new H1-B workers includes "significant new freedoms for the workers themselves. In the interests of reducing the role of the INS in these workers' careers, the bill includes a 'portability provision' that makes it easier for H-1B workers to switch companies without having to wait for INS approval.""

Comments

We've been through this already, haven't we?

[BluedemonX]

Once again we're going to have three factions clashing. Faction ONE is going to be older workers who are ticked that they aren't making $300,000 a year anymore programming in COBOL and who can't find jobs compared to the young uns, pleading to keep furners out so they can git thuh jobs. Faction TWO is going to be people from outside the USA (myself included, being Canadian) who will tell you how brutally difficult the whole process is for people, and Faction THREE is going to be people who think applying for a green card is like applying for a driver's licence.

Linus Torvalds is stuck behind red tape. Many a talented worker is stuck behind red tape. This may or may not be a bonus, because the motivation of MANY on H-1s is to become Green Card holders, whereas many believe temporary means temporary.

If we're going to have a discussion about this, please put your own personal agendas as to whether these furners should be here or not aside and discuss what this actually means to some of the readership here.

Good for them, good for us.

[plimsoll]

I'm glad these former wage slaves can shop around the job market now, because I'd hate to have to compete against an equally qualified person who has fewer working rights than I do.

On a different note, I'd rather shoot myself in the face than have to hear another unemployed 40-something engineer's sob story about being booted in favor of inexperienced kids (like me) or cheap intentured servants, er... H1's. Now the whiners will have one less excuse.

Seriously though- maybe this will help out the obvious age bias that older programmers (percieved as past their prime & too set in their ways) experience every day. Or not, but at least it's a step in the right direction.

About time!

[Tackhead]

What's particularly interesting is that Congress has now stated (in the "it is the sense of Congress that" sense of the word, not with actual dollars) that no transaction with INS ought to take more than six months.

It's a start - a small start, but an important one - towards reforming the INS bureaucracy that's put countless lives on hold for years.

And as for the H-1B bill being about "cheap labor", IMHO that's FUD. If you can't find the skills locally, you go abroad. Although there are companies that abuse the H-1B programme, the vast majority of companies that take advantage of it give their employees a fair shake -- and the reality is that if you're an employee who wants to join the US and get your Green Card, an H-1B is a damn good way to get your foot in the door.

The only thing I question is this: Why is this on /. today? The law (originally bill S.2045) passed both houses weeks ago. Its provisions are hardly news.

Re:About time!

[Mr_Icon]

What's particularly interesting is that Congress has now stated (in the "it is the sense of Congress that" sense of the word, not with actual dollars) that no transaction with INS ought to take more than six months.

You might think it's funny, but it's not! I'm an H1-B worker and I went home in August to visit my family (I'm Russian). Before I left, I called the INS and asked them which papers I needed to get a visa and re-enter the country. Well, he said that all I needed were just two pieces of paper which I already had. So, I left.

Unfortunately, I was misinformed by the INS -- I needed a whole bunch of other papers to get a visa to re-enter the country. (Just to clarify -- I was a student first and my H1-B status came through when I was in US on a student status, so I never had to get an H1-B visa per se prior to my August leave). One of the papers, a form I-129, which is original "Foreign worker" petition, was not on file with my employer, so they had to file a form with the INS to send them a copy of it. It's now November and we're still waiting for INS to send just a simple copy of a paper. No effort -- just find my file, and fax the document. We did get their receipt late in August, stating that we should be waiting for a reply within 80-120 days. 3 to 4 months to get a copy of a document! Absurd!

So, I'm stuck. Thankfully, my employer didn't terminate my job (which they could!) and I can still admin my servers via the Interet (which costs per minute here).

This ain't funny. I understand the waits when some decision-making is required, but heck -- just fax the friggin' paper!