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Federal Judge Calls BS On Homeland Security's 2008 STEM 'Emergency'

Posted by timothy on from the skept-should-be-a-verb dept.

theodp writes: In 2008, the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security enacted 'emergency' changes to Optional Practical Training (OPT) to extend the amount of time foreign STEM graduates of US colleges could stay in the country and work ("to alleviate the crisis employers are facing due to the current H-1B visa shortage", as Bill Gates explained it in 2007). More than seven years later, U.S. District Court Judge Ellen Huvelle has found that the government erred by not seeking public comment when it extended the program, and issued a ruling that could force tens of thousands of foreign workers on OPT STEM extensions to return to their home countries early next year. Huvelle has given the government six months to submit the OPT extension rule for proper notice and comment lest it be revoked. From the ruling (pdf): "By failing to engage in notice-and-comment rulemaking, the record is largely one-sided, with input only from technology companies that stand to benefit from additional F-1 student employees, who are exempted from various wage taxes. Indeed, the 17-month duration of the STEM extension appears to have been adopted directly from the unanimous suggestions by Microsoft and similar industry groups." Microsoft declared a new crisis in 2012, this time designed to link tech's need for H-1B visas to U.S. children's lack of CS savvy.

4 of 142 comments (clear)

  1. STEM OPT extension was really bad by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Great recession, almost a depression, crashing economy, loss of million jobs a month.. unemployment spiking over 10%... underemployment way past 16%... and they persisted this farce of 17 month additional OPT for STEM? It is corporatocracy, pure and simple.

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    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  2. I'll believe it's an emergency when 2 thingshappen by NotSoHeavyD3 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    1. Wages increase

    2. They bring in people on green cards for 5-10 years for any employer instead of this H1B nonsense where they bring people in with a leash around their figurative nuts and hand the nut leash to one company.

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  3. There is indeed a crisis by paiute · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Large companies are having real problems finding skilled people they can pay minimum wage and treat like chattel.

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  4. Re:There is no way this looks good. by jafiwam · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Meanwhile, Real IT Pro's know there's a tremendous shortage of real Talent out there, and it has gotten so bad companies can only stumble upon people who know what they are doing. Everyone else just kinda passes as somewhat knowing what they are doing.

    I am not surprised at all this tired old lie would show up as an anonymous first post in a thread like this.

    Pay more, more will come. Very simple. Why would anybody bother to learn / earn experience for your shit-pay job? Your problem is YOU.