I'm over here not as an H1B, but have friends who are and colleagues who are.
There are many sides to this tale. Some people get it lucky and end up with nice jobs, etc. Others manage to obtain thier green cards, and thus don'r have to face deportation. However, these people quite often are treated much like slave labor. Thier visa doesn't allow them to move to another company (two guesses as to why companies prefer them sometimes to American workers? - second guess doesn't count) Usually they are paid less than thier counterparts (our findings show 10 - 20%). The H1B visa IS NOT RENEWABLE... once your 6 years is up... there's nothing you can do to renew it (not even leave the country for a vacation).
There is a shortage of computer people, so the need is real. However getting cheaper (often far more skilled) labor that is forced into corporate loyalty means that companies are NOT going to support Americans over imported skills.
There is two sides to every tale. The only ones who really score in this are the Companies. The Americans can benefit from the skills and diversity and the people comming over can often stand a chance at getting out of a less than desirable situation back home.
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I'm over here not as an H1B, but have friends who are and colleagues who are. There are many sides to this tale. Some people get it lucky and end up with nice jobs, etc. Others manage to obtain thier green cards, and thus don'r have to face deportation. However, these people quite often are treated much like slave labor. Thier visa doesn't allow them to move to another company (two guesses as to why companies prefer them sometimes to American workers? - second guess doesn't count) Usually they are paid less than thier counterparts (our findings show 10 - 20%). The H1B visa IS NOT RENEWABLE... once your 6 years is up... there's nothing you can do to renew it (not even leave the country for a vacation). There is a shortage of computer people, so the need is real. However getting cheaper (often far more skilled) labor that is forced into corporate loyalty means that companies are NOT going to support Americans over imported skills. There is two sides to every tale. The only ones who really score in this are the Companies. The Americans can benefit from the skills and diversity and the people comming over can often stand a chance at getting out of a less than desirable situation back home.