NYT Cautions Against ‘Abuse’ of H-1B Visa, Says it Harms Americans

The piece reminds its readers that visas are supposed to be used to hire foreigners in “specialty occupations.”

The “abuse” of H-1B visa is harming American workers, the New York Times said in an editorial on Thursday.

The article titled ‘Visa Abuses Harm American Workers’ demanded the US Congress to close the “loopholes as some companies skirt rules for using H-1B workers by outsourcing recruitments to India-based firms like Tata and Infosys.”

There is no doubt that H-1B visas — temporary work permits for specially talented foreign professionals — are instead being used by American employers to replace American workers with cheaper foreign labour.

Expressing concern for American workers, the editorial also reminds its readers that visas are only supposed to be used to hire foreigners in “specialty occupations” requiring “highly specialised knowledge”.

It was quick to add that in several cases “laid-off American workers have been required to train their lower-paid replacements.”

“Criticism of the visa process has been muted, and reform has moved slowly, partly because laid-off American workers – mostly tech employees replaced by Indian guest workers – have not loudly protested. Their reticence does not mean acceptance or even resignation,” it said.

A report by the newspaper earlier this week had said that most of the displaced workers had to “sign agreements prohibiting them from criticising their former employers as a condition of receiving severance pay.”

The editorial concludes by saying on one hand, these gag orders contribute towards the silencing of laid-off employees, on the other hand, they act as a legitimate legal proof for employers to defend their actions.