the positive side of immigration green cards, not guest workers ed perkins, chair ieee-usa career...
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The Positive Side of ImmigrationGreen Cards, Not Guest Workers
Ed Perkins, Chair IEEE-USA Career and Workforce Policy Committee
Vin O’Neill, IEEE-USASenior Legislative Representative
2007 Annual Meeting “Capitalizing on Global Opportunities”31 August – 3 September
Scottsdale, AZ
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Presentation Outline
Importance of Highly Skilled Immigrants Foreign Participation in STEM Workforce Visa Programs for STEM Professionals IEEE-USA Position Pending Federal Legislation Conflicting Interests
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The Positive Side of Immigration
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Foreign Born Scientists and Engineers
Alex Graham Bell Albert Einstein Enrico Fermi Edward Teller Nikola Tesla Werner Von Braun
Anousheh Ansari Sergey Brin Andy Grove Vinod Khosla Linus Torvalds Jerry Yang
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Recent Contributions by Immigrants 25% of new tech companies founded between 1995 and 2005 26%of international patent applications in 2006
50% of international patents filed in 2006 by multi-nationals, including:
Qualcomm (72 percent) Merck & Co. (65 percent) General Electric (64 percent) Siemens (63 percent) Cisco (60 percent)
41% of patents filed by the U.S. government
Source: Kaufmann Foundation
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Foreign Born STEM* Professionals Participation in US Workforce
STEM Professionals Numbers % Native % Foreign
Math & Computer Scientists 3,010,546 82% 18%
Engineers 1,704,862 84% 16%
Physical Scientists 361,486 75% 25%
Life Scientists 217,308 77% 23%
Social Scientists 341,983 90% 10%
All STEM Professionals 7,030,867 83% 17%
All professional specialties 21,368,000 90% 10%
All employed workers 136,891,000 88% 12%
Source: US Census, 2000
* STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
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Foreign Born STEM Professionals Major Countries of Origin
STEM Professionals India China FSS Phil Mex OtherMath & Computer Scientists 24% 17% 5% 7% 4% 43%Engineers 12% 16% 7% 4% 3% 58%Physical Scientists 12% 25% 3% 6% 1% 53%Life Scientists 11% 29% 5% 2% 2% 51%Social Scientists 7% 8% 3% 4% 3% 75%
All STEM Professionals 17% 16% 5% 5% 4% 53%
Source: US Census, 2000
FSS = Former Soviet States
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Immigration to the United States – Principal Paths to Entry
Permanent (Immigrant) Admissions ~ 1 million per year Family-sponsored, employer-based, refugees, diversity
Temporary (Non-Immigrant) Admissions ~ 30 million per year Business, employment, study, travel
Illegal (Undocumented) Admissions ~ .5 – 1 million per year 40% Visa overstays, 60% Illegal entrants
Source: Numbers USA Education and Research Foundation
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Administration and Enforcement Responsibilities are Fragmented
Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification Wage & Hour Division
Department of Homeland Security US Customs and Immigration Service Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Department of State US Embassies Bureau of Consular Affairs
Department of Justice Executive Office for Immigration Review Special Counsel for Unfair Immigration-related Employment
Practices
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Permanent (Immigrant) Admissions By Visa Categories
Immigrant Visa Categories Limits Admits Percent
Immediate relatives of citizens 418,522 44%Family-based preferences 480,000 214,355 22%Employment-based preferences 140,000 155,330 16%Refugees and asylees 119,592 13%Diversity immigrants 55,000 50,084 5%
Totals 675,000+ 957,883 100%
Source: US DHS, Office of Immigration Statistics, 2004
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Employment-Based (EB) Admissions by Visa Preferences
Admissions Preferences Limits Admits* Percent
Priority workers (extraordinary) 40,000 31,291 20%Advanced degree professionals 40,000 32,534 21%Bachelors degree professionals 40,000 85,969 55%Special immigrants 10,000 5,407 3%Employment creating investors 10,000 129 --
Totals 140,000 155,330 100%
* Principals 72,550 47% Dependents 82,780 53%
Source: US DHS, Office of Immigration Statistics (2004)
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Employment-Based (EB) Admissions By Country of Origin
Leading Countries of Origin AdmissionsPercent
Top Five 39,743 55%India 18,539 26%China 7,435 10%Philippines 7,398 10%Korea 3,269 5%Mexico 3,102 4%
All others 32,807 45%Totals 72,550 100%
Source: DHS, Office of Immigration Statistics (2004)
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Immigrant Admissions - Issues and Concerns (Pros and Cons)
Pros: Provides a clear path to citizenship – unlimited mobility
and opportunity Immigrants and citizens compete on a level economic
playing field Green card holders (LPRs) have the same basic rights
as citizens (except the right to vote) Cons
Numbers are restricted – inflexible admissions ceilings and per country limits
Administrative complexity, backlogs and delays - uncertain results (EB backlog 1,181,505 in 2006)
Increasing dependence on temporary (non-immigrant) admissions
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Temporary (Non-Immigrant) Admissions
Visa Categories Admits Percent
Short Term Temporary Visitors 27,395,921 88% (for Business and Travel)
Students and Exchange Visitors 935,196 3%Temporary Workers 831,715 3%Treaty Traders and Investors 182,934 1%Other temporary admissions 1,435,564 5%
Total temporary admissions 30,781,330 100%
Source: DHS, Office of Immigration Statistics (2004)
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Temporary Work Visa Programs Admissions
Work Visa Programs Admits Percent
Specialty Occupations (H-1B)* 386,821 47%Intra-company transfers (L-1) 314,484 38%
Extra-ordinary ability (O-1) 27,127 3%
NAFTA professionals (TN) 66,219 8%Other temporary workers 37,064 4%
All temporary workers 831,715 100%
Source: DHS, Office of Immigration Statistics (2004)
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H1-B Fact Sheet
Term 3-years, renewable for 3 more years (for a total of 6 years)
Visas issued to employers, not workers
Visa Cap 65,000 per year (1992-1998) 115,000 per year (1999 -2000) 195,000 per year (2001-2003) 65,000 per year (since 2003)*
Exempt H-1B workers employed by higher educational institutions,
non- profit research organizations and government laboratories are not subject to the cap
Note* - 20,000 H-1B visas per year are reserved for use by foreign professionals with graduate degrees from US schools
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H-1B Temporary Work Visa Petition Approvals
Petition categories ApprovalsPercent
New Employment 130,497 45%Subject to cap (65,000) 71,740 25%Exempt from cap 58,737 20%
Continuing Employment 156,921 55% (Renewals)
Total H-1B petitions approved 287,418 100%
Source: DHS, Office of Immigration Statistics (2004)
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H-1B Worker Education
Associate1%
Bachelors48%
Masters35%
PhD11%
Other Prof5%
B
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Distribution of H-1B Skills Based on Employer OCS* Petitions, for Computer Related Fields
56%31%
8%
5%
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
5%
Skill levels are OES skills, as defined on H-1B applications.
Level 1 is entry level.
John Miano, Low Salaries for Low Skills. (Washington, D.C.: Center for Immigration Studies, 2007)*OCS – Occupational Classification System, U.S. Department of Labor
(Entry Level)
(Expert Level)
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H1B Top Countries of Origin (2004)
46%
9%4%
4%
3%
34%
India
China
Canada
Philippines
Korea
All Other
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New H-1B Workers by Occupation: 2004
44%
11%
11%
10%
24%
Computer
Engineering
Administration
Education
All other
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Numbers of New H-1B Visas1992 - 2005
0
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
USCIS Office of Immigration Statistics
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Unemployment Trends for Electrical Engineers and Computer Scientists
0.0%
1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
6.0%
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Year
Per
cen
t
Managers Computer Engineering Professional All Workers
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Median Compensation for New H-1B Workers, by Occupation
(not adjusted for inflation)
$30,000
$35,000
$40,000
$45,000
$50,000
$55,000
$60,000
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Computers
Engineering
Education
Medical
Managerial
LifeScience
Source: USCIS, Office of Immigration Statistics
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Distribution of H-1B Wage ClaimsFor Computer-Related Professions
14%
27%
9% 10%
0%
10%
15%
25% 25%
15%
10%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
0 - 9% 10% - 24% 25% - 49% 50% - 74% 75% - 89% 90% - 99%
H-1B U.S.
Source: Miano, John. “Low Salaries for Low Skills.” Washington, DC, Center for Immigration Studies. April 2007
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Major Employers of H-1B Workers: 2000 and 2006
Rank Top 10 Users - 2000 Top 10 Users - 2006
1 Motorola Infosys 2 Oracle Wipro 3 Cisco Cognizant 4 Mastech Patni 5 Intel MPHASIS 6 Microsoft HCL America 7 Rapidigm Deloitte & Touche 8 Syntel Tata 9 Wipro Accenture10 Tata Satyam
Source: DOL, Office of Foreign Labor Certification
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Employer Sponsorship: H-1B Visas and Green Cards in 2006
Company H-1B GC Yield: GC / H-1B1
INFOSYS Technologies Ltd. 22,590 99 0.44%
WIPRO Ltd 19,450 69 0.35%
Cognizant Technology Solutions 11,330 40 0.35%
Patni Computer Systems, Inc. 9,922 29 0.29%
MPHASIS Co. 9,908 39 0.39%
HCL America, Inc 9,128 14 0.15%
Deloitte & Touche LLP 8,367 323 3.86%
TATA Consultancy Services Ltd. 7,528 1 0.01%
Accenture LLP 7,253 21 0.29%
Satyam Computer Services Ltd. 7,235 55 0.76%
Microsoft Corp. 4,471 1,181 26.41%
IBM Corp. 3,649 83 2.27%
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H-1B Visas - Key Issues and Concerns (Pros and Cons)
Advantages (for employers)
Access to a global pool of skilled professionals Serves as a transitional visa (path to citizenship) Facilitates onshore and offshore outsourcing
Disadvantages (for US and foreign professionals)
Nominal safeguards – recruitment, wages, displacement Limited oversight and enforcement Facilitates onshore and offshore outsourcing
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Temporary Student Visa Programs(FY 2004-05)
Educational Visas* Visas Issued Percent
Academic Students (F-1) 255,993 45%Exchange Visitors (J-1) 303,822 54%Vocational Students (M-1) 5,975 1%
Totals 565,790 100% Note*: 8% of all Temporary Visas issued
Source: DOS, Bureau of Consular Affairs
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Foreign Student Degree Levels
Associate Degree
12%
Bachelors Degree
31%
Graduate Degree
46%
Other11%
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Student Demographics
Fields of Study
Business 20% Engineering 18% Computer Sci 10% Health Care 5% Education 3% Other 54%
Regions of Origin
Europe41%
Asia 40% South America 8% North America
5% Other 6%
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Student Visas - Key Issues and Concerns (Pros and Cons)
Pros Substantial contributions to STEM education,
teaching and research, especially at the graduate and post-doctoral levels
Cons Admissions ceilings, per country limits and
return home requirements often deter foreign students from adjusting to immigrant status
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IEEE-USA Policy Recommendations
Ensuring a Strong High Tech Workforce Through Educational and Employment-Based Immigration Reforms
Increase the availability of employment-based (EB) visas and streamline the immigrant admissions (Green Card) process
Allow foreign students with advanced degrees in STEM fields from US schools to adjust directly from student visas to Green Cards
Reform the H-1B temporary work visa program – Require all employers to try to recruit US workers; to use the program to supplement, not replace, American workers; and pay H-1B workers, market-based wages.
Expedite visa processing for short term visitors
Adopted by IEEE-USA Board of Directors on 15 June 2007.
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Major Legislative Proposals and Outlook: 110th Congress (2007-2008)
Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bills Include border security, interior enforcement, workplace
verification, new temporary work visa programs, legal admissions reforms and earned legalization provisions
HR 1645 (STRIVE Act) – Gutierrez/Flake S 1348 (Bipartisan Compromise) – Kennedy/Cornyn
High Skills Admissions Expansion Bills Include EB, H-1B and F visa provisions S 1083 (SKIL Act) - Cornyn HR 1930(SKIL Act) - Shadegg
Temporary H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Bills S 1035 - Durbin/Grassley HR 2538 (Defend the American Dream Act) - Pascrell
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Conflicting Interests and Perspectives
Employers Workers Others
Business and Professional AdvocacyIndustry Societies Groups
Educators Immigrants Individuals
Immigration Organized Think Lawyers Labor Tanks
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Sources of Information
Congressional Budget Office www.cbo.gov
Congressional Research Servicewww.loc.gov/crsinfo
Government Accountability Office www.gao.gov
Compete America www.competeamerica.org
Immigration Voice www.immigrationvoice.org
Economic Policy Institute www.epinet.org
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The Positive Side of Immigration Green Cards, Not Guest Workers