Re: Google on H-1Bs



On Tue, 26 Jun 2007, T. Keating wrote:

On Mon, 25 Jun 2007 15:45:52 -0000, Geoff Davis <gmdavis@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

http://blog.phds.org/2007/6/25/google-on-h-1bs

Google has started a public policy blog (http://
googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/). One of their first posts: Google's
stance on H-1B visas (http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2007/06/
laszlo-bocks-testimony-on-immigration.html) (pretty simple: "we want
more!")

It's an understandable position - Google hires lots of really smart
people from all over the world, and current H-1B limits cause them all
sorts of headaches. They claim that there were 70 people they wanted
to hire last year but were unable to because of the visa caps. There
are other effects, too: a friend of mine was hired by Google but had
to wait for 8 months to start working there because of H-1B-related
delays.

Google fits the typical profile for a corporate abuser.

In the past.. (pre H-1B fiasco)..

1.) Employers would seek out employees from different regions of
the country. This search would extend to the point of opening up
branch offices in other city and states in order to find and maintain
talent in those remote locations.

Note: Not everyone can justify the expense of moving to a new city
and job form a 80 to 150K/yr salary. This especially rings true for
the more successful people, who would take huge tax/asset hits(>200K$)
in such a dislocation. (I.E. Several years of after tax earnings
just to break even from such a dislocation. )

2.) Hire specialized consultants for specific rare fields that
require exceptional talent needed to deliver reliable products.
(Device drivers, OS guru's, Contracts, etc.)

3.) Hire and educate lessor qualified employees and/or BS/MS/PHD's
from non-computer fields. (This used to be the mainstay employment
mechanism for science types in our tech based society.)

Note: Most scientifically trained people are more than capable of
performing a computer related programming task , if given a chance.

I learned Fortran and assembly language some 25 years ago. Writing macros for a spread*** ten years ago. Right now, writing a billing program that I should have written ten years ago. Fairly simple logic and fun.

The H-1B program has eliminated much of this activity and greatly
increased chances of negative ROI's from earning a college degree.

There are already reports out there that college education, except for the highly skilled lines, is not giving kids a salary that is keeping up with inflation. When it becomes common sense to look at ROI, debt burdens, there may be a "depression" in college enrollments. That could all 'snowball' to other branches of our economy.

4.) Provide telecommuting opportunities. (related to item #1)

5.) Pay a competitive wage rates, especially after a companies stock
has peaked or trades in limited range.

6.) Demands unreasonable extended work hours on a consistent basis.


From what I've been reading.
Google fails on all counts listed above.


I know of no corporations that have any serious interest in anything other than net profits and even more compensation for the executives.
.

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