Outsource Software
H-1B Visa Program Counteracts Offshoring
According to Dominic Shelzi…
In an ideal world, all highly skilled jobs in the U.S. would be filled by U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Today, that’s not possible. As of the Oct. 1, 2005, deadline, all slots for H-1B visas for the fiscal year that began that day had already been filled. This was the first time this had ever happened. Unprecedented demand shows that U.S. businesses today can’t hire enough skilled American workers — particularly IT professionals — to keep growing, innovating and competing globally.
When demand exceeds the supply of programmers, companies send more software development offshore. Unlike H-1B employees in the U.S., programmers in India and Singapore don’t pay U.S. taxes or spend money on goods and services here. Offshoring is a drain on the economy, while the H-1B program contributes to the U.S. economy.Since many companies do not feel that their development can be offshored, the labor shortage reduces the ability to produce new products, which may be delayed or canceled. Quality declines too. The cost of labor skyrockets, making our products less competitive worldwide.
Full article available on ComputerWorld website
