@marcus335 Then why does the media and whole world cry that H1Bs are here for cheap labor?
If a H1B is making 100k, so is the guy sitting next him who 2 years back was H1B and now is a permanent resident, just because he was from a different country.
Yes, money is one factor, but its not everything. Its the denial of opportunity based on the country of origin.
when they have limits on green cards based on country, why don’t they have limits on hiring based on country of origin? Because that will not work well for the companies, thats why.
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I think they confuse illegals working farms with H1-B’s in tech. The country is full of misinformed people due to headlines and ignorance. Most people think gun homicides are at an all-time high. They’ve been declining for multiple decades now.
What worker rights does an American have in other countries? Most countries are protective of their own citizens. Those are the people that can vote. Most countries have restrictions on who can work in their country, how long, etc. The US isn’t unique in this.
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@marcus335 - Those countries also don’t claim to be the land of the immigrants. Those countries don’t boast about freedom, equality and justice. Those countries don’t invite students from other countries, get a boat load of money for the education and leave them stranded at the mercy of companies. The companies in those countries don’t bring engineers from other countries, make them pay all kinds of taxes and use them as bonded labor.
Do you know that H1Bs cannot start a business here? not even a tech startup, in their own field of expertise.
If the H1Bs are given freedom to move around and start companies here, it will create a lot of employment for people living here. But again the big companies will not let that since it will create competition for them and they will lose talented engineers. Corporate greed safety switch kicks in.
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Thanks to some guys who gave my points some validity. I know for a fact an Indian Engineer will sit in the limbo for long until after his number is up for review.
I was told by a techie when he was asking me what to do now that they are married, both with H1B visas and with the spectrum of 6 years to make it here. I told him face to face that the worst mistake of anybody coming to work in the US is “fall in love” with another visa holder. I totally was honest with this guy and his friend, to make it here, to be honest with you I said, you marry an American citizen no matter what and forget about love for a while. 
I interviewed, not now, years ago, Engineers working for Microsoft in their own offices while they were packing. Being close to the 50s makes you kind of grandpa in that arena. Young Engineers step in, most if not all from India or China. That’s a fact, visible fact in America now.
What it should be a point to discuss is the trap these people fall in. It takes one incident, a recession, to see their companies shutting business operations, they are gone! What happens if they own properties? What happens if their green card petitioner is closing business?
The last part, I can speak for myself. There’s lot of bureaucrats in the government doing nothing! Let me tell you my story:
I completed the 5 years requirement after being a green card holder to apply for citizenship. While at the San Jose office, I spoke to various persons. Most told me it took them 2 months from application to interview, if not oath ceremony. I said to myself that I was going to be able to vote in the CA primaries. We, me and my wife applied last days of December 2015. Receipt of acceptance mailed January 4 of this year.
1- Receipt January 4.
2- Wife receives notice for an interview in May. Scheduled for June.
3- Wife goes to interview May 3.
4- Wife goes to ceremony May 24. She becomes a Naturalized Citizen that day.
Everything right guys, right? How about me? I brought her here, she is here because of me!
Prior to her oath ceremony, I had scheduled a meeting at San Jose DHS office. I spoke with an agent, who calmly told me to just wait, you know, some names like mine, my first name is as American as Henry. So, sometimes they need more investigations, blah, blah, blah. He didn’t say anything about calling anybody, you know, you work there, you may know how to call “somebody”.
Next day after my wife’s ceremony, on a Friday, I called the 1-800 number. This time, after a second officer, the first one hung up on me because I was saying not nice words I had the chance to talk to another officer who promised to start an enquire to find out where my file was.
Monday, I checked online, I was scheduled for an interview…5 weeks later! Exciting, right?
I show up for my interview Thursday June 13. I spoke to 2 Indian Engineers, which I told already. I am called, the interview takes about 10 long minutes. Yes, pathetic if you ask me. 6 questions on civil rights, constitution, etc. I ask the officer to go to the ceremony on July 4, somehow I have heard that’s a common practice but I may have been wrong. She says I need to wait for a month or so.
I go out, return to talk to the 2 Indian Engineers and I see the wife with a paper and I heard something about a ceremony 3 days later. I got curious and found out that yes, she and all of the interviewed that morning people were invited to the ceremony 3 days down the road…but me!..I am furious this time, I know, I am beaching for nothing but remember, why me?
Since I am not afraid of anything I called an officer and asked her to have my interviewer go out because I had a question. She then comes out and tells me that due to the fact that my file “was incomplete”, she needed to receive the other half to schedule an oath ceremony. Great!..
Now, you may not get it, but those 3 days could have made a difference in my life. I could have committed a felony somehow, and that could’ve put me in the list for deportation.
My ceremony was scheduled in July 21. I am in! 
We went to the bank not long ago, the clerk, had past the test a day before. He applied in May, only two months to be interviewed 
Now you know about bureaucrats, right?
Smart guys don’t come in via H1B visa.
@hanera
Yea? So how do they come? Cross the border and walk the desert?
What’s the smartest way according to u?
Is how current society is organized. Based on nationality. Trading, employment, governing… opportunities are based on national boundary.
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Married an American 
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If that is the case, don’t talk about equality, freedom and justice. It’s a sham.
I always feel grateful to US and Americans who gave me a chance to work here with good compensation through H1B. Never consider myself as a slave.
I believe compensation of engineering job for H1B is pretty good especially compare to the compensation in other countries even after considering living expense.
I cannot agree with Americans who believe H1Bs are taking away their jobs and/or lowering their compensation.
However, I cannot agree with H1Bs who believe they are exploited by US companies like slaves, either.
H1B visa holder has full freedom to go back to his/her country and the employment is at-will basis.
I have never seen any discrimination on promotion or compensation based on the visa status or the country of origin.
In my previous company, all of my managees were Indian engineers with H1B visa and their compensation were often better than Citizen or green card holding peers based on their performance.
At least based on my experiences, it is very hard to believe H1B visa holders are often discriminated by their visa status or country of origin. At the end of the day, what tech company needs is good productivity of engineers and such discrimination will prevent the company from achieving this goal. They are not that dumb.
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Very well said @Jane. Your experience is very closed to mine as well.
Having said that I have seen cases where contracting company here in Bay Area sorta blackmailed their H1B employees by not giving appropriate bonus & raise. Don’t get me wrong, they are not being treated like slaves. They are paying almost market rate and finding contracts with good working conditions. There is nothing preventing these employees to jump to other company and re-apply their visa, but a lot of them are just worried that they might have to go back if they cannot secure their visa.
Guess what, these contracting companies generally know how to press the FUD of those employees coz they are from their own native countries sadly.
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First thing first, I’m not an American. Second, I have not, previously or currently, worked in USA. Third, not all members of this forum stay in USA. Is Internet 
. So you’re assuming some facts thus making me doubting your critical thinking ability. You may want to leave USA if you’re so happy because you talk like a person going to another person’s house and demand for VIP treatment. Until you become an American and willing to shoulder the duties and responsibilities of being an American, you’re an alien, so should respect the rules and policies of the host nation.
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Guys…there’s no romanticism here!
Immigration is something I don’t want to go over again in my life. It really put a dent on my health, my happiness, and in some instances I lost for days my love for this country when I saw others coming into this country, having done absolutely nothing for this country, not having worked a day in this country, but deserved better than me and many Americans (at that time).
It is ugly coming into this country illegally. Believe me! We, or should I say now those who come to this lovely country that way will live under the shadows, under the assumption that one crime and the American dream will be dead. Yes, plenty of opportunities to do anything legally, but the notion that a mistake you make and you are bound for deportation.
Though many of us came illegally, even when we were running from the law back home, yes, exactly as you read it, from the law of the jungle, we are bound to eventually love this country no matter what. You can berate, scald and criticize us, but we came to stay doing what’s best for us and for this country. And as you know it, many, thousands, gave their kids to the army only for them to be cannon fodder. But the love for this country finally over take those who lost the most precious thing in their lives, their kids and those left behind who died without never be seen or hugged again.
And for those who think this immigration issue is nice, believe me when I tell you this; whenever possible, if you can, break the rules, or your religious/customary laws and marry somebody for the sake of becoming legal, you have only one chance in your life time in this country to legalize, yes, once, you take it or you are doomed.
@hanera It’s easy to sit in some part of the world and comment on issues like H1B. It makes me doubt your thinking, or the lack of it.
Rules n regulations are being followed, that’s the reason engineers are here legally on h1bs and paying taxes, not jump the border and come here.
If I invite you and another person as guests to my home and put a different set of rules for you, how will you feel?
Issue is not vip treatment, issue is about basic employee rights and purposeful road blocks to immigration reforms put by corporate and immigration lawyer nexus
@Jane
I’m happy to hear your story.
My guess is either you are too early in your h1b or that you are not from one of the backlogged countries. The system works well for those who do not have to wait a decade for green cards or who are happy to remain on h1b forever.
For those who are backlogged and want to progress with their career and to start their own thing, it’s a mess.
It’s not my case alone, it’s the case of majority folks who are backlogged.
@marcus335 When I mean Slaves, I dont mean literally, no body is tying chains to h1b folks. The freedom of NOT BEING ABLE TO choose the job they want is what I mean by slavery, not all H1B folks are doing low level IT jobs, there are a plenty of super smart engineers running key departments products of Fortune 500 companies, Intel, Microsoft, FB, google wont even make it without H1B folks. 30% of Engineering depts in these companies are H1B. 60% of PhD graduates in US are immigrants ( chinese, indian). 30-40% of MS degrees are immigrants. believe me US dont want to loose the cream of the crop. My point is H1b is a 2 way street for US and immigrants. Slavery is when you dont give Permanent residence to them after 12-13 years of paying 30-40k taxes per year and not even making a single 911 call or being the most crime free residents in the country.
I know many of the people in H1B community are not able to leave their current jobs and may be experiment with a start up or better yet start their own company. Why make their life difficult not giving Permanent residence. Let them have a fair chance as well. There would be many more startups and jobs created for sure.
H1b is a great opportunity but keeping them in that status for 10-15 years is modern SLAVERY.
I also know that H1B is mis used by Low level IT jobs and that should be fixed absolutely. But Engineering talent is required for this country and people who deserve it should get the freedom.
Remember, everyone is an immigrant in this country! No own is entitled this piece of land.
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I understand the challenge. I am not denying it.
However, there is no life without challenges. You claim your challenges are as hard as life of slave. I cannot agree with it at all.
I came to this country under F2 visa (dependent of student) and was frustrated with how little I could do here.
When I applied to local community college to take English classes, the admission office told me that they had to report my case to USCIS since English classes were not considered as hobby classes. People with F2 cannot even take any classes other than pure hobby classes unless they change their status to F1 which required to be full time student.
Since I couldn’t afford to be full time student at that time, I decided to look for a job instead.
It was definitely challenging to find a company who was willing to be a H1B sponsor for F2 visa holder but at the end it worked out.
I may have not been through exactly same challenges that you have been through, but I do understand the challenges of limited opportunity due to visa status.
However, you came to this country under the agreement of being employed instead of starting new business as I came here under the agreement of being a dependent of student.
If you want to change that, you should apply for the new visa like E2 as I changed my visa status from F2 to H1B.
That is the rule.
US immigration law must consider the benefit of its own citizen first.
The reason I believe Americans should support H1B program is not because they should consider the quality of lives of H1B but because it brings great benefit to US.
If they find letting H1B to start new business would benefit US economy greatly, they will change the law accordingly.
Thus, if you want such change to happen, you should convince them it will provide great benefit to US and Americans instead of complaining that H1B is modern slavery system.
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@Jane they know h1b folks create jobs still the law is not changed. Skilled immigration is getting stuck with comprehensive immigration reform in Washington.
Check fwd.us that advocacy group that outline she hardships of entrepreneurs who are on h1b and many simialr stories.
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@myo I think you took the “slave” term literally. And your comment shows how less you know about the intricacies of h1b and how tough it is to transition from h1b to green card for a person from backlogged country. what happens during the wait time from h1b to green card, might prove beneficial monetarily but is an absolute waste of human capital.
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