pani_6
06-18 11:31 AM
one years wait for EAD and AP..I thought they are supposed to give us EAD in 70-90 days according to some law??...
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aadimanav
07-16 07:29 PM
30,000 members and not even 1% wants to send the petition. Unbelievable.
dilipb
06-23 04:03 PM
And always send via USPS express mail. (1 day costed me $18) but I came to know instantly the next day that they received it.
You could also use some cheaper USPS option. as long as it has some delivery confirmation.
The reason I like express mail one day, is because u can request a copy of the receiver's signature via email (comes in a PDF). This is proof that USCIS really got it and u can then sleep nicely for the next 3 months.
Ha Ha.
You could also use some cheaper USPS option. as long as it has some delivery confirmation.
The reason I like express mail one day, is because u can request a copy of the receiver's signature via email (comes in a PDF). This is proof that USCIS really got it and u can then sleep nicely for the next 3 months.
Ha Ha.
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senthil1
05-28 06:39 PM
They use fake job ads and/or bad faith interviews of American citizens to convince the federal government that they tried to find American workers first.
I had similar experience in one of my previous consulting companies when I was in bench. Also I was asked to conduct this kind of interview in Week ends. I did reluctantly and I knew the feelings of those persons who were interviewed. I think many Indian companies are doing those mainly for green card processing.
H1b is not needed for certain kind of jobs like QA, repeated works and minor programming works(Many jobs are like that). I can very well say that atleast 50% of high tech jobs can be very well done by American citizens. This fact is known by Indian companies also. In my project most of them are American citizens and their skills for far better than many H1b persons.
In one financial company in Bay Area CA they laid of 200 persons and they gave the project to Indian Company in 2006 in which 30% are here(h1b and L1) and remaining in India(offshore). They could have kept 30% of their employees and remaining they could have outsourced. But Company wanted cost savings also. These kind of incidents will increase hate for H1b program
Hi,
I found this interesting comment from a blog. It has been posted by an H.R. representative who has access to H1B and GC users' records. The points raised are indeed valid and they seem to have a 'case' against us. I do not by any means want to undermine our efforts but it does provide a perspective from the 'citizens' perspective.
The bill would also drastically increase the number of H-1B visas issued to foreign professional workers. As a Human Resources representative, I see first hand how the H-1B visa and employment based green card programs actually work together to drive U.S. white collar workers from their jobs and even from their careers. To begin with, there is virtually nothing in the law that prevents employers from hiring H-1Bers for open positions even if qualified Americans are available and willing to do the work. Americans are routinely laid off and replaced with lower paid H-1Bers also. In these cases, Americans have practically no legal recourse available under current law. H-1B is also a dual intent visa, so an employer may sponsor an H-1Ber for an EB green card for legal permanent resident status. When a company seeks to sponsor a foreign worker for an EB green card, they are required by law to demonstrate a good faith effort to recruit Americans first. This process is called labor certification. But employers routinely game the labor certification process for green card sponsorship to defraud even well qualified citizen job applicants in favor of low wage foreigners. They use fake job ads and/or bad faith interviews of American citizens to convince the federal government that they tried to find American workers first. These practices are common in high tech and even in some non-tech industries, but HR people are told to keep quiet about it or lose their jobs.
I would be in favor of a program that issues a small number of self-sponsoring green cards for truly innovative foreign nationals on a competitive basis. But very few of the H-1Bers or green card applicants that I have seen in 10+ years even come close to being truly innovative. Most are just practitioners with skills that are actually quite common among the domestic workforce. The only thing special about these foreigners is that they will work for substantially less than Americans in order to have a chance to become legal permanent residents. Thus they are used by management to sweeten corporate balance sheets.
The prevailing wage regulations are supposed to insure that foreign nationals are paid the same as their American counterparts in the same job functions, but these regulations are so riddled with loopholes that they are a bad joke.
Since my work allows me to have access to salary records, I can tell you that the labor cost savings for H-1Bers and green card applicants is substantially greater than the costs of filing the applications with the government.
Citizens should demand that both the H-1B and employment based green card programs be abolished in their current form.
My point is if we check our credentials, how many of us are 'true' innovators? I know I am not, I am an expert in what I do and am an asset to my company but I haven't filed any patents or publications which would be the true requirement for this country. My skills are indeed readily available in domestic workers as well. Could that be the reason for the backlog in EB-3 and none in EB-1? So do we need to do a reality check here? Just wondering if this could be the reason why we're getting a raw deal. Could it be that 'highly skilled' is not enough but 'genius' and 'highly skilled' is what's required here? Just a thought.
I had similar experience in one of my previous consulting companies when I was in bench. Also I was asked to conduct this kind of interview in Week ends. I did reluctantly and I knew the feelings of those persons who were interviewed. I think many Indian companies are doing those mainly for green card processing.
H1b is not needed for certain kind of jobs like QA, repeated works and minor programming works(Many jobs are like that). I can very well say that atleast 50% of high tech jobs can be very well done by American citizens. This fact is known by Indian companies also. In my project most of them are American citizens and their skills for far better than many H1b persons.
In one financial company in Bay Area CA they laid of 200 persons and they gave the project to Indian Company in 2006 in which 30% are here(h1b and L1) and remaining in India(offshore). They could have kept 30% of their employees and remaining they could have outsourced. But Company wanted cost savings also. These kind of incidents will increase hate for H1b program
Hi,
I found this interesting comment from a blog. It has been posted by an H.R. representative who has access to H1B and GC users' records. The points raised are indeed valid and they seem to have a 'case' against us. I do not by any means want to undermine our efforts but it does provide a perspective from the 'citizens' perspective.
The bill would also drastically increase the number of H-1B visas issued to foreign professional workers. As a Human Resources representative, I see first hand how the H-1B visa and employment based green card programs actually work together to drive U.S. white collar workers from their jobs and even from their careers. To begin with, there is virtually nothing in the law that prevents employers from hiring H-1Bers for open positions even if qualified Americans are available and willing to do the work. Americans are routinely laid off and replaced with lower paid H-1Bers also. In these cases, Americans have practically no legal recourse available under current law. H-1B is also a dual intent visa, so an employer may sponsor an H-1Ber for an EB green card for legal permanent resident status. When a company seeks to sponsor a foreign worker for an EB green card, they are required by law to demonstrate a good faith effort to recruit Americans first. This process is called labor certification. But employers routinely game the labor certification process for green card sponsorship to defraud even well qualified citizen job applicants in favor of low wage foreigners. They use fake job ads and/or bad faith interviews of American citizens to convince the federal government that they tried to find American workers first. These practices are common in high tech and even in some non-tech industries, but HR people are told to keep quiet about it or lose their jobs.
I would be in favor of a program that issues a small number of self-sponsoring green cards for truly innovative foreign nationals on a competitive basis. But very few of the H-1Bers or green card applicants that I have seen in 10+ years even come close to being truly innovative. Most are just practitioners with skills that are actually quite common among the domestic workforce. The only thing special about these foreigners is that they will work for substantially less than Americans in order to have a chance to become legal permanent residents. Thus they are used by management to sweeten corporate balance sheets.
The prevailing wage regulations are supposed to insure that foreign nationals are paid the same as their American counterparts in the same job functions, but these regulations are so riddled with loopholes that they are a bad joke.
Since my work allows me to have access to salary records, I can tell you that the labor cost savings for H-1Bers and green card applicants is substantially greater than the costs of filing the applications with the government.
Citizens should demand that both the H-1B and employment based green card programs be abolished in their current form.
My point is if we check our credentials, how many of us are 'true' innovators? I know I am not, I am an expert in what I do and am an asset to my company but I haven't filed any patents or publications which would be the true requirement for this country. My skills are indeed readily available in domestic workers as well. Could that be the reason for the backlog in EB-3 and none in EB-1? So do we need to do a reality check here? Just wondering if this could be the reason why we're getting a raw deal. Could it be that 'highly skilled' is not enough but 'genius' and 'highly skilled' is what's required here? Just a thought.
more...
raj2007
12-31 08:34 AM
Here's another article
http://www.energybulletin.net/node/23259
http://www.energybulletin.net/node/23259
webm
05-22 09:12 AM
Processing times are based on Received date or Notice Date?
Its a mixed talk..i believe its based on RD
Its a mixed talk..i believe its based on RD
more...
Caliber
04-02 12:27 PM
PS : I work with one of best semiconductor companies in world and earn decent salary .
All GULTIs , start giving me red and i don't give a** for that.
I understand the pain of dependents. My son is also will be aging out.
Ability to work comes from EAD which would come from filing of 485. July 2007 filing was pushed mainly by IV and only then other organizations have pushed for it. I hope you are aware of this. 2 year EAD is IV's achievement.
All this happenned due to IV members and dedicated IV core. The president of this site IV is not a GULTI, but an Indian who donated about 60,000.00 US dollars. Yes, US $ 60K. He is also just like you and me. Never thought of divisions among immigrants: Neither Indian, Chinese, Philippines nor any origin. We have members from all over the world. The majority unfortunately is from India due to severe retrogression.
Had president of IV not donated 60,000.00, majority of us would still be struggling for spouse to work.
Please read IV's goals. Then you can comment whatever you want. Without funds, nothing can be moved. We have to lobby. That is the only option we have. IV core is also like you and me with normal jobs. They can not fly to DC every week or month for lobbying.
Please think before posting some thing.
I am not part of core, but have symtahies on them for doing a THANKLESS job for every one's good.
All GULTIs , start giving me red and i don't give a** for that.
I understand the pain of dependents. My son is also will be aging out.
Ability to work comes from EAD which would come from filing of 485. July 2007 filing was pushed mainly by IV and only then other organizations have pushed for it. I hope you are aware of this. 2 year EAD is IV's achievement.
All this happenned due to IV members and dedicated IV core. The president of this site IV is not a GULTI, but an Indian who donated about 60,000.00 US dollars. Yes, US $ 60K. He is also just like you and me. Never thought of divisions among immigrants: Neither Indian, Chinese, Philippines nor any origin. We have members from all over the world. The majority unfortunately is from India due to severe retrogression.
Had president of IV not donated 60,000.00, majority of us would still be struggling for spouse to work.
Please read IV's goals. Then you can comment whatever you want. Without funds, nothing can be moved. We have to lobby. That is the only option we have. IV core is also like you and me with normal jobs. They can not fly to DC every week or month for lobbying.
Please think before posting some thing.
I am not part of core, but have symtahies on them for doing a THANKLESS job for every one's good.
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somegchuh
06-28 02:39 PM
I have a feeling that they will not restore 140 PP at least until retrogression hits again i.e. the influx of various AOS applications slow down.
I think those currently waiting for 140 approval will get screwed and those who were hoping to 3 yr H1 extension will be the most impacted.
See what the last para of the memo says....
During this timeframe the USCIS will determine whether
it is able to process these cases with in 15 calendar days of reciept.
"IF SO" premium processing will be once again made avaialabe for FORM I-140 petitions
I think those currently waiting for 140 approval will get screwed and those who were hoping to 3 yr H1 extension will be the most impacted.
See what the last para of the memo says....
During this timeframe the USCIS will determine whether
it is able to process these cases with in 15 calendar days of reciept.
"IF SO" premium processing will be once again made avaialabe for FORM I-140 petitions
more...
glus
06-18 11:35 AM
I don't know what's the logic behind the processing dates. How could all the dates move back so much? It does not make any sense. I wonder if we could contact someone regarding this or maybe, USCIS wants to minimize the number of queries and moved the dates back so fewer people call and ask for status?? I have no idea what's behind it.....
G
G
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cjagtap
08-27 04:35 PM
I will be facing the same prob if i dont get my extension in-time. At least EADwill work,meanwhileI am filing for my H1B extension ,but dont want to spend another 1000$ just to expedite the process for DL...
let me know what is the best plan in such case...
let me know what is the best plan in such case...
more...
Openarms
06-02 05:40 PM
We got heavy weights here supporting this bill... Kennedy and Schumer.. IV fights for all immigration issues, but not for this... then whom IV fighting for???
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sweet23guyin
10-13 01:56 PM
I know I am not going to get my GC righ away by attending rallies/meetings and activity's. But there should be an efforts from every one to raise their hand and contribute for the cause. Appreciate the core members and state chapter leaders for your vision and work.
At the same note,I regret for not being at DC after meeting some of the members yesterday.
Before, I have little/no idea of how to approach lawmakers (my idea of meeting lawmakers was like meeting politicians in INDIA, Zindhabad...Zindhabad type), glad i do now :rolleyes:!
Main concern/talk was about not many people turning up with 3000 IV members in the tristate, I strongly believe we can do much better in the number department for the next meeting. Again, not just numbers but with some motivation to take part in the events to come.
I did not like the leaders thanking the members just because they turned up! It should always the other way around, members should thank the leaders for organizing such events. After all it is for ones own benefit, no one is doing a fa�vour to any one!
Come on folks, join ur state chapters.
At the same note,I regret for not being at DC after meeting some of the members yesterday.
Before, I have little/no idea of how to approach lawmakers (my idea of meeting lawmakers was like meeting politicians in INDIA, Zindhabad...Zindhabad type), glad i do now :rolleyes:!
Main concern/talk was about not many people turning up with 3000 IV members in the tristate, I strongly believe we can do much better in the number department for the next meeting. Again, not just numbers but with some motivation to take part in the events to come.
I did not like the leaders thanking the members just because they turned up! It should always the other way around, members should thank the leaders for organizing such events. After all it is for ones own benefit, no one is doing a fa�vour to any one!
Come on folks, join ur state chapters.
more...
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sujith1
06-12 08:45 PM
absolutely something fishy- Even though his english is broken there is not even a single spelling mistake in any of the words he is using. Which means he knows his words and is double checking the posts to make sure his english sounds broken.
IF whatever he is saying is true I wish him luck - else - its his time and his problem
IF whatever he is saying is true I wish him luck - else - its his time and his problem
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svgupta
05-22 03:43 PM
Contributed $100 today...
Go IV
great going tikka! ... do update your signature as well.
Go IV
great going tikka! ... do update your signature as well.
more...
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JazzByTheBay
09-22 08:47 PM
Together we can come up with some bright ones - any input from you?
Also note, the flower campaign was dubbed stupid and insane by many before it started working and getting media attention, and eventually proved to be a brilliant idea! So let's keep our mind open to ideas.
jazz
>>>>-sending more flowers
please.. enough of flowers..
>>>>-a huge rally in Silicon Valley
Now you have seen what goes and does not go into a rally. This is a complicated task so it has to be planned, as was the DC one.
>>>-candlelight vigil at congress
This will work if high school students do it. not "highly skilled" immigrants.
>>>>-mass letter mailings from all of us
Yeah.. spam them with emails..
>>>-human chains
This involves same complexity as the rally. so its not an easy task.
>>>-hunger strike?
This will be stupidity. ( I am not calling you stupid, but the idea. so no need to jump on me). Eat your food and live healty and happy. Is GC worth going on hunger strikes and suicide attempts? Thats too much of desperation. You are not from Afghanistan or Kenya right..?
>>>-etc
What else?
Oh yeah.. the "drain stoppers" stuff.. thats again stupid. Thats too much literal comparison to brain drain.
Also note, the flower campaign was dubbed stupid and insane by many before it started working and getting media attention, and eventually proved to be a brilliant idea! So let's keep our mind open to ideas.
jazz
>>>>-sending more flowers
please.. enough of flowers..
>>>>-a huge rally in Silicon Valley
Now you have seen what goes and does not go into a rally. This is a complicated task so it has to be planned, as was the DC one.
>>>-candlelight vigil at congress
This will work if high school students do it. not "highly skilled" immigrants.
>>>>-mass letter mailings from all of us
Yeah.. spam them with emails..
>>>-human chains
This involves same complexity as the rally. so its not an easy task.
>>>-hunger strike?
This will be stupidity. ( I am not calling you stupid, but the idea. so no need to jump on me). Eat your food and live healty and happy. Is GC worth going on hunger strikes and suicide attempts? Thats too much of desperation. You are not from Afghanistan or Kenya right..?
>>>-etc
What else?
Oh yeah.. the "drain stoppers" stuff.. thats again stupid. Thats too much literal comparison to brain drain.
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BrightOlive
03-06 02:29 PM
I even has the print out from USCIS.gov in which they have mentioned that they will honor the date on which applications were received in the mail room but he did not budge.
Can someone point me to this document?
Can someone point me to this document?
more...
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kanta80
04-25 11:00 PM
Here is the link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/25/AR2006042501963.html
Sorry if someone else had already posted it.
Thanks.
Ed to add text in case link gets outdated:
Skilled Immigrants Turn to K Street
High-Tech Workers Awaiting Green Cards Hire Lobbyists, Hit the Hill
By S. Mitra Kalita
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 26, 2006; Page D01
On the December day when Congress killed a budget amendment that might have allowed him to become an American a little sooner, Aman Kapoor started a movement.
He did not march through streets, carry signs, wave a flag from here or there. He did not walk off the job or file out of school. The computer programmer simply went online to a message board tracked by thousands of people in his predicament: highly skilled foreigners waiting years for their green cards.
"I think we can do better and really create the impact with organized effort," he wrote. "To achieve this we need a group of individuals who have shown commitment and motivation in this forum."
The next night, a dozen people living across the United States shed their Internet handles -- Kapoor's was "WaldenPond," a nod to his hero, Henry David Thoreau -- and addressed one another by name on a conference call that lasted an hour. Today, just four months later, the organization they dubbed Immigration Voice boasts 3,000 members; a fundraising goal of $200,000; and, most notably, a partnership with a high-powered lobbying firm, Quinn Gillespie & Associates LLC.
The group's transformation from an insular circle to a politically active movement offers a window into an alternative immigrant campaign being waged as the Senate this week resumes its work on immigration laws.
Most members and all the core organizers of Immigration Voice hail from India, though Chinese membership numbers in the hundreds and is on the rise. Most arrived on an international student visa or a visa known as the H-1B, reserved for highly skilled workers who can stay for up to six years -- unless an employer sponsors their green cards, which grant immigrants permanent residence in the United States and the right to live and work here freely. Over the past decade, the largest numbers of H-1Bs have been awarded to high-technology workers from India and China.
Thus, while the passage of a strict border-security bill introduced by Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.) mobilized many other immigrants in December, members of this high-tech group had their eye on another: a budget reconciliation bill that, in the Senate version, would have allowed those waiting in line for a green card to proceed even if the quota had been exhausted. The provision was cut in conference committee, stirring many to action and leading to the founding of Immigration Voice.
While hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets to get Congress's attention, Immigration Voice took a decidedly different approach. Shortly after the group was established, Kapoor and other volunteers began interviewing lobbyists, relying mostly on Google searches and data from the Center for Public Integrity's Web site.
"If it was not going to be big, it would not be worth the effort," said Kapoor, who works for Florida State University and has traveled to Washington nine times in the past three months. "Most of us have reached that point, having waited for eight or nine years, where individual lives are on hold."
Neither Quinn Gillespie nor Immigration Voice would disclose the amount being paid for the firm's services. Kapoor said it is "less than five figures."
"This is a sympathetic story," said Nick Maduros, a lobbyist for Quinn Gillespie. "For this group, their issues are very technical and are frankly not that controversial, but they have been overshadowed ."
Immigration Voices also enlisted the help of Rick Swartz, who has his own firm and has long been a leading lobbyist for immigration groups. Swartz gathered members of the group at his home one January weekend for a crash course in American politics, teaching them to position themselves as the "new Cubans for the Republicans."
Although their numbers are far smaller -- fewer than 2 million Indians live in the United States, according to the 2000 Census -- the group is among the more affluent immigrant communities. And because their numbers are smaller than those of Hispanics, they are trying to focus on other ways they can exert power -- through their wealth, their positions of influence in the high-tech and business communities, and their alliances with more established advocacy groups such as one for Indian physicians and an Indian political action committee.
While the immigrant marchers' demands have covered a range of issues, including allowing immigrants to gain legal status and eventually citizenship, the members of this association are more narrowly focused: They want Congress to pass measures that would end the years-long wait for a green card. In fact, they warn that efforts to enable millions of illegal immigrants to remain here permanently would result in the same bureaucratic nightmare legal immigrants are now facing.
"If you're going to reform, reform across the board," said Bharati Mandapati, who oversees content for the group, which means she has learned how to word and pitch legislative amendments.
The group has refrained from taking a stand on the fate of the undocumented workers, though it monitors chatter on its Web site to ensure that frustrated high-tech workers don't disparage lower-skilled laborers such as landscapers and restaurant workers. It also has stayed mum on raising the cap on H-1Bs, the visas that made most of their passages possible.
Under a proposal introduced by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), the number of employment-based green cards being issued would increase from 140,000 to 290,000. Currently, no one country is supposed to take up more than 7 percent of the allotment, though unused green cards can be redistributed to countries that have already met their quota. That has made possible migrations in excess of 7 percent from nations such as India, China, Mexico and the Philippines. Under the proposal, the per-country cap would be increased to a hard and fast 10 percent. Proponents say this would prevent one country from dominating the category and would retain jobs for native-born Americans.
But Mandapati, a California-based economist, argues that the restriction would hurt the United States because the demand for skills changes. "It just so happens that computer technology and certain technical skills are in great demand here and all over the world. It just so happens that there are two countries that have invested a lot of resources in educating people in these fields . . . India and China."
About a half-million immigrants are caught in the green-card backlog, some as they wait for Labor Department approval or because quotas have been exceeded. In that time, they cannot be promoted or given substantial pay increases because that would mean a change in job description and salary. They turn to Web sites to compare their wait times with others, and their Internet handles, such as "stucklabor" and "waiting_labor," exude their frustration.
During meetings on Capitol Hill, Maduros and at least one Immigration Voice representative lay out the group's platform, weaving in the personal stories of members. Shilpa Ghodgaonkar, a Germantown housewife, has become a staple anecdote -- and a frequent visitor on the Hill.
For four years, she and her husband have been waiting for their green cards. Ghodgaonkar's husband arrived on an H-1B visa, and she followed as his dependent, unauthorized to work here. To pass the time, she learned to cook. Then she volunteered as a career counselor in Montgomery County. Last year, she earned her MBA from George Washington University. In December, around the time Kapoor sent out his e-mail plea for mass mobilization, Ghodgaonkar had run out of options.
"I just couldn't keep quiet anymore," Ghodgaonkar said. "I cannot be depressed anymore."
She keeps a spreadsheet that lays out appointment times and the senators' offices she has visited or still plans to: Specter, Frist, Schumer, Brownback, Bingaman, Feinstein, Feingold. Wednesdays bring a weekly call with Quinn Gillespie. And every few nights, there are conference calls among Immigration Voice's core team.
Now the group plans to closely watch the debate resuming in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Earlier this month, Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) proposed amendments with all of the group's provisions. Other lawmakers confirm that they are still meeting with the group to hear their concerns.
Immigration Voice leaders say the past few months have focused and politicized Indian immigrants in a way that was not apparent in the past. "There is a very 'Mr. Smith Goes to Washington' quality" about the current effort, Mandapati said. "It's been a journey, a loss of naivete and getting to know about American politics."
Sorry if someone else had already posted it.
Thanks.
Ed to add text in case link gets outdated:
Skilled Immigrants Turn to K Street
High-Tech Workers Awaiting Green Cards Hire Lobbyists, Hit the Hill
By S. Mitra Kalita
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 26, 2006; Page D01
On the December day when Congress killed a budget amendment that might have allowed him to become an American a little sooner, Aman Kapoor started a movement.
He did not march through streets, carry signs, wave a flag from here or there. He did not walk off the job or file out of school. The computer programmer simply went online to a message board tracked by thousands of people in his predicament: highly skilled foreigners waiting years for their green cards.
"I think we can do better and really create the impact with organized effort," he wrote. "To achieve this we need a group of individuals who have shown commitment and motivation in this forum."
The next night, a dozen people living across the United States shed their Internet handles -- Kapoor's was "WaldenPond," a nod to his hero, Henry David Thoreau -- and addressed one another by name on a conference call that lasted an hour. Today, just four months later, the organization they dubbed Immigration Voice boasts 3,000 members; a fundraising goal of $200,000; and, most notably, a partnership with a high-powered lobbying firm, Quinn Gillespie & Associates LLC.
The group's transformation from an insular circle to a politically active movement offers a window into an alternative immigrant campaign being waged as the Senate this week resumes its work on immigration laws.
Most members and all the core organizers of Immigration Voice hail from India, though Chinese membership numbers in the hundreds and is on the rise. Most arrived on an international student visa or a visa known as the H-1B, reserved for highly skilled workers who can stay for up to six years -- unless an employer sponsors their green cards, which grant immigrants permanent residence in the United States and the right to live and work here freely. Over the past decade, the largest numbers of H-1Bs have been awarded to high-technology workers from India and China.
Thus, while the passage of a strict border-security bill introduced by Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.) mobilized many other immigrants in December, members of this high-tech group had their eye on another: a budget reconciliation bill that, in the Senate version, would have allowed those waiting in line for a green card to proceed even if the quota had been exhausted. The provision was cut in conference committee, stirring many to action and leading to the founding of Immigration Voice.
While hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets to get Congress's attention, Immigration Voice took a decidedly different approach. Shortly after the group was established, Kapoor and other volunteers began interviewing lobbyists, relying mostly on Google searches and data from the Center for Public Integrity's Web site.
"If it was not going to be big, it would not be worth the effort," said Kapoor, who works for Florida State University and has traveled to Washington nine times in the past three months. "Most of us have reached that point, having waited for eight or nine years, where individual lives are on hold."
Neither Quinn Gillespie nor Immigration Voice would disclose the amount being paid for the firm's services. Kapoor said it is "less than five figures."
"This is a sympathetic story," said Nick Maduros, a lobbyist for Quinn Gillespie. "For this group, their issues are very technical and are frankly not that controversial, but they have been overshadowed ."
Immigration Voices also enlisted the help of Rick Swartz, who has his own firm and has long been a leading lobbyist for immigration groups. Swartz gathered members of the group at his home one January weekend for a crash course in American politics, teaching them to position themselves as the "new Cubans for the Republicans."
Although their numbers are far smaller -- fewer than 2 million Indians live in the United States, according to the 2000 Census -- the group is among the more affluent immigrant communities. And because their numbers are smaller than those of Hispanics, they are trying to focus on other ways they can exert power -- through their wealth, their positions of influence in the high-tech and business communities, and their alliances with more established advocacy groups such as one for Indian physicians and an Indian political action committee.
While the immigrant marchers' demands have covered a range of issues, including allowing immigrants to gain legal status and eventually citizenship, the members of this association are more narrowly focused: They want Congress to pass measures that would end the years-long wait for a green card. In fact, they warn that efforts to enable millions of illegal immigrants to remain here permanently would result in the same bureaucratic nightmare legal immigrants are now facing.
"If you're going to reform, reform across the board," said Bharati Mandapati, who oversees content for the group, which means she has learned how to word and pitch legislative amendments.
The group has refrained from taking a stand on the fate of the undocumented workers, though it monitors chatter on its Web site to ensure that frustrated high-tech workers don't disparage lower-skilled laborers such as landscapers and restaurant workers. It also has stayed mum on raising the cap on H-1Bs, the visas that made most of their passages possible.
Under a proposal introduced by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), the number of employment-based green cards being issued would increase from 140,000 to 290,000. Currently, no one country is supposed to take up more than 7 percent of the allotment, though unused green cards can be redistributed to countries that have already met their quota. That has made possible migrations in excess of 7 percent from nations such as India, China, Mexico and the Philippines. Under the proposal, the per-country cap would be increased to a hard and fast 10 percent. Proponents say this would prevent one country from dominating the category and would retain jobs for native-born Americans.
But Mandapati, a California-based economist, argues that the restriction would hurt the United States because the demand for skills changes. "It just so happens that computer technology and certain technical skills are in great demand here and all over the world. It just so happens that there are two countries that have invested a lot of resources in educating people in these fields . . . India and China."
About a half-million immigrants are caught in the green-card backlog, some as they wait for Labor Department approval or because quotas have been exceeded. In that time, they cannot be promoted or given substantial pay increases because that would mean a change in job description and salary. They turn to Web sites to compare their wait times with others, and their Internet handles, such as "stucklabor" and "waiting_labor," exude their frustration.
During meetings on Capitol Hill, Maduros and at least one Immigration Voice representative lay out the group's platform, weaving in the personal stories of members. Shilpa Ghodgaonkar, a Germantown housewife, has become a staple anecdote -- and a frequent visitor on the Hill.
For four years, she and her husband have been waiting for their green cards. Ghodgaonkar's husband arrived on an H-1B visa, and she followed as his dependent, unauthorized to work here. To pass the time, she learned to cook. Then she volunteered as a career counselor in Montgomery County. Last year, she earned her MBA from George Washington University. In December, around the time Kapoor sent out his e-mail plea for mass mobilization, Ghodgaonkar had run out of options.
"I just couldn't keep quiet anymore," Ghodgaonkar said. "I cannot be depressed anymore."
She keeps a spreadsheet that lays out appointment times and the senators' offices she has visited or still plans to: Specter, Frist, Schumer, Brownback, Bingaman, Feinstein, Feingold. Wednesdays bring a weekly call with Quinn Gillespie. And every few nights, there are conference calls among Immigration Voice's core team.
Now the group plans to closely watch the debate resuming in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Earlier this month, Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) proposed amendments with all of the group's provisions. Other lawmakers confirm that they are still meeting with the group to hear their concerns.
Immigration Voice leaders say the past few months have focused and politicized Indian immigrants in a way that was not apparent in the past. "There is a very 'Mr. Smith Goes to Washington' quality" about the current effort, Mandapati said. "It's been a journey, a loss of naivete and getting to know about American politics."
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gunabcd
06-28 04:15 PM
As per online status "Your response received on June 15th and processing resumed". If it's pending for couple more days, As per the rule i should get my $1000 back. Will my I-140 then thrown back in the normal (non-PP) queue?
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sdrblr
08-25 01:52 PM
Well, there you go. Good news to sdrblr.
Whats the good news to me :confused:
Whats the good news to me :confused:
senthil1
05-28 05:49 PM
It is not the case that when the reduce H1b they need to outsource. Can any statitics tell that last 3 years H1b cap reached but because of that Outsourcing is done or US lost Compettiveness because there is no skilled workers. No evidence proves that. Still US only is having most technology companies.
If US lose 12 million illegals that will cause a problem for employers. But if 50% of H1b people leave the country because of green card issues then same or more number of people will enter by H1 or L1 or b1. That is the reason Skil bill was not able to pass in the Senate based on the fact that some abuses are in H1b. Skill bill can be delayed 5 years but impact will be less for the country. But impact will be more for immigrants. Also now H1b can be extended unlimited number of times when I140 is cleared. So really exodus will be very less compared to incoming persons. So there is no compelling reason for the country to increase gc. But for illegals there is compelling reason to act on them because illegal immigration will go uncontrolled if they leave as it is.
Good point , Yes we need to give our response to it. but neither H1B says its only for INNOVATORS rather it says only SKILLED workers. Not even every PhD is innovator . May be in some circumstances the so said perspective is true but i dont agree with every point.
I work in a comp where mostly they have GC or Citz and in some cases they waited even 2 months + and then decided to take H1b's.
There are no enough Americans who can do the Job if these guys think its H1B and remove H1B every Job will land as an outsourcing . If not h1B many Outsourcing IT firms will find some way to temp bring IT pros and eventually outsource.
The Key point that IV is making is how much taxes we are paying and how good we are making to American economy. If they remove H1B ,then they understand how and what they have lost.
If US lose 12 million illegals that will cause a problem for employers. But if 50% of H1b people leave the country because of green card issues then same or more number of people will enter by H1 or L1 or b1. That is the reason Skil bill was not able to pass in the Senate based on the fact that some abuses are in H1b. Skill bill can be delayed 5 years but impact will be less for the country. But impact will be more for immigrants. Also now H1b can be extended unlimited number of times when I140 is cleared. So really exodus will be very less compared to incoming persons. So there is no compelling reason for the country to increase gc. But for illegals there is compelling reason to act on them because illegal immigration will go uncontrolled if they leave as it is.
Good point , Yes we need to give our response to it. but neither H1B says its only for INNOVATORS rather it says only SKILLED workers. Not even every PhD is innovator . May be in some circumstances the so said perspective is true but i dont agree with every point.
I work in a comp where mostly they have GC or Citz and in some cases they waited even 2 months + and then decided to take H1b's.
There are no enough Americans who can do the Job if these guys think its H1B and remove H1B every Job will land as an outsourcing . If not h1B many Outsourcing IT firms will find some way to temp bring IT pros and eventually outsource.
The Key point that IV is making is how much taxes we are paying and how good we are making to American economy. If they remove H1B ,then they understand how and what they have lost.
ashishgour
04-14 12:39 PM
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