Companies Specializing in Shipping American Jobs Offshore Seeking More H-1B Visas than Law Allows [IEEE—USA]

Companies specializing in sending American jobs offshore have already applied for more H-1B visas than will be available in 2013. Data compiled by the US Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification shows that the top 10 companies applying for H-1B visas in the first three months of FY2013 are all offshore outsourcing companies (http://www.foreignlaborcert.doleta.gov/pdf/h_1b_temp_visa. pdf). These 10 organizations collectively had 112,739 positions — representing 73.4% more than the base annual H-1B cap of 65,000 - certified to be filled by an H-1B worker. Many of these work visas are issued to scientists and engineers. Moreover, 64.1% of the 175,806 certified H-1B applications from just October 1 to December 31, 2012, went to these 10 companies. Furthermore, there are many more than 10 outsourcers. The Department of Labor began applying these applications to the FY2014 visa cap April 1. “Starting next week, proponents of an H-1B visa increase will bemoan the fact that the H-1B cap is already used up,” IEEE-USA President Marc Apter said. “But it was outsourcing companies - businesses who use the visas to take American jobs - who used nearly two-thirds of them.”