US Immigration Reform unfair to the legal high-skilled It is very strange. I expected that many readers of Chowk would comment. But doesn`t seem so. There are two reasons:

1. Legal Immigrants think that they cannot do anything about this bill hence they don`t bother to comment.

Or most of Chowkies are not in USA hence they are not bothered by this bill..

Which one it is ?

US Immigration Reform unfair to the legal high-skilled Please not this artcile is a Press Release from Immigrationvoice. I didn`t write this artcile. I just wanted it to be posted at Chowk so more people are aware of this important legislation.

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Here is another press release.

Immigration Reform punishes legal high-skilled immigrants, says “Immigration Voice”

The 2007 Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill, being touted as a “Grand Bargain”, ostensibly claims to reward merit. However, high-skilled workers who would supposedly benefit from the bill dispute such characterizations. After analyzing the fine-print of the Bill, the Core group members of Immigration Voice, shared their views at a recent nationwide conference call. They represent the interests of half-a-million legal high-skilled immigrants whose Green Card applications are stuck in the quagmire of processing backlogs. Immigration Voice released a Position Paper during this event, and believes the truth is hidden ‘under the spin’.

Immigration Voice, a non-profit organization, has over 12,000 members, drawn from various facets of industry, including Medicine, Information Technology, Consulting in the Banking and Finance sector, Research and Teaching at the University level.

“In a ‘Nation of Laws’, one would expect that the Bill would reward, or at least treat fairly those who play by the rules and abide by the Law. It has actually done the very opposite!” says Immigration Voice President, Aman Kapoor.

Annual quota for legal skilled immigrants is miniscule compared to undocumented immigrants: Jay Pradhan, a Computer Programmer says, “The annual Green Card quota available to undocumented immigrants under the proposed Z visa would be approximately 2.2 million per year for the first 5 years. Compare this to the current legal, employment based Green Card system that faces backlogs of 5-6 years – not including the various processing delays. The annual quota of 140,000 Green Cards for legal skilled immigrants has been reduced to 90,000 instead of being increased. One wonders who the so called ‘Comprehensive’ Bill benefits? Certainly not the legal high- skilled workers, who have worked so hard and followed all Laws of this country.”

Existing backlogs exacerbated by lowering the numerical cap for legal skilled immigrants instead of raising it and diverting those visas to future guest-worker program: Naren Baliga, who works for a German Software Multinational and holds a US Masters in Engineering, says, “Half a million high-skilled workers and their families have been in the queue patiently awaiting their turn for 5-6 years. The bill not only cannibalizes from the already limited quota by reducing the annual cap, but also diverts a large portion of these annual visas to Y visa holders under the proposed Guest Worker Program and also to an untested, untried merit-based points system. Y Visa holders benefit at the expense of high-skilled, legal workers waiting for their Green Cards to be approved for several years.”

The proposed merit based points system puts undocumented immigrants ahead of the legal skilled graduate degree holders in the queue for available Green Cards. “The proposed merit-based points system is flawed. It awards more points for illegal presence and low skills and, less points to legal, skilled immigrants. For example, a previously undocumented Z visa worker can score 21 points with 3 years of agriculture experience while a legal skilled immigrant with a MBA, MD or Graduate degree scores 20 points for education. The points system is poorly designed and unbalanced. Additionally, several high-skilled workers are waiting for their Green Cards to be approved, and transitioning to a new points-based system would mean that they lose their spot in the queue.”, laments Himanshu, an Advertising and Design professional who has a Masters Degree from a US University.

No country-limits for the undocumented, but, country-limits for legal high-skilled: “By Law, there can be no discrimination based on country of origin, when hiring an employee. Jobs go to the most qualified person, regardless of origin. But, when it comes to retaining high-skilled people in this country – there is a per-country limit. But, the limit applies only if one is a legal, high-skilled worker. Per the bill, no per-country ceiling exists for undocumented workers (Z visa holders) when applying for Green cards!” says Alok Sharma, a physician. Dr.Sharma has seen physicians from other countries get their Green Cards in a year or less, while he, a citizen of India, may not be able to get one for several years, even with an approved Immigration petition due to the huge backlogs!

“The current immigration bill provides no genuine relief to high-skilled workers at all. Is this how a ‘nation of laws’ treats those who follow the Law?” ask all of them pensively.

Immigration Voice (www.immigrationvoice.org) is a non-profit national grassroots organization committed to feasible solutions to a broken employment-based immigration process. Immigration Voice is advocating for technical changes that will improve the quality of life of several individuals that are stuck in the backlogs/delays, and help the system to work as it was intended.

Contact:

Immigration Voice

850-294-3556

A pragmatic rant about Immigration in America Immigration Reform unfair to the legal high-skilled, says ImmigrationVoice

May 20th, 2007.ImmigrationVoice, an organization representing legal-skilled professionals, which has a membership of nearly 12000, has serious reservations with the proposed Secure Borders, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Reform Act of 2007.

We are always told, “Break the law, and you will be in trouble”. But, the recent “Immigration Reform Grand bargain” proposes to send a message that is precisely the opposite.

We are being told that no undocumented immigrant will get ahead of those in backlog. While the backlog of Family-based petitions has been highly publicized, the petitions of individuals (engineers, scientists, doctors and other professionals) are being left in legal and bureaucratic limbo. About half-a-million highly qualified professionals and their families have put their faith in the legal immigration system and due process of the United States, while working to enhance the US economy. These people have pending petitions either with the Department of Labor, or with the CIS, the final adjudication of which will enable them to work with a US employer, with consequent ripple effect on the US economy.

In the old system, employment-based petitions were limited to 140,000 per year, but the proposed system, ‘in order to reduce backlog’, reduces them to 90,000 per year only! On the contrary, Family-based cases used to be limited to similar numbers, but now have been increased to 567,000 per year! In addition, close to100,000 of these applicants with pending petitions are being asked to start from scratch in the new system. In effect, it is similar to changing the ‘rules’ or rather, the ‘Laws’ after the fact! Innocent high-skilled prospective immigrants are being penalized due to bureaucratic delay in the DOL.

Highly skilled doctors, scientists, engineers, and computer professionals have been stuck in backlogs since the last 3-4 years. They had hoped to get relief from the “Immigration Reform”, but have been let down badly. They are being forced to renew their H-1Bs yearly now, while the old system allowed 3-yr incremental renewals while their Green Card petition was pending. Seems like a fitting reward for following the Laws, isn’t it?

A Merit-based system which has been proposed by the US Senate has been widely criticized for allegedly favoring skilled individuals. A review actually reveals it being skewed the other way! As an example, an agriculture worker can earn 25 points for working 100 days a year for 5 years, while a skilled individual will get 10 points for working the same number of years! Economic contribution by the undocumented is recognized by awarding points for property ownership but not for people working legally!

Individuals who have played by the rules, need to be treated fairly even though their actual numbers are much less when compared to the undocumented. There needs to be a timely process to resolve all pending employment-based petitions within a reasonable time frame. Immigration Reform is sorely needed. But, the present compromise is very unwieldy, and unworkable for high-skilled individuals.

Give high-skilled legal immigrants a fair deal! That is all we are asking for!

Immigration Voice (www.immigrationvoice.org) is a non-profit national grassroots organization committed to feasible solutions to a broken employment-based immigration process. Immigration Voice is advocating for technical changes that will improve the quality of life of several individuals that are stuck in the backlogs/delays, and help the system to work as it was intended.

Contact:

Immigration Voice

850-294-3556

email info@immigrationvoice.org

# # #

Contact Information

Immigration Voice

850-294-3556

A pragmatic rant about Immigration in America Dear Fawad,

Your idea is great but many legal immigrants in USA are facing huge delays in their immigrant visas (Green Card). Due to limited number of visa availability, they are not able to get their green card. Without green card they cannot apply for better oppurtunities early in their career, cannot travel easily.

As you can see from legislations that illegal immigrants may get amnesty but no body is looking after legal immigrants. This stops people outside USA to immigrate to USA and they go to other countries.

Thanks,
shiraz

Student Politics In Pakistan Nabeel,
Interesting article. On my alumni email list, a similar topic was posted..
What you think is the reason students don`t go into politics ?
I think manyt students wont be interested in poltics in Universities as they worked hard to get right degree so they can live their own dreams--nice job etc.

Secondly why we need Universities to get future politicians who are well educated and sincere to people they represent ?

Studying USA Caucus system is very interesting. I mean a person can convince a Caucus, electorates and then get party nomination and go for elections..

He/ She has to convince people about his/ her leadership, vision and it is work..but that is what is needed...

looking forward to see your comments..

The Pakistani American Hunt why don`t they try eHarmony ? ;-)

`` In 2000, backed by over 35 years of clinical and empirical research, Dr. Warren transformed the way singles are introduced online when he launched eHarmony - the first relationship service on the Web to use a scientific approach to match highly compatible singles. Millions of people of all ages, ethnicities, and religious backgrounds have used eHarmony`s patented Compatibility Matching System™ to find the love of their lives.``

I have seen that Pakistanis don`t mingle with american society much. They are small in numbers here and statistics show that they won`t be able to find match easily.

Or Halal dating ;-) see..http://www.asmahasan.com/writing/archives/000124.html..

I have seen Pakistani men and women going back to Pakistan to find wife ..

But I don`t think that it is a ``social crisis`` as author is pointing out...

L’affaires, Americans and Desis

L’affaires, Americans and Desis Hi FV,

1. ``What really angers me are those who benefit from a fairly cheap and decent education in their country of origin and then they ‘lutao’ it all in a place where they will always be judged by the colour of their skin``

I don`t know what you are trying to achieve by this statement. Every one has absolute right to pursue its career however he/ she seem fit. Many people leave their country due to absence of hope. Saying that they can stay there and help make that country better is not true and applicable to everybody. Because not everybody is leader or not everybody wants to change society. Most of the people just want to live simple and their own life.

Re, to ``cheap education``, those people paid for that education and worked hard--real hard to get that education in cut throat competition.

2. ``At the cash counter, I was handed a fairness cream. “Gift,” I was told. With mock anger (and silly self-righteousness, I admit), I asked him, “Why are you encouraging this trend? Why does everyone have to be fair?``

You are answering your own question of ``but I do not understand why people from S. Asia go to the US and continue to live there.”...Most of the people just don’t want to live in their country......

3. As regard to Fairness cream. This phenomenon is not applicable to `desis` only...just do a little study on cosmetic market and their advertisement targeted to women (and now men) too. You probably have been to big shopping malls where you can see tons load of cosmetic promising eternal youth, ``no wrinkles`` etc...
I think there is demand for this kind of stuff that`s why this market is thriving,

4. What ``tall coffee is small one`` ...see following links:
http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/001677.html
http://www.starbucks.co.jp/en/latte_lingo.htm

God bless internet. It gives you answers quickly...

5. ``Come back home. I will get your favorite film star to sign a ‘lota’ for you. Promise.`` ..Great offer. But I am afraid you cannot do it because my favorite one Marlon Brando died...

On Raising Kids ... Hi Maryam,

You are quite right. Raising kid is most difficult job, specially for working parents. It gets more complicated when both parents are working. The earlier one learns work life balance, the better it would be for one`s family. This issue is getting more complicated with ever demanding work. In USA there is another aspect that where you want to send your children for schooling? If you want to send them in Muslim school then they might end up loosing competitive advantage. On other hand if you want to send them in Public schools then you have to teach them your own values constantly.

I guess these are things one learns hard way.