70 pointsby joshcsimmons12 hours ago8 comments
  • citrin_ru44 minutes ago
    This site explain that H-1B is abused, which is rarely disputed and there are ways to make it less prone to abuse. It doesn't tell that there is no shortage of skilled workers.
  • 65012 hours ago
    With all the discourse around H1Bs recently, I ask what the alternative is? Offshoring and workers paying taxes in their own countries? The common argument of X number of CS grads unemployed fails to hold as CS has been a monkey degree over the past few years due to the rush for money. Some investigation will show many graduates are not able to perform software engineering duties up to par, and sub par graduates compared to pre 2015. Of course its nuanced between training that companies used to offer etc.
    • orangecoffee2 hours ago
      The solution is simple, but unpalatable to us. With AI, SWE-1 becomes a minimum wage job, with SWE2 (1.5X), SWE3 (2X) and SWE4 (3x). With such a rationalization we will retain more of the work here, or this will move. Government policies cannot control this as it will mean losing tech hegemony.

      Is it worth taking a hit on higher compensation for longer term peace of mind?

    • whatwhaaaaat12 hours ago
      No the solution is hiring American workers and implementing strict on soil laws for pii just like other countries are doing (India for example).

      I have learned a great deal and been enriched by my friendships with foreign born workers, but to act like h1b workers come “ready to perform software engineering duties” at any higher rate than new grad higher is funny.

      • Suppafly3 hours ago
        >No the solution is hiring American workers

        This, I don't understand how we have tons of un- and underemployed American workers and yet somehow businesses have convinced the government that they need to import workers.

        • silisili2 hours ago
          The answer isn't one a lot of people are willing to talk about, but personally, I don't care.

          The problem isn't "businesses", it's other Indians. They take entire tech orgs over, then only hire each other. They make up bizarre reasons why US workers won't fit while spamming H1B applications.

          Before you grab your pitchforks, or try to dox me for racism one, please understand it's not all Indian people, obviously. There are so many in the US, and the majority are good people. But there's an extremely clear pattern that's emerged that you'd have to be blind not to see.

          • bigfatkittenan hour ago
            The pattern I’ve seen emerge is that the only successful candidates just happen to be of the same ethnolinguistic background as the hiring manager. Merely being Indian is not enough.
            • ta900038 minutes ago
              That’s still discrimination.
              • bigfatkitten35 minutes ago
                I’m not sure how my post could be taken to suggest otherwise.
          • thisislife220 minutes ago
            > They take entire tech orgs over, then only hire each other.

            No. It is stupid politics to blame Indians or other Asians for this when they are just following company policy to hire cheaper labour. Like it or not, H1B Asians (in IT) are hired because they can be exploited - they work cheaper and longer hours than their American counterpart ( US companies save nearly $100,000 per H-1B hire as workers earn 16% less: Here’s why demand stays high - https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/education/news/us-compan... ). Blaming immigrant Asians for this kind of exploitative politics that exists because American businesses lobby for it is irrational. (Also, do not forget that America is a country of immigrants. The H1Bs also act as a "vetted" immigrant pool from which American citizenships can be given.)

        • sumedh3 hours ago
          Its the same in Australia.

          Australian universities make billions and lobby the government to import students from developing countries, the agents of these universities tell the students that getting jobs and a permanent resident visa is easy, just pay the huge fees and you will get the chance to live your dreams in a developed country.

        • hshdhdhj444433 minutes ago
          Why were those underemployed and unemployed people getting hired as tech workers for the past 2 decades when it’s one of the highest paying jobs in the country already?

          Is our discipline so trivially easy that the only barrier to being hired is choosing to do so?

        • thisislife231 minutes ago
          You missed the obvious - foreign workers can be exploited by paying them less. Are there Americans with an engineering degrees that are also willing to work for 10+ hours daily, at $150,000 annually, for a job that usually pays $200,000 to $300,000? That is all the H1B (in IT at least) is about - cheap labour, and a potential immigrant pool. Blaming Indians or other Asians for this (like some others do here) is just stupid politics. "Indians hire Indians" is just Indians following company policy to hire cheaper labour.
        • throwaway20562 hours ago
          True. But the common man on the street wants things to be cheap. This is not sustainable unless on imports cheap h1b (or other overworked foreigners).

          Edit: This is not meant to support h1b.

          Ideal case - people that are not on H1B and work in these companies - contact your CEO/managers. People don't do that. Instead are happy to argue (or downvote) here.

  • billsunshine12 hours ago
    No doubt h1b is abused. Corporations use it to structurally underpay tech labor. Shame to anyone defending this abuse as some sort of pro immigration policy - it hurts both domestic workers and underpays migrant labor. The question is - what % of this labor could be sourced domestically and what actually needs to be imported?
    • throwaway20562 hours ago
      You should try to communicate to managers (that are US citizens or greencard holders) that decide on H1B/outsourcing.
  • jetskii11 hours ago
    $196k average at Capital One? Even with HCOL, that's a very good salary. I feel like they could certainly find competent citizens willing to work for that wage...
    • hshdhdhj444441 minutes ago
      Or, Capital One could hire the exact same people they’re paying $196k to for a quarter of the cost once they’ve been sent back to their own countries.
  • CaliforniaKarl12 hours ago
    See also "I Was a Director at Amex When They Started Replacing Us with $30K Workers [video]", posted twice:

    https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47028155

    https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47038665

  • whatever13 hours ago
    Racism shortage is a myth.

    Is the h1b a good system? No.

    Do the people who suddenly started bringing it up once Trump got elected give a single f about policy? Also no.

    Don’t waste your time discussing policy with them. They don’t care.

    Because at the core, they only care about the color of the skin of the tech workers.

  • mekekdkxkxkx12 hours ago
    [flagged]
  • srameshc11 hours ago
    Exposed what ? It has brought some great talent to the country and helped with talent immigration for sure, everyone knows it. There is a phase when there is a sacrifice for the candidate but then people change jobs even when green card processing is throught the stages.
    • sumedh3 hours ago
      > then people change jobs even when green card processing is throught the stages.

      Finding employers who will sponsor is not easy so the employees are essentially locked to the sponsoring company, dont complain too much.