The legislation was introduced in the House Of Representatives to overhaul the H-1B visa system in order to prevent the firing of domestic workers. The bill was introduced by an influential American lawmaker on Thursday by Mo Brooks from Alabama, the American Jobs First Act. The bill seeks to stop employers in America from hiring foreign H-1B workers if they have recently, or plan to, dismiss their US workers.
The bill also mentions that employers will have to pay their H-1B workers more than the American workers. This strict step is proposed to ensure foreign labor is only used when absolutely necessary.
As the number of visas is going down, the US administration is trying to cut all options for non-Americans to secure a job in America. Now that millions of Americans are unemployed due to the global pandemic, the United States is now getting serious in safeguarding not only its borders but also the job market for its native citizens.
The American Jobs First Act suspends the F-1 OPT program, which grants all foreign students extendable work permits. This made the job market competitive and complicated among American graduates. It also gives a break to the diversity visa lottery program, which fails to serve US interests. Under this program, 50,000 green cards were issued to foreigners from across the world regardless of their qualifications.
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Congressman Brooks said American Jobs First Act will bring much-required reformation and regulations to the H-1B visa program which will assure that US workers are no longer disadvantaged in their own country. The bill will end engaging in cheap foreign labour as it would require employers to pay any H-1B workers a minimum amount of USD 110,000, he added.
"And to stop American worker replacement, my bill will require companies seeking H-1B labour to not have fired any American workers for at least two years without just cause and commit to not firing any workers without just cause for two years after," Brooks said.
H-1B reform measures like these, alongside ending the unfair Optional Practical Training (OPT) and diversity visa lottery programs will serve to promote American interests when it comes to immigration. Thanks to President Trump, TVA board member heads rolled and TVA reversed course, he added.
These measures will make sure that Americans are not replaced by cheap foreign laborers in the future.
"Due to intense pressure from big business, H-1B reform has been stalled for years, but Americans are hurting, and they cannot wait any longer for relief. Firing American workers only to hire cheap foreign workers to replace them is not only unpatriotic, but it's also downright repulsive!" the lawmaker said.
Chris Chmielenski, the deputy director of NumbersUSA, said the American Jobs First Act makes a number of important reforms to the H-1B program. It includes setting a wage floor of USD 110,000 for all H-1B workers so that employers who say they can't find an American to take a job have to put their money where their mouths are.
He stated, "It ends the outrageous Optional Practical Training program that actually gives employers a tax break for hiring foreign workers rather than Americans.” The legislation also ends the visa lottery that hands out 50,000 green cards, with work permits, based on a randomized computer drawing, Chmielenski added.