In 2000, tech companies in the United States successfully lobbied for an increase in the cap on the number of H-1B visas granted annually.
A few months later -- in the face of mass layoffs -- an increasing number of foreign tech workers are finding themselves out of a job, and either forced by law to return to their homeland within 10 days or become part of a temporary employment phenomenon with the unfortunate tag of "body-shopping."
Layoffs are plaguing the tech sector, which includes thousands with H-1B visas. Once unemployed, H-1B visa workers are allowed to remain in the country only if they can find another job and get the new employer to apply to the Immigration and Naturalization Service for a transfer of the H-1B within that 10-day slot.
"As soon as their employment is terminated, their visa is technically not valid," said Eyleen Schmidt, an INS spokeswoman.
If an H-1B visa holder's fresh employment is scheduled to begin even one day after the stipulated time, he has to return home and apply for a fresh visa from the U.S. consulate there.
"When applying for a transfer H-1B we advise people to submit their most recent pay-slips," said immigration attorney, Arjun Verma. "It is the only way the INS will be able to determine if they have ever gone out of status."
The INS also imposes a 3-year ban on foreign nationals who have remained unemployed in the states between 180 and 364 days; beyond 365 days, this ban can be extended to 10 years.
One affected worker, laid off along with a number of other H-1B employees at technology consultancy firm Sapient earlier this month, complained of his plight in a telephone interview.
"I had no idea this was coming," said the ex-employee, requesting anonymity. "I joined them last March. They applied for my visa -- the fourth-quarter earnings looked great."
Companies are not obliged to provide the visa holder with any sort of prior notice before firing them -- but they are required to give them an air-ticket home.
"The day we were told that we were getting laid off was when Sapient also announced a first-quarter loss," he added. "So we cleared our desks and left. Now, I just have a couple of days before I go 'out of status,' and the job market is really bad."
For the desperate, this is where body-shopping comes in.
Body-shoppers employ laid-off people in their own companies and file for their visas with the INS to ensure that the worker maintains legal status in the country. The body-shopper then sub-contracts the worker out to other tech companies while taking 10 to 20 percent of the worker's pay as service fees.
"That will be a last resort," said the ex-Sapient employee. "But at least it is a valid option to stay here."
Sashank Narasimhadevara, 24, was one of the 700 people let go at Cambridge Technology Partners in January. He was still working on an Optional Practical Training allowance available for a period of one year to every foreign student who attends college in the United States.
Narasimhadevara is looking for an H-1B sponsor before June -- but says the market looks very bleak for engineers without 2 to 3 years of experience.
"We did have an indication of what was to come," Narasimhadevara said. "There were internal rumors. CTB's shares are the cost of tissue paper. I don't have a problem with what they did -- just that the timing has landed me in hot water.
"At this point I am willing to take a job that pays me less money than what I was getting or expect to get. The important thing is to maintain legal status," he added.
Finding a new job and re-filing for a new visa does not give the worker assurance that his/her new employers will see the application through.
With more people available for hire, companies prefer a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident who can start working immediately as opposed to waiting four months for the INS to clear an H-1B visa worker.
"We feel that there has been a bias against hiring U.S. workers," said George McClure, co-chair of the work-force committee at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers-USA. "In view of the current H-1B downturn in employment, the foreign worker is left without a support net which is unfortunate for him and the community.
"The best way to treat the problem is to work toward getting green cards for people who come in so they can become a permanent part of our work-force, rather than treating them as temporary workers. We should also be retraining our own engineers and let them fill the slots," McClure said.
Companies like Intel that just announced downsizing "by attrition" say they will continue to hire for certain positions.
"By nature of their job profiles we consider H-1Bs key talent," Intel spokesman Robert Manetta said. "But if someone is underperforming, we might consider not renewing their visas when they expire after three years."
The INS expects to come out with 2001 H-1B visa application statistics sometime soon.
The initial limit of 115,000 had been reached by March 2000. Congress increased the quota to 195,000, which was filled up by September.
"We are still observing the trends in the high-tech industry," said Schmidt. "A laid off H-1B worker can apply for a grace period beyond the 10 days -- and we will grant it on a case-by-case basis."
