Q&A of the Day – Do We Still Need H-1B Visas?
Each day I feature a listener question sent by one of these methods.
Email: brianmudd@iheartmedia.com
Social: @brianmuddradio
iHeartRadio: Use the Talkback feature – the microphone button on our station’s page in the iHeart app.
Today’s Entry: @brianmuddradio What’s your take on the H1B visas? I wasn’t happy to see Trump sellout to Musk on the issue. Do we really still need them?
Bottom Line: There aren’t many issues where we’ve seen much distance between the newly forged political alliance of President-elect Donald Trump, incoming DOGE leader Elon Musk and the incoming presidents’ political base – however this appears to potentially be one of them. The H-1B visa program has long had its critics, as it essentially provides special work status within the US to skilled foreign workers. The argument among those who aren’t in favor of the program is that it’s contradictory to suggest that we should force undocumented workers into the shadows without legal status for what are considered unskilled positions, IE picking crops, while legitimizing workers in what are considered skilled positions, IE software development. Let’s start by breaking down the program.
The origins of the current H-1B visa program dates back to the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, with the current incarnation of the program having been established in 1990 under the Immigration Act of 1990. The legislation was bipartisan at the time with Senator Ted Kennedy having introduced the legislation and President George H.W. Bush signing it into law. The Act was then expanded in 2004 to allow for additional considerations for students in specialty fields.
Here are the deets about H-1B visas under the law:
- Up to 65,000 visas are available for foreigner workers annually
- Up to 20,000 visas are available for foreign students annually
- Eligible participants must study and/or work in a “Specialty Occupation/Field”
- Defined Specialty Occupations/Fields include: biotechnology, chemistry, computing, architecture, engineering, statistics, physical sciences, journalism, medicine and health, economics, education, research, law, accounting, business specialties, technical writing, theology, and the arts
- Workers must hold a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in these fields for eligibility
- Students must be pursing advanced degrees in related fields for eligibility
There are some additional nuances to it but that’s the crux of the program. While there are some exceptions, a typical visa recipient is granted an initial 3-year visa under the program with the ability to seek to extend it for another 3-years for a total of six. If at any time workers lose their jobs, or if students end their studies, they lose eligibility under the program and are to leave the country. Additionally, if they have not established permanent legal status within the US by the end of their allotted time they’re to leave the country. That’s one of the points of contention with the program. Many do not and enforcement, especially under the Biden administration, has been lax.
There are an estimated 3 million H-1B recipients within the US currently. Of them, ICE has estimated 39.4% have overstayed their visa’s and thus are illegal immigrants. As for today’s question about the program’s merits and my views of it (and also as to the characterization as to if President-elect Trump is a sellout on this issue...).
Elon Musk, who of course is the founder and CEO of Tesla, SpaceX and The Boring Company, in addition to being the owner and CEO of X, has many employees within his enterprises under the program. He’s called it vital and even said he’d “go to war” over the issue. As debate heated up over the program in recent weeks, Trump backed Musk and the H-1B visa program by stating: I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I've been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It's a great program. So, does this support of the program show a contradiction between the duo’s strong stance on ending the illegal immigration crisis and promoting “America First” policies? I don’t think so.
There’s a vast difference between unskilled and skilled labor. It’s always been a false narrative that there are a myriad of entry level jobs that “Americans won’t do” like picking crops. The fact of the matter is that there are a myriad of jobs Americans won’t do for noncompetitive wages. Illegal immigrants being paid under the table to pick crops absolutely can be replaced by those in this country legally. For example, you’re unlikely to find many agricultural workers for minimum wage. However, if the jobs paid say $30 per hour, you’d have people lined up for those positions. There are plenty of legal citizens and residents capable of doing that work. The wages simply need to be competitive with other opportunities. Conversely, the same is not true on the highly skilled side.
We all have things we are good at doing and areas where we have limited aptitude. Given the demands in many specialized fields there are bound to be shortages of Americans capable of performing key work at companies like Tesla and SpaceX. For example, no matter how hard you’d try to turn me into an aerospace engineer, you’re never going to be highly successful trying – I'm just not naturally wired that way. There are many reasons why it’s important to attract and grow talent in these areas. If there are shortages of aerospace engineers in the US for example, should we just throw our hands up in the air and let China and Russia gain the upper hand on space exploration and related technologies which are a matter of national defense?
My view is that the H-1B visa program is no different than any other immigration related laws. We should enforce them. Just as we should deport all illegal border crossers in this country, we should also deport all visa overstays as well. That would restore integrity and credibility to the program and would curb illegal immigration at the same time. The program isn’t the problem, the lack of enforcement of those who abuse it is.