Post by unlawflcombatnt on Mar 25, 2012 11:03:15 GMT -6
from FAIR (Federation for American Immigration Reform)
The Myth of a Skilled Worker Shortage
"Executive Summary
Corporate executives in the tech industry have long called for an increase in pliant, lower-cost foreign labor. They argue that the U.S. is failing to produce a sufficient number of talented scientists and engineers.
These claims, however, are based upon no actual evidence and do not hold up to scrutiny. Behind the industry’s calls for guest worker programs that attract the “best and brightest” is the reality that U.S. tech companies are cutting wages by discriminating against qualified American workers, with the full complicity of the federal government.
Labor market data clearly indicate that the U.S. has no shortage of qualified scientists and engineers, and economic research demonstrates that immigrants do not make any special contribution to innovation. However, the flood of low-wage guest workers harms American workers and may threaten the nation’s future competitiveness.
Skilled guest worker programs are being abused by employers, putting many Americans out of work and denying opportunities to millions of others. Even with unemployment at a 30-year high, corporate executives who use foreign workers to suppress wages in the tech industry have found support on Capitol Hill and in the White House. It goes against all sense of fairness, and it is astounding to realize, that Americans are being denied job opportunities in America while at the same time politicians are calling for the expansion of guest worker programs that will exacerbate this problem. The argument that there exists a shortage of skilled workers in the United States was not true before the recent recession, and certainly is not true now. Simply put, those who promote the idea of a “shortage” of scientists and engineers do so without regard for labor market evidence or the welfare of American workers.
This report contains the following findings:
There is no evidence that there is, or will exist in the foreseeable future, a shortage of qualified native-born scientists and engineers in the United States.
The glut of science and engineering (S&E) degree holders in the United States has caused many S&E graduates to seek work in other fields. Less than 1/3 of S&E degree holders are working in a field closely related to their degree, while 65% are either employed in or training for a career in another field within 2 years of graduating.
Wages in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) occupations have not kept pace with those of other college graduates, and in some occupations have actually decreased.
The Government Accountability Office found that some U.S. employers acknowledged that “H-1B workers were often prepared to work for less money than U.S. workers” and this factored into the employers’ hiring decision.
Nearly 675,000 H-1B and L-1 visa holders were approved for work in the United States in 2009.
The Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor has never initiated an investigation to ensure that employers are properly paying their H-1B workers....
In 2008, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) found that 21% of H-1B petitions contained a violation....
L-1 approved visas rose by 53 percent from 2000 to 2008."
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www.fairus.org/site/DocServer/H1B_2011_final.pdf?docID=6061
"All labor market evidence clearly indicates that there is no shortage in the United States of workers in STEM occupations, those jobs most commonly held by S&E degree holders. The NSF found that in 2006 there were an estimated 4.3 million to 5.8 million people working in the STEM sector, depending on how occupations were classified. At the same time, the NSF found that there were 16.6 million individuals in the United States who have an S&E degree (including 12.2 million whose highest degree was in S&E). (NSF report, page 10) This means that there are at least 2½ times more individuals in the United States who have an S&E degree than are employed
in S&E occupations.
The high ratio of S&E graduates relative to available jobs in those fields is the result of a long-term trend. Between1985 and 2000, the United States averaged 3 times more S&E graduates than new job openings each year. Currently, less than 1/3 of S&E graduates are working in a STEM field closely related to their degree, while 65% of S&E graduates are either employed in or training for another career field within 2 years....
Wage data also reveal an over supply of STEM workers, not a shortage. Wages in STEM occupations have risen more slowly than for college graduates overall, and in some occupations have actually decreased. If there were a shortage of scientists and engineers, wages would be expected to rise faster than in comparable fields. By trying to force more and more workers into a sector that already has an oversupply, the federal government has assured that wages will continue to lag behind other comparable careers....
“Employers are very quick to raise the specter of a labor shortage, but often it’s another way of saying they can’t find the workers they want at the price they’re paying…they are unwilling to meet the price signal the market is sending, so they seek help in the form of a spigot like immigration.”
—Jared Bernstein, former Chief Economic Advsior to Vice President Biden"
The Myth of a Skilled Worker Shortage
"Executive Summary
Corporate executives in the tech industry have long called for an increase in pliant, lower-cost foreign labor. They argue that the U.S. is failing to produce a sufficient number of talented scientists and engineers.
These claims, however, are based upon no actual evidence and do not hold up to scrutiny. Behind the industry’s calls for guest worker programs that attract the “best and brightest” is the reality that U.S. tech companies are cutting wages by discriminating against qualified American workers, with the full complicity of the federal government.
Labor market data clearly indicate that the U.S. has no shortage of qualified scientists and engineers, and economic research demonstrates that immigrants do not make any special contribution to innovation. However, the flood of low-wage guest workers harms American workers and may threaten the nation’s future competitiveness.
Skilled guest worker programs are being abused by employers, putting many Americans out of work and denying opportunities to millions of others. Even with unemployment at a 30-year high, corporate executives who use foreign workers to suppress wages in the tech industry have found support on Capitol Hill and in the White House. It goes against all sense of fairness, and it is astounding to realize, that Americans are being denied job opportunities in America while at the same time politicians are calling for the expansion of guest worker programs that will exacerbate this problem. The argument that there exists a shortage of skilled workers in the United States was not true before the recent recession, and certainly is not true now. Simply put, those who promote the idea of a “shortage” of scientists and engineers do so without regard for labor market evidence or the welfare of American workers.
This report contains the following findings:
There is no evidence that there is, or will exist in the foreseeable future, a shortage of qualified native-born scientists and engineers in the United States.
The glut of science and engineering (S&E) degree holders in the United States has caused many S&E graduates to seek work in other fields. Less than 1/3 of S&E degree holders are working in a field closely related to their degree, while 65% are either employed in or training for a career in another field within 2 years of graduating.
Wages in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) occupations have not kept pace with those of other college graduates, and in some occupations have actually decreased.
The Government Accountability Office found that some U.S. employers acknowledged that “H-1B workers were often prepared to work for less money than U.S. workers” and this factored into the employers’ hiring decision.
Nearly 675,000 H-1B and L-1 visa holders were approved for work in the United States in 2009.
The Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor has never initiated an investigation to ensure that employers are properly paying their H-1B workers....
In 2008, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) found that 21% of H-1B petitions contained a violation....
L-1 approved visas rose by 53 percent from 2000 to 2008."
------------------------------------
www.fairus.org/site/DocServer/H1B_2011_final.pdf?docID=6061
"All labor market evidence clearly indicates that there is no shortage in the United States of workers in STEM occupations, those jobs most commonly held by S&E degree holders. The NSF found that in 2006 there were an estimated 4.3 million to 5.8 million people working in the STEM sector, depending on how occupations were classified. At the same time, the NSF found that there were 16.6 million individuals in the United States who have an S&E degree (including 12.2 million whose highest degree was in S&E). (NSF report, page 10) This means that there are at least 2½ times more individuals in the United States who have an S&E degree than are employed
in S&E occupations.
The high ratio of S&E graduates relative to available jobs in those fields is the result of a long-term trend. Between1985 and 2000, the United States averaged 3 times more S&E graduates than new job openings each year. Currently, less than 1/3 of S&E graduates are working in a STEM field closely related to their degree, while 65% of S&E graduates are either employed in or training for another career field within 2 years....
Wage data also reveal an over supply of STEM workers, not a shortage. Wages in STEM occupations have risen more slowly than for college graduates overall, and in some occupations have actually decreased. If there were a shortage of scientists and engineers, wages would be expected to rise faster than in comparable fields. By trying to force more and more workers into a sector that already has an oversupply, the federal government has assured that wages will continue to lag behind other comparable careers....
“Employers are very quick to raise the specter of a labor shortage, but often it’s another way of saying they can’t find the workers they want at the price they’re paying…they are unwilling to meet the price signal the market is sending, so they seek help in the form of a spigot like immigration.”
—Jared Bernstein, former Chief Economic Advsior to Vice President Biden"