Visas for Foreign Workers

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/01/opinion/visas-for-foreign-workers.html

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To the Editor:

Re “How ‘Hire American’ Could Affect a World of Tech Workers” (news article, April 19):

The problem with the H-1B visa program is that it depresses the price of tech jobs, which in turn lowers the desirability for tech jobs and the incentive for American students to seek math and science education.

This would be true to some extent even if the system weren’t abused, but The New York Times and other outlets have shown that employment companies are gaming the lottery system and being used not just to fill a critical opening but also to replace entire departments of citizens who are already working.

The invisible hand is supposed to respond to a shortage by raising the price. Bringing in substitute labor from foreign countries lowers the price. I don’t know what President Trump has in mind, but if companies are allowed to lower the price of tech jobs, the American work force will continue its decline as a leader in math and science.

JOHN MCGLOIN, STATEN ISLAND