WASHINGTON: The top Republican and Democrat on the US Senate Judiciary Committee have reintroduced legislation to tighten rules for the H-1B and L-1 worker visa programmes.
Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, and Democratic ranking member Dick Durbin of Illinois stated the bill targets what they called loopholes and abuse by major employers.
The legislation tightens rules by raising wage and hiring standards, mandating public job postings, and narrowing visa eligibility.
The H-1B visa programme is widely used by the US technology sector to hire skilled workers from India and China.
This programme has been under the spotlight after the Trump administration earlier this month imposed a $100,000 fee on new applications.
Unlike the H-1B programme for skilled foreign hires, the L-1 visa allows multinational companies to transfer existing employees from overseas offices to the US.
The two senators first introduced similar legislation in 2007.
They said they sent letters last week to 10 major US employers including Amazon.com, Alphabet’s Google and Meta Platforms.
These letters scrutinised the companies’ reliance on H-1B visas while laying off staff.
The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Grassley said Congress created the H-1B and L-1 visa programmes as limited pathways for businesses to acquire top talent when it cannot be found at home.
He added that over the years, many employers have used them to cut out American workers in favour of cheap foreign labour.
US Senators Tommy Tuberville, a Republican from Alabama, Democrat Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, are among the original cosponsors of the legislation. – Reuters
