California gov't hires H1Bs to process unemployment claims

[Brian4Liberty]

Do Citizens Have a Lobby?
By Michael Reagan - Mar 07, 2015

I'm beginning the sympathize more and more with the average man who thinks the system is rigged against him.

The current unemployment rate in California, where I live, is 5.4 percent. This is almost a full percentage point higher than the unemployment rate for the nation as a whole. So you can imagine how the average unemployed Californian feels when he reads that the state Employment Development Department in Sacramento has hired citizens of India to process Golden State unemployment claims.

According to News10, "with the exception of two managers, everyone inside the office is from outside of the U.S. They are employed by Deloitte, a major U.S. IT company hired by the state to create and manage its Unemployment Insurance Modernization project. The mostly Indian nationals are allowed to work here under a visa program called H-1B."

Computerworld reports "Information technology workers at Southern California Edison (SCE) are being laid off and replaced by workers from India. Some employees are training the H- 1B visa holding replacements, and many have already lost their jobs."

That's really pouring salt in the wound. First the company makes you train the foreign workers replacing you then, after you're fired, more foreign workers process your unemployment claim.

It's no wonder that millions of unemployed Americans have simply given up and stopped looking for a job.

In these two instances STEM workers (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) have been displaced by H-1B visa holders. By law these visa holders are only supposed to be used to fill jobs that can't be filled by US citizens. Instead in many instances they replace US citizens. In reality the only law that influences H-1B visa holders is the economic law of supply and demand.

The more of these workers US companies can import, the lower the wage scale for STEM workers will be. That's why News10 points out tech companies spent $14 million in 2013 lobbying Congress for more low-paid foreign workers.

Microsoft is laying off 20,000 employees, yet Bill Gates demands Congress increase the number of STEM workers allowed to come to the U.S. Even the Prime Minister of India is getting into the act. PM Narendra Modi asked President Obama during his trip to India to "loosen the restrictions on the H-1B program."

Maybe that's why Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) points out that 75 percent of the US citizens with STEM degrees aren't working in STEM jobs.

The average American competing against lower-priced imported labor doesn't have anyone lobbying for him. And unfortunately taking care of your citizens first and dealing fairly with domestic workers doesn't seem to be a priority with Congress or business.
...
More: http://townhall.com/columnists/micha...lobby-n1966909

[AuH20]

We're inching towards a revolution day by day.

[tod evans]

We're inching towards a revolution day by day.

There's only 5280 feet in a mile, how many more inches before things spark off?

[phill4paul]

And those that receive their unemployment checks will be grateful instead of using their IT knowledge to throw a monkey wrench into the systems works.

[Anti Federalist]

We're inching towards a revolution day by day.

Americunts?

Have a Revolution?

You got a better chance of seeing God.

[phill4paul]

Americunts?

Have a Revolution?

You got a better chance of seeing God.

The current "Revolution" seems to be "going along to get along" to win the presidency. We will see how that works out.

[PierzStyx]

The current "Revolution" seems to be "going along to get along" to win the presidency. We will see how that works out.

I suspect disappointingly.

I do not "Stand with Rand."

To the tune of Aimee Allen's Ron Paul Anthem

[Zippyjuan]

Just to clarify, reading the original article, it sounds like it is an IT group of twenty four people which is designing and beta testing a new software system which will EVENTUALLY be used to process unemployment claims. They are not actually processing any claims there.

http://www.news10.net/story/news/inv...jobs/22603549/

It's nearly 8 p.m., and inside a state office building two dozen computer experts design and troubleshoot a system that will take and process millions of unemployment claims each year.

The department has 10,000 employees.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Employm...ent_Department

One of the largest California state departments, EDD has "nearly 10,000 employees providing services at more than 400 locations"[3] and an annual budget of nearly $12 billion

[oyarde]

Just to clarify, reading the original article, it sounds like it is an IT group of twenty four people which is designing and beta testing a new software system which will EVENTUALLY be used to process unemployment claims. They are not actually processing any claims there.

http://www.news10.net/story/news/inv...jobs/22603549/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Employm...ent_Department

I bet I can get it done for them for less than 11 billion a yr.

[DamianTV]

Problem is this isnt just happening in Unemployment Offices, its EVERY job. H1B foreign workers are flat out PREFERRED by big employers over natural born Americans, or those with Citizenship. So not only have we managed to export our jobs, we now fully import all of our workers, and that leaves no safe haven for citizens to go for consistent work. What do we have? 102 million working age citizens in the US that dont have jobs, 46 million on food stamps and dont count as unemployed (not all on food stams are working age), and only 8.7 million people that even count as Unemployed? The difference between the U3 and U6? How many that even are actively seeking jobs are not counted? How many reasons are there to exclude someone from the U3 Unemployment Rate? 5.5% Unemployment my left nut. Only 44% of the workforce work more than 32 hours a week. A better statistic is the Labor Particpation Rate, which I think the Inverse is a better example of the Real Unemployment Rate. 58% roughly Labor Participation Inverse is a 42% Unemployed. Not all actually want to work, but it is awfully hard to believe that many people do not want to work. But methods like this is exactly how the work continues to get done and Real Unemployment does not drop. I'll maintain the Real Unemployment Rate, for those that do want to work, is still around 35%, so kids, students, and retired are reasonably excluded. Remember the original stat, 102 million working age americans. The Americans are not the ones doing the work. Wouldnt suprise me at all to try to call to order a pizza locally only to find that the person taking the order is in India.

[Brian4Liberty]

Problem is this isnt just happening in Unemployment Offices, its EVERY job. H1B foreign workers are flat out PREFERRED by big employers over natural born Americans, or those with Citizenship.

A very important distinction. Once someone becomes a citizen, it's time to replace them with a cheaper non-citizen.

[AuH20]

Problem is this isnt just happening in Unemployment Offices, its EVERY job. H1B foreign workers are flat out PREFERRED by big employers over natural born Americans, or those with Citizenship. So not only have we managed to export our jobs, we now fully import all of our workers, and that leaves no safe haven for citizens to go for consistent work. What do we have? 102 million working age citizens in the US that dont have jobs, 46 million on food stamps and dont count as unemployed (not all on food stams are working age), and only 8.7 million people that even count as Unemployed? The difference between the U3 and U6? How many that even are actively seeking jobs are not counted? How many reasons are there to exclude someone from the U3 Unemployment Rate? 5.5% Unemployment my left nut. Only 44% of the workforce work more than 32 hours a week. A better statistic is the Labor Particpation Rate, which I think the Inverse is a better example of the Real Unemployment Rate. 58% roughly Labor Participation Inverse is a 42% Unemployed. Not all actually want to work, but it is awfully hard to believe that many people do not want to work. But methods like this is exactly how the work continues to get done and Real Unemployment does not drop. I'll maintain the Real Unemployment Rate, for those that do want to work, is still around 35%, so kids, students, and retired are reasonably excluded. Remember the original stat, 102 million working age americans. The Americans are not the ones doing the work. Wouldnt suprise me at all to try to call to order a pizza locally only to find that the person taking the order is in India.

And they are likely getting tax breaks and subsidies so they can avoid American workers.

[Southron]

Remember we are a nation of immigrants not citizens.

[Brian4Liberty]

Remember we are a nation of immigrants not citizens.

And we are also a nation that has always been searching for cheap labor.

It started with slavery and indentured servitude, and today it is H1Bs and undocumented or fraudulently documented workers.

[Zippyjuan]

Only 44% of the workforce work more than 32 hours a week.

Latest BLS figures show 118 million workers considered "full time" (by their definition, "full time" means working at least 35 hours a week which is higher than your 32 hours figure) and 27 million listed as "part time". http://www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cpseea06.htm

That translates to 81% of the workforce considered full time. Not 44%.

I'll maintain the Real Unemployment Rate, for those that do want to work, is still around 35%, so kids, students, and retired are reasonably excluded.

Same link lists 8.7 million looking for full time work and 1.7 million looking for part time work or a total of 10.4 million actively looking for a job. Do you have a source for your 35% figure? Thanks.

BLS lists the Labor Force (which as you ask excludes retirees, students, stay at home moms and dads) at 156 million. http://www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cpseea03.htm If the "real" unemployment rate for that was 35% that would mean 54 million would be out of work but looking for a job (five times the BLS figures). Is that true? Again, a source would be helpful.

A better statistic is the Labor Particpation Rate, which I think the Inverse is a better example of the Real Unemployment Rate. 58% roughly Labor Participation Inverse is a 42% Unemployed.

However, that does include people who are retired, students not working but in school, stay at home moms and dads you said would be left out from your "Real Unemployment Rate" figure. At a current Labor Force Participation rate of 62.8% then yes, you could say that 35% isn't working. (37.2% actually). But that is counting people who don't want to work for various reasons and you said should be "reasonably excluded".

Are one third of everybody you know out of work and actively looking for a job?

[tod evans]

And we are also a nation that has always been searching for cheap labor.

It started with slavery and indentured servitude, and today it is H1Bs and undocumented or fraudulently documented workers.

Cheap labor is really prevalent in the carpentering business, no H1B's required, hell in this area every unemployed desk jockey with a hammer and a miterbox is bidding trim work...

I just charge more when I can tell they've tried to cut corners....

[Brian4Liberty]

Cheap labor is really prevalent in the carpentering business, no H1B's required, hell in this area every unemployed desk jockey with a hammer and a miterbox is bidding trim work...

I just charge more when I can tell they've tried to cut corners....

I don't know about specialties like skilled carpentry, but it seems that speaking Spanish in mandatory for general construction.

[phill4paul]

This just shows how strong the American economy is. We are providing jobs for the whole world. Right here in America. "Acceptionalism!" FTW.