Forbes Interview : H1B Cap Issue

Jane Weldon, a reporter for the business/ financial magazine “Forbes” interviewed me on Friday, March 30, 2007 about the H1B cap. I told her that I would expect that the H1B cap will likely be on the first day when H1Bs can be accepted on Monday, April 2, 2007 itself! Jane seemed surprised with my predictions of doom. Unfortunately, my predictions were accurate but most people working intensely in the field would likely have guessed that anyway!

During the interview, I explained that the cap makes no sense in a capitalist economy that works on supply and demand economics. Our vibrant and growing economy encourages businesses to get the best workers from around the world for the continued growth and success of the organization. There have been some latest studies that show that hiring immigrants actually increases the wages of U.S. citizens and U.S. workers since hiring skilled workers from all over actually will help those organizations to grow faster and reward their professional workers with higher wages. The implications of the H1B cap being reached on the first day are far reaching and adverse for the U.S. economy on the whole, so Congress needs to eliminate the H1B cap altogether. Bill Gates testified to this issue of eliminating the H1B quota during Congressional testimony earlier in March 2007.