The equation of Visas and vacancies
by Angel - July 21, 2012
Number of visas outpace the number of vacancies
H-1B Visa is a non-immigrant visa which enables the employers to recruit foreign workers on temporary basis.
These visas are granted in three year increments and it has the option to extend for even six years. If the employer agrees to sponsor the incumbent then such a visa holder can also apply for permanent residence.
In the recent past it has gained political momentum as it is observed as a job taker from Americans.
A new analysis reveals that the number of visas issued have been outpacing the supply.
Employers have been expressing their concern about the unfilled vacancies in various sectors like healthcare, technology and other highly skilled occupations.
Deborah Vazquez says, “A lot of companies are shying away from H-1B visa process as they cannot get them and even if they get one, the process is a convoluted and expensive one.”
There is a rise in the number of visa applications with the improving economy.
Last year the visa applications had started in April for the year that starts with October 1. Even after 6 months of starting the process there were still a few vacancies for the same. In 2012, all the visas have been filled up in less than 3 months’ time.
In support of the scenario Immigration lawyer Larry Behar says “we couldn’t file 3 applications this year because the spots ran out faster than expected.”
Every year on an average 300,000 of visas are requested by the applications which include the lowest and highest demands. Recently 85,000 visas have been made available which includes 20,000 of the reserved ones meant for the students graduating from U.S. Universities.
These visas are made available to people belonging to the field of computers, scientists, business specialists and marketing professionals. This clearly indicates that the vacancies are for highly skilled people.
Of course people to other fields are also included here like domestic workers, physical therapists and occupational therapists that generally come from countries like India, Australia, and Philippines.
Indicating at the vanities Liz Tonkin, President of MedPro says, “The shortage is just tremendous. I could have 2,000 physical therapy jobs open in our system each day.’
Many companies who have been applying for employers in a number which was less than 70,000, now they have applied for more than 300,000 visas.
All these figures clearly indicate the ratio of demand and supply.
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