The Indian tech industry has welcomed the US President Joseph Biden's stand on immigration and H-1B visa.
"President Biden has pledged a new approach on Trade and Immigration, as well as a renewed and revitalised interest in science and technology. We appreciate President Biden’s commitment to review and make necessary changes to harmful regulatory policies put in place by the previous administration," said National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) in a statement on Thursday.
The previous Donlad Trump administration had placed several curbs and made unfavourable changes to the H-1B visa rules, that is most commonly used by Indian software engineers to travel to the US for work.
Dexpite many representations from various quarters, the Trump administration had brought in harsh rules such as requiring selection of H-1B workers based upon highest salary, paying foreign workers significantly higher wages, redefined the employer-employee relationships and so on.
In a memo on Wednesday, the Biden administration either withdrew or froze some of these provisions.
“A modern US immigration system drives innovation,” said Jason Oxman, Information Technology Industry (ITI) President and CEO. “The Biden-Harris Administration’s planned actions make important and overdue investments in immigration reforms that can successfully meet the demands of a globally competitive, digital economy, including expanded visa programs for high-skilled workers and families," he added.
Nasscom added that a key challenge the technology sector faces is the lack of required STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) talent in the US, clearly highlighted by the high degree of overall unemployment on one hand, and over 750,000 plus job vacancy postings for jobs in computer occupations as of 13 January 2021, a 20 per cent increase since May 2020.
"That is, despite high degree of overall unemployment in US, demand for high-tech skills continues to remain robust – clearly endorsing the argument that there are just not enough workers with relevant skills to fill them. The rules announced by the previous administration will worsen this talent gap. Nasscom has been actively engaged with US policy makers on these issues, and we look forward to working together with the new US Administration to find solutions to the STEM skills gap, and enable America to be more competitive, to grow and create more jobs," Nasscom said in the statement.
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU