Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is now the target of Donald Trump regarding national immigration policy. In his immigration plan unveiled on Sunday, Trump criticized Zuckerberg for making it easier for immigrants to get jobs at the high-tech firms, thus creating more unemployment problems for Americans.
H-1B visas not in favor of Americans
The Facebook CEO is in favor of a more liberal immigration policy, and to make more H-1B visas available to tech employers to hire foreign-skilled workers. On the other hand, Trump is in favor of offering tech jobs to unemployed Americans first than to the workers with H-1B visas. He also wants to make H-1B visas much more expensive for employers, thus discouraging companies to recruit H-1B workers.
In his immigration plan, Trump said his proposed plan will improve job opportunities for black, Hispanic and female workers who have been neglected by the Silicon Valley firms in favor of the H-1B program. “Mark Zuckerberg’s personal Senator, Marco Rubio, has a bill to triple H-1Bs that would decimate women and minorities,” said Trump.
Trump notes that America produce two times more graduates with STEM degrees each year “than find STEM jobs,” and still around two-thirds of the entry-level IT jobs is filled through the H-1B program.
Facebook CEO in favor of liberal immigration policy
Rubio, who is also seeking the Republican nomination for president, introduced the Immigration Innovation bill I-Squared asking for an increase in the number of on H-1B visas from 65,000 to 115,000. Rubio enjoys the support of Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Sen. Orrin Hatch, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Sen. Jeff Flake and Sen. Chris Coons.
The Facebook CEO, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer have come together to form Fwd.us, which lobbies for raising the cap on the H-1B visas. “The more smart people make it to the USA, the group says, the more jobs will be created for Americans,” the group argues.
Ron Hira, a Howard University public policy professor, discusses the real reason tech firms like Facebook are in favor of an increase in H-1B visas . “I don’t think you should eliminate the H1-B program. The problem is it’s being abused and it’s a source of very cheap labor,” Hira told CNN.