[time-nuts] new paper on Allan Variance errors

[SAIDJACK at aol.com]

In a message dated 6/15/2007 06:06:41 Pacific Daylight Time,  
cfharris at erols.com writes:


>You were (are?) not here on an H1B visa, so I guess I don't  understand why 
you
>feel threatened.

>H1B visa's were made  specifically to address a shortage of doctors and 
engineers
>who are  willing to work for obscenely low wages.  They have had the result  
of
>permanently unemploying (or under-employing) tens of thousands of  engineers 
and
>programmers.   Folks who did exactly what they  were supposed to do: 
graduated
>college with technical degrees, set down  roots in their communities, and 
worked
>hard for their  employers.



Hi Chuck,
 
I know it's a touchy subject, and opinions vary wildly. The situation  
probably also depends on where in the US you are. It's also slightly off-topic  for 
this group... sorry.
 
My passport hails from the "mother country". So I was here for quite some  
time on F-1 and H1B. 23 years to be exact. Not my choice, the government made me 
 wait. I could have gotten immediate Permanent Residency or Citizenship if I 
was  seeking Asylum, or jumped the fence in Mexico, but Europe hardly 
qualifies for  asylum seekers.
 
In 1999-2001, Silicon Valley could not get enough folks to come and work  
here. The companies I was with during that time could not hire enough  engineers, 
because the market was just dry. Salaries for everyone I know in  Silicon 
Valley on H1B have been into the 6-Figures since the beginning of the  new 
century, sometimes significantly into the 6-Figures. Not sure where you can  get 
obscenely low wage engineers, I am a hiring manager here in Silicon Valley  today 
and gasp at the salaries I need to pay even to attract any kind of  talent.
 
Check out HotJobs.com for Silicon Valley to get an idea of what we need to  
pay these days for an engineer. It's about 2x what Architects are getting  paid!
 
During the boom, companies were literally fighting over any engineer just  to 
staff their projects. Huge bonuses were paid, such as free Porsche's as  
signing bonus etc.
 
It costs companies a lot more to hire H1B than local US citizens. First,  the 
company has to prove under the penalty of law that a comparable salary is  
offered, then usually companies pay moving expenses and lawyers expenses.  
Companies were championing like crazy on Capitol Hill to increase the H1B quota,  
for every engineer they could hire meant Millions of $$ when going to IPO. You  
can only get an H1B if you have special skills, and get paid exactly what or  
more than a US citizen would get paid. I have yet to find an H1B that is  
underpaid for what they do when compared to their immediate US colleagues.
 
What's the reason it's so hard to find good US engineers here? Well, one  
example may be that my public University Engineering school on the  east coast in 
the 90's had mostly foreigners studying engineering, the US  citizens were 
prevalent in the MBA programs because marketing pays better than  engineering. 
And of the folks in the program 95% were men. The industry, at  least here in 
Silicon Valley, mostly reflects that.
 
Should we talk about and try to change the reasons why  engineering programs 
are not as popular with US Citizens, and Women as  other programs? For sure.
 
So I am not sure why there is still a myth that H1B's are cheap labor, or  
that there are 10's of thousands of qualified unemployed engineers. In my  
experience it's just the opposite. I know many hiring managers that are looking  
for qualified engineers. Jobs for qualified folks are everywhere here - again  
look at HotJobs. Then again Silicon Valley is a unique place, and in other 
parts  of the country it may look different. 
 
BTW: there was just a study released that said that more than 30%  of all 
successful start-ups in Silicon Valley are run by Indian immigrants,  creating 
100's of thousands of new jobs, and helping make California the fifth  largest 
economy in the world. I for one would not want those guys to take  their assets 
and go back to India.
 
What would we do if Ebay where run out of the middle east where the founder  
is from?? Or if Sergey moves Google to Moscow?
 
These are my opinions, not my employers.
 
bye,
Said
 
 
 
 
 



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