US says it need H-1B visas to remain `competitive'

After the Congress voted in February to limit the use of the popular H-1B visas by American companies getting the benefits of government bailout package, the Obama administration now informed a court that the country needs H-1 B visas to avoid ''competitive disadvantage''.

In a submission indicating the government's stand on H-1 B visas, in response to a lawsuit filed by a group of three US bodies, acting assistant attorney general Michael F Hertz informed the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia that the US needs the scheme to avoid "competitive disadvantage" the American companies could face otherwise.

''The inability of US employers, particularly in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, to obtain H-1B status for highly skilled foreign students and foreign non-immigrant workers has adversely affected the ability of US employers to recruit and retain skilled workers and creates a competitive disadvantage for US companies," the US government said in its submission.

America currently tops the overall ranking in the global competitiveness ranking of the World Economic Forum (WEF). Switzerland is in second position followed by Denmark, Sweden and Singapore. European economies continue to prevail in the top 10 with Finland, Germany and the Netherlands following suit. The United Kingdom, while remaining very competitive, has dropped by three places and out of the top 10, mainly attributable to a weakening of its financial markets.

The H-1B visas are popular among Indian professionals and the government's decision to extend the duration of foreign nationals with engineering, science and other technical degrees who can work in the US on student visas from one year to 29 months was recently challenged in a New Jersey court.

The decision to extend the duration of the H-1B visas, a policy decision taken by the previous Bush administration, was challenged in a lower court in New Jersey last year and was summarily dismissed. The petitioners then approached the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia last month.

The H-1B visa policy has been severely criticised in the US media after Congress voted in February to limit the use of these H-1B visas by financial firms getting taxpayer bailout money. The Washington Post called the provision "antithetical to innovation and domestic prosperity." The Wall Street Journal criticized the move in an editorial headlined "Turning Away Talent." The New York Timescolumnist Thomas Friedman simply called it "S-T-U-P-I-D."