Washington: Microsoft defended its use of H-1B visas, saying 80 per cent of its approximately 6,000 applications last fiscal year involved existing employees rather than new hires, as the Trump administration suspended the company’s ability to sponsor foreign workers through a key employment-based green-card programme.
The technology giant said its H-1B applications were primarily intended to extend or change the immigration status of employees already working for the company.
The statement came after the administration moved to suspend Microsoft from the Permanent Labour Certification programme, commonly known as PERM, which employers use as an initial step towards obtaining employment-based permanent residency for foreign workers.
“We believe in the strength and talent of the American workforce. That is why the vast majority of Microsoft employees in the United States are Americans,” the company said in a statement posted on its corporate website.
Microsoft said it wanted to provide the administration with additional information about its hiring practices.
“We look forward to providing the Administration with additional information,” the company said.
It said approximately 80 per cent of the 6,000 H-1B applications submitted during the last fiscal year were intended to extend or change the status of existing employees.
“These were not to hire new people,” Microsoft said.
The company said the remaining applications involved people already legally present in the United States who had decided to join Microsoft.
Those applications accounted for only 1 per cent of its American workforce, it said.
“They are not new arrivals to our country,” Microsoft said.
The company also defended its wage practices, rejecting suggestions that H-1B employees were being used to undercut American workers.
“Microsoft only files H-1B petitions for those who meet the rigorous standards of this visa category,” it said.
“We pay our H-1B employees the same as any other employees doing comparable work.”
Microsoft said its success depended on maintaining a strong technology workforce by developing domestic talent and attracting highly skilled professionals from around the world.
The company’s response comes amid increased scrutiny of the H-1B programme, which allows American employers to hire foreign professionals in specialised occupations.
The administration has argued that stronger enforcement is needed to prevent abuse of employment-based immigration programmes and protect American workers.
Microsoft’s statement did not address the specific legal grounds for its suspension from the PERM programme or indicate how long the restrictions might remain in place.
It also did not disclose the number of employees whose pending or future permanent residency applications could be affected.
The suspension concerns the employer’s ability to use the labour certification process. It does not, by itself, revoke existing H-1B visas or require employees to leave the United States.
PERM is administered by the US Department of Labour and is generally required for employers seeking certain employment-based immigrant visas for foreign workers.
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