New York: The Trump administration has launched about 175 investigations into H-1B visa abuse, including lapses such as low wages, non-existent work sites and the practice of “benching” employees.
According to the US Department of Labour, the probes were part of a broader effort for the protection of American jobs.
“As part of our mission to protect American Jobs, we’ve launched 175 investigations into H-1B abuse,” the Labour Department said in a post X Friday.
It added that under the leadership of President Donald Trump and Labour Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, the agency will continue taking action to put American workers first.
Chavez-DeRemer said in a post on X that the Labour Department “is using every resource at our disposal to put a stop to H-1B abuse and protect American Jobs. Under the leadership of @POTUS, we’ll continue to invest in our workforce and ensure high-skilled job opportunities go to American Workers FIRST!”
The Trump administration has launched a massive crackdown to check abuse in the H-1B visa programme, which is used by companies, particularly technology firms, to employ foreign workers in the US.
Indian professionals, including technology workers and physicians, are among the largest cohort of H1B visa holders.
A report in Fox News said that the Department of Labour could not provide details on the specifics of the 175 current investigations, “which account for over USD 15 million in calculated back wages to workers.”
The federal department however, said that it has “uncovered a bounty of concerns”, with investigations finding that some foreign workers with advanced degrees are paid far less than what is promoted in a job description.
The Labour Department said this practice drives down wages for visa-holders as well as American workers, while also forcing American employees with the same qualification to accept lower wages to stay competitive, the Fox News report said.
It added that investigations also found instances of employers not notifying the US Citizenship and Immigration Services when an H-1B visa holder was terminated.
It also found significant lag times between a termination and an employer notifying the agency, the news report added.
In some instances, investigators found that work sites listed on documents did not exist, or that workers were unaware of the jobs they were supposedly assigned to perform as laid out in their permits and applications.
“Other investigations found some employees took part in ‘benching’, which is when H-1B visa holders are not paid anything when they are in-between active work projects,” the Fox News report said.
In September this year, Trump issued a Proclamation titled ‘Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers’ as an important initial step to reform the H-1B nonimmigrant visa programme.
Under the Proclamation, certain H-1B petitions filed after September 21, 2025, must be accompanied by an additional USD 100,000 payment as a condition of eligibility.
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