Senator Abraham thinks raising the H-1B cap on foreign high tech guest workers to 195,000 annually will maintain our countries' position of preeminence in science and technology. But will it? The local Grand Rapids Press makes it look like anyone opposed to another raise must be xenophobic. However there is a third view on the matter that deserves to be heard. Even though normally very conservative in employment matters most of the national professional organizations representing high tech workers in industry also oppose Abraham's American Competitiveness in the 21^st Century Act of 2000 (S.2045). These include our society, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (over 230,000 U.S. members), and the huge umbrella group, the American Association of Engineering Societies (AAES).

Do not confuse H-1B visa holders with Green Card holders. The former are simply guest workers. They are stuck with the company that brings them in and risk deportation if they quit for a better job. Only Green Card individuals are on the road to becoming U.S. citizens. It is barely two years since Senator Abraham nearly doubled the annual ceiling on H1-B visa from 65,000 to 115,000. Besides raising the annual limits on H-1B visas to 195,000, S.2045 would exempt all recent high tech MS or Ph.D. foreign graduates of U.S. colleges from these ceilings. Further only so called "H-1B Dependent" employers would need to attest that they are not displacing American high tech workers.

The AAES has joined IEEE in calling on Congress to defer consideration of any increase until the National Research Council can complete its congressionally mandated study on the high tech workforce this fall. In the studied opinion of the IEEE and AAES employer claims of a massive shortage of high tech workers, especially in the Information Technology area, are largely anecdotal and unsupported by credible analysis. Impartial experts, including the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Computing Research Association and the Congressional Research Service, have concluded that the evidence is insufficient to support claims that the nation faces a high tech worker shortages of crisis proportions. According to the recent IEEE Salary survey, engineering salaries have long lagged behind inflation and only recently slightly exceeded it, certainly not a sign of a massive shortage.

Consider what might happen with a huge numbers of H-1B holders in this country, given even a slight downturn in the economy. Modestly paid American engineers would then be forced to compete with individuals desperate to remain in this country. In turn, American college students would increasingly desert the study of engineering and science at the graduate level as they discover their hard course work leads only to an uncertain technical career. Already only a shockingly low percentage of American science and engineering students go on to advanced degrees in these majors, leaving that to the foreign students. When our students do pursue graduate education it is for an MBA or related degree. However simply having Americans serving as managers, while all the advanced research and development is being done by foreign guest workers, bodes ill for maintaining America's technical competitiveness.

Please consider writing your U.S. Congressmen urging them to hold on any further H-1B increases.

Dr. Ron Fredricks P.E., Consulting Electrical Engineer