Are you an American with expertise in computer programming, engineering or business analytics? If so, you probably have a good job, because employers gobble up all the high-tech talent they can find. In fact, there’s a shortage of qualified candidates for many specialized fields, which hampers American enterprises. That’s why the U.S. government allows companies to hire high-skilled foreign workers through the H-1B visa program.
It’s the opposite of the America First sloganeering President Donald Trump often favors. But we’re glad to see that as the president considers immigration changes, including ridiculous ideas like getting Mexico to pay for a big wall, he isn’t pushing to eliminate H-1B visas. He said while visiting Kenosha, Wis., last week that he wants to keep the foreign talent pipeline open while making some fixes that should help more Americans get into these professions. That seems like a good, balanced approach.
Most jobs in the U.S. are available only to legal residents, of course, but the H-1B program provides 85,000 visas a year to skilled foreigners in tech and other specialties. These visas are intended for use by employers when they can’t find a qualified U.S. worker to hire. Ideally, the American education system would churn out enough qualified graduates in the science-technology-engineering-math realm to fill every possible job slot. Why that’s not the case is a conversation for another day. But even if it were so, there’s reason to give employers opportunities to hire a certain number of exceptional foreigners who bring unique abilities to the table. Many are graduates of American universities and should be encouraged to stay and contribute to the U.S. economy instead of taking their talents home to Shanghai or Mumbai.