Speech #1100038439

In short. they can go to our global competitors and work there and take the jobs that could be created here in America with them. This SKIL bill has important protections for American workers. and I hope my colleagues will listen to this because there is. frankly. a lot of misconception about foreign students and foreign workers coming here and taking American jobs at a lower wage. In fact. hightech visas generate fees to pay for U.S. worker training programs. Every time an employer sponsors a foreign worker. that employer must contribute to a fund to train U.S. workers. Of course. under our law. they cannot be hired to come in and work at a lower wage than would have to be paid to a comparable U.S. worker. Immigrant professionals actually create jobs here in the United States. The founder of Intel is a prime example. He was an immigrant from Hungary and has created hundreds of thousands of jobs at his company here in America. So sound policy will start by retaining foreign students who are educated here in the United States. particularly in the most sought after areas of math. science. and engineering. We should exempt from the annual visa limit any foreign student who graduates from a U.S. university with a masters degree or a Ph.D. degree in these essential fields. It is simply a matter of economic survival and competition for the United States. Also. insourcing talented workers. as I pointed out. is preferable to outsourcing those jobs and the associated economic activity that goes with it to other countries. We should make it easier for those who do comply with our immigration laws to travel in and out of our country as well. We must also attract the best and brightest who are working in other countries to come here and do their work in the United States so those jobs can stay here. In the long run. we have to improve our schools and encourage more U.S. students to study engineering and mathematics. and the America COMPETES Act. as it is currently written. does just that. But in the short term. we have to adapt our immigration policy so when those U.S. students are educated in engineering fields. there will be jobs right here in the United States for them to perform. Then we can reap the benefits of the most outstanding college and university education in the world. which students travel from all around the world in order to be able to obtain. and then that they not have to go home after they graduate from college if they are in the essential fields of math. science. and engineering. If we do not act. Americas technology industry. its health care industry. higher education. research institutions. financial services industries will be harmed and our economy will suffer. The intersection of our immigration policy and our countrys ability to compete for global talent is critical. and we cannot wait years to address this issue. It is imperative we address it as soon as possible.