Country Of Dreams? Massive Layoffs & Work Visa Expiration Drive Indian IT Professionals In USA On Desperate Search For Jobs

The recession and layoffs are taking a toll on many people worldwide, but the people working in a foreign land under work visas have taken the worst hit. Along with a bleak future in the foreign country they've worked hard to move to, they now also have to face an indefinite career back in their homeland. In light of the massive layoffs, many workers, especially Information Technology (IT) professionals, are now desperately scrambling for job options to help them stay in the country. Adding to the miseries of Indian IT professionals working in America, many high-end companies, such as Google, have decided to pause Green Card processing. The Green Card - a proof of permanent residence, is one of the documents that many Indians have worked to acquire as it provides security as opposed to the non-immigrant H-1B work visa.

More Than 80,000 Scrambling For Job Security

Thousands of Indian IT professionals have been left in the dark following the series of recent layoffs at companies like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft. Losing their jobs also came along with an indefinite future, especially for H-1B visa holders who would have to secure another job and transfer their visa within 60 days of termination or stand at the risk of having to leave the country. Once their stipulated period under their work visas is over, they might have to return to their homeland, which has also been laying off thousands of IT workers.

According to multiple reports, nearly 2,00,000 IT workers have been laid off since November 2022, including some record numbers of layoffs by companies like Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Amazon. At the time, many employees who had dedicated years of hard work to the companies took to Twitter and LinkedIn in a desperate lookout for opportunities. In the United States of America (USA), about 30 to 40 per cent of the professionals who were laid off were Indians, a significant number of whom are on H-1B and L1 visas.

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that enables US companies to employ foreign workers in specific occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Several technology-based companies have depended on these visas to outsource talents from countries like India and China each year. Meanwhile, the L-1A and L-1B visas are available for temporary intracompany transferees who work in managerial positions or have specialised knowledge.

Many Indian professionals who went to the USA under non-immigrant work visas like H-1B or L1 are now desperately seeking work options so that they would be able to stay in the foreign land for longer. Many among these professionals have spent lakhs and taken loans to be able to travel abroad and establish a career. Finding a new job within the stipulated few months is a challenge that is taking a toll on most of them.

60 Days Of Deadline And Despair

A report by New Indian Express quoted an Amazon staffer who had arrived in the states just three months ago. Earlier this week, she was informed that March 20 would be her last working day, and ever since, it has sent the employee on a panic search for alternate jobs. This is the case of many such H-1B visa holders who are to find a new job within 60 days or are left with no other option but to head back to India. For many, getting a job within such a short notice seems next to impossible. Another IT professional, Sita (name changed), an H-1B visa holder laid off from Microsoft in January, conveyed the same woe and stated that it has not only put her job at stake but also the education of her son, who is currently preparing to get into college. As a single mother surviving in a foreign land under a work visa, the layoffs have taken a hard-hit on them.

Another Indian, who tech-giant Microsoft recently laid off, said that the circumstances have been particularly challenging and have had a devastating effect on immigrants. Most of them are left feeling lost in the foreign land. Speaking about the concerning situation, Khande Rao Kand from the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS) said that the layoffs have created a "huge disruption on the family lives and children's education etc on this tax-paying and contributing legal immigrant."

Helping Hands During Distressing Times

Adding on to their woes, companies like Google have held a pause on Green Card processing. This was done as the companies cannot be seen arguing before the USCIS to make a foreign IT professional a permanent resident soon after they have laid them off. Instead, as a respite, many are asking tech companies to redesign better support for the H-1B workers and retain a proportion of the highly skilled talent in the US.

Khande Rao Kand said, "January 2023 has been brutal for tech professionals. Many talented folks lost their jobs. As the tech industry is dominated by Indian immigrants, they are the highest to get impacted." Extending support to employees who have been laid off, the Global Indian Technology Professionals Association (GITPRO) and FIIDS launched a community-wide effort to help IT professionals by connecting them to job referrers and informers. FIIDS has also been working on the administrative front to influence policymakers and decision-makers of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

In such times of distress, the fired Indian IT workers have also formed various social media groups to connect and find solutions to their collective situation. One of the WhatsApp groups created by the laid-off professionals has more than 800 Indian IT workers who were left jobless in America. They have been collaborating and circulating among themselves regarding vacancies appearing in the country. Yet another group has been actively discussing the various visa options, along with some immigration attorneys who have volunteered to offer their consultancy services.

Also Read: Tech Layoffs: Over 24K Workers Laid Off By 91 Tech Firms In First 15 Days Of 2023; Worse Days Ahead?