Staffing / Careers

Google loses H-1B visa sweepstakes

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 06:59:59 -0400

Apparently not even Google can always get its way, at least when it comes to hiring foreign nationals and having them stay in the U.S. Like so many others in the IT field, Google claims to be constrained by the congressionally-mandated yearly cap on H-1B visas, complaining publicly that 90 of its 300 H-1B applications were rejected in the recent government visa lottery. That's still a winning percentage, but not good enough for Google.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency held a lottery after receiving 163,000 applications for 85,000 visa slots. A disappointed Google spokesperson said some of the individuals who did not get visas can still work for the company in other countries, but added that "worker satisfaction is higher when employees can work in the location they prefer."

For more on Google's H-1B headaches:
- check out this Computerworld article

IT certifications losing value

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 06:59:58 -0400

There was a time when IT certifications were worth their weight in gold--evidence of special skills and a way to improve job security. No more. David Foote, a management consultant,tells eWeek there has been a loss of value in certifications because of the shift away from purely technical roles in IT departments.

"Certifications were created by vendors to sell products. Once people were trained, these companies ended up with all of these specialists out there that didn't work for them but advocated for them," said Foote. Today, he added, the hiring focus in IT is "less about pure technology and more about technology instinct, the ability to get stuff done and develop solutions that can be used down the road."

For more on the change in IT:
- check out this eWeek.com article

Getting around H-1B visas

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 06:59:59 -0400

A federal lawsuit has been filed in New Jersey charging the Bush administration with illegally making an end run around the current limits for the H1-B visa program. The Immigration Reform Law Institute, the Programmers Guild and others said the administration has improperly extended the time foreign nationals can work in the U.S. on student visas from one year to 29 months.

"They did this with absolutely no legal basis," said John Miano, founder of The Programmers Guild in Summit, N.J. The government's move has been supported by tech companies that have been pressing unsuccessfully to raise the H-1B visa caps so they can hire more foreign workers. Opponents say the H-1B program and new new student visa extension hurt U.S. workers.

For more on this incendiary debate:
- check out this ComputerWorld.com article

Ten worst entry IT jobs

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

It may sound grand to work for Google, Amazon, Facebook, Yahoo or other well-known companies, but there are many first-time jobs in the IT field that are not as glamorous as they sound.

Valleywag, a tech gossip blog, has compiled a list of what it calls Tech's 10 worst entry-level jobs. The company job descriptions are intriguing at first glance and may help build a resume, but the reality for bright young tech hopefuls getting these entry level positions may be sitting day-in and day-out in a windowless cubicle creating more efficient text ads or taking phone calls from angry customers.

To read what's on the worst job list:
- see this valleywag.com article

For more tech stories from the FierceCIO network:
> Microsoft's multitouch technology. Article
> Open-source code defects declining. Article
> AT&T offers free Wi-Fi to some customers. Article

Congress seeks alternative to H-1B visas

Thu, 22 May 2008 06:59:59 -0400

Microsoft Corp. has about 4,000 employees for whom it is trying to gain permanent residency, a dilemma shared by many hi-tech companies. Responding to the industry's cry for help, a California congresswoman has proposed increases in the foreign-born workforce through expansion of the green card employment-based visa program.

There appears to be little likelihood of any immigration legislation getting through Congress in this election year, including raising the H-1B cap. But Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), head of a House Judiciary immigration subcommittee, is setting the stage for future debates with the recent introduction of three bills. Lofgren's most recent bill would exempt graduates of U.S. universities with advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics from the annual 140,000 limit on permanent residency visas.

She also wants to eliminate the per-country caps on employment-based visas, and allow any unused employment-based green cards to be rolled over for reuse in a subsequent year.

To read about the green card debate:
- check out this CIO.com article

Job market gets tougher for new tech grads

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 06:59:59 -0400

Don't be surprised if it gets harder for new IT graduates to get a job. Advanced Micro Devices announced last week that it was slashing 10 percent of its workforce. Dell is in the process of laying off at least 8,500 employees. All this comes as the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that unemployment rate nationwide rose to 5.1 percent in March, up from 4.8 percent for the previous month. While there is much talk about shortages of qualified IT workers, the news of cutbacks counters many of the demands for more qualified workers.

"The really motivated people won't have problems, but the challenge in the millennial generation is that there are a lot out there that didn't spend time on internships, didn't get work experience before graduation or are more lackluster in their desire to work. They're going to have a lot of trouble entering the work force," Rich Milgram, CEO of Beyond.com, a recruiting Web site, told eWeek. Other experts predict any downturn will be temporary, even for the young college graduate with a computer science or engineering degree burning a hole in his or her pocket.

For more on the IT job market:
- See this eWeek article

A look at last year's H-1B visas

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 07:59:59 -0400

We're still waiting to hear about this year's outcome for the H-1B visa application process which opened on April 1. In the meantime, InformationWeek analyzed last year's visa application process and came up with some interesting conclusions that provide some insights. Among the top 10 companies having H-1B visa petitions approved by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in fiscal year 2007, eight were Indian companies. The other two were Microsoft and Intel. Those 10 companies had 12,876 H-1B visa petitions approved. The total last year was 85,000, the same number available this year. Are you an IT executive trying to get foreign employees approved to work in the United States? We'd be interested in hearing what the real employment market looks like in your world, and if this constant scramble is really necessary to find the talent you need to do the job.

For more on foreign IT workers:
- See this InformationWeek article

How to dodge the H-1B visa scramble

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:59 -0400

While the fight continues over H-1B visas, some companies have been tapping into another kind of visa to get approval for foreign IT workers in the United States. They're called L-1 visas and they are non-immigrant visas that allow companies operating in both the United States and overseas to transfer certain classes of employees into the United States for up to seven years. The L-1A visa is a bit restrictive, however. It is for managers and executives, or for employees with specialized knowledge that cannot be found in the U.S.

"One regulation is that you'd have to have worked for the company outside the U.S. for at least a year - this will not help people right out of school," Robert Meltzer, an immigration attorney and CEO of VISANOW, an online immigration processing company, told eWeek. It's going to be an interesting week in the race for visas. On Tuesday, April 1, the application process will open for this year's 85,000 H-1B visas. If the past predicts the future, there will be such a flood of applications that it will close out by the end of the day. And the debate continues to rage in Congress, on the presidential campaign trail and at tech companies in need of qualified workers.

For more on the race for worker visas:
- Check out this eWeek article

Time for IT to step up to the plate

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:00:00 -0400

It is a travesty that the latest government statistics show a drop in the number of African-American IT workers, a group that has long been underrepresented in the IT workforce. At a time when the industry is growing, the employment numbers should be increasing, not decreasing. In our ever-changing and diverse society, a declining number of African Americans in the field is unacceptable. It is time for IT leaders to step up to the plate, reach out, and engage in on the job training programs and better recruitment policies to reverse the current trend. Universities should also be encouraged by the IT sector to offer more scholarships to attract African-Americans interested in information technology. For a such an innovative industry, these statistics are certainly disturbing. -Judi

P.S. Don't miss our exclusive interview with Microsoft's Exchange Group on the topic of the iPhone in the enterprise!

Fewer African Americans in IT

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 07:59:59 -0400

A conference in Winston-Salem, N.C., today underscores the increasing shortages of African-Americans in the information technology industry. The event, sponsored by the Information Technology Senior Management Forum, will feature discussions between senior IT managers and students from the University's computer science department. It comes at a time when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released statistics showing that the percentage of employed African-Americans in IT managerial and staff professional positions declined by 26 percent over the past seven years. The statistics also show that the numbers of white professionals in IT jobs rose by 2.3 percent and by 17 percent among Asian Americans.

For more on African Americans in IT:
- See this Business Journal article