university outsourcing technology workers tech foreign proposed

Not Everyone in Tech Cheers Visa Program for Foreign WorkersWhile it remains to be seen what Mr. Trump will do, various members ofCongress have proposed measures to change the H-1B system. One idea is toraise the $60,000-salary threshold for some H-1B workers to $100,000 or more.The hope is that this will narrow the gap between the standard pay for anAmerican tech worker and that of a foreign worker.Another proposed measure is to change the current first-come, first-servedlottery system that is benefiting outsourcing firms. Yet another idea is for asalary bidding system, in which companies bid on what they would be willing topay an applicant, potentially making it more difficult to flood the applicantpool with lower-cost workers.According to the University of California, San Francisco, technology costs torun U.C.S.F. Health, which encompasses the university’s hospital, medicalcenter and patient care facilities, have tripled from 2011 to 2016.Outsourcing technology jobs will save the university more than $30 millionover the next five years.But this argument has not spared the university from criticism for outsourcingthe jobs because — as a public institution — it receives taxpayer funds and isa nonprofit organization.The university said neither it nor HCL would replace the laid-off employeeswith H-1B workers, although it acknowledges that HCL brought in some H-1Bworkers initially to understand the institution’s technology needs. Thoseworkers, U.C.S.F. said, are no longer working on the account.Mr. Tan, 55, said he was not worried about returning to the job market in afew weeks and understood why the university took such measures. However, he isconcerned about what his children will do when they start looking for work.“Today it’s me, but tomorrow it’s going to be a doctor or an engineer,” hesaid. “At what point do you draw the line?”