Four US Senators have asked United States President Donald Trump to suspend all non-immigrant work permits for not less than a year or till employment levels come back to normal.
With this they have also asked for the suspension of the Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme which lets foreign students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) work in the United States for up to three years after graduating. In the year 2019, in excess of 223,000 people had their OPTs approved or extended.
Further they want the EB-5 investor visa program to be suspended.
“These suspensions are critical to protecting American workers as our economy gets back on its feet,” Republican Senators Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, Charles E Grassly and Tom Cotton wrote in a letter to Trump on Thursday.
Though, the Senators want rules to be eased to allow more doctors and nurses to come in to bridge a shortage of health professionals in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
As the Covid-19 pandemic cripples the American economy, about a fifth of the country’s total workforce – or 33 million Americans – have filed for unemployment benefits in the last seven weeks.Though in February, the unemployment in the United States was at an all-time low of 3.5%.
Donald Trump is seeking a second term in elections scheduled in November.
These senators also asked Trump to suspend all new guest-worker visas for a period of 60 days and further
suspend certain visa categories till unemployment reaches normal levels.
Indian tech workers would be the hardest hit if Trump accepts the proposal as Indian nationals account for
two-thirds of the H-1B visas issued each year.
Stopping the inflow of new H-1B visa holders would help protect those who are already in the US on such visas and their families in case they lose their jobs, the letter pointed out. In the event of losing a job, H1-B visa holders have to leave the country within 60 days.
