Six in ten Americans believe the country does not need more foreign H-1B visa workers to fill white-collar jobs, according to a new survey.
The survey, by Rasmussen Reports, shows that 60% of Americans believe the US “already has enough talented people to train and recruit” for white-collar jobs. They were asked whether Congress should increase the inflow of foreign workers, mainly through the H-1B visa program.
Just 26% of respondents to the survey said Congress should increase the number of foreign white-collar workers.
Broken down by political allegiance, the figures show that 72% of Republicans and 63% of swing voters believe America already has enough suitable labor at home, but a near-majority of Democrats—47%—also agree.
The H-1B program has been a source of intense, often angry, debate in the last few days after Twitter and SpaceX owner Elon Musk suggested the US needs an expansion of legal immigration to fill critical jobs.
Response to Musk’s comments, and to comments made by Vivek Ramaswamy, Musk’s compatriot at the newly formed Department of Governmental Efficiency, have been furious on social media, with many accusing the billionaire of wanting to replace American workers with a cheaper, more compliant foreign workforce.
The debate has drawn attention to abuses of the H-1B system, and to the fact that there already exists an immigration pathway, the 0-1 visa, for candidates of exceptional quality.
During President Donald Trump’s first term, the H-1B visa system was reformed in an attempt to prevent companies firing American workers and replacing them with foreign workers; however, those reforms were reversed by President Joe Biden in 2022.
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