(Bloomberg, Washington) While the U.S. government is making it more difficult for companies to attract foreign skilled workers through the visa system, President Trump emphasized that the U.S. still needs skilled talent from overseas.
Bloomberg reported that during a Fox News program aired on Tuesday (November 11), Trump was asked by the host whether he would reduce his focus on H-1B visas, arguing that visa issues would make it harder to achieve the goal of raising wages for American workers. However, Trump countered that the U.S. still needs to bring in talent.
Trump also said, "You can't say a country is going to invest $10 billion (about S$13 billion) to build a factory, and then bring in unemployed people who haven't worked for five years and have them start making missiles. It's not like that."
Regarding the September 4th raid by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on a Hyundai-LG battery plant in Georgia, arresting hundreds of South Korean workers, Trump said, "They (ICE) raided the factory because they wanted to catch illegal immigrants. They (the companies) employed some South Korean workers who had spent their entire lives making batteries. You know, making batteries is very complex, not easy, and very dangerous. Explosions happen frequently, there are many problems."
He previously emphasized that the U.S. still welcomes investment from South Korea and said he would develop a "completely new plan" to ensure that highly skilled workers can come to the U.S. to help set up factories.
Further Reading
The H-1B visa allows major U.S. tech companies and corporations to hire foreign professionals, such as scientists, engineers, and computer programmers.
However, on September 19, Trump announced that the cost for companies to sponsor H-1B visas for their employees would increase from approximately $1,000 to $100,000. This not only impacts the ability of U.S. high-tech companies to attract talent but may also cause skilled workers to relocate to other countries.
This new policy has also prompted the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to file a lawsuit against the government, highlighting the conflict between the U.S. business community and Trump's immigration policies.
