Layoffs at major tech companies around the world are creating a flooded and volatile market. It’s a dangerous situation for new workers and mid-career professionals alike, and it’s causing problems for hundreds of thousands of foreign workers.(Opens in a new window) and visas. And, according to new figures reported, this could be taking a toll on one person: India’s IT workforce.
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It was reported by a financial website Minutesseveral “industry workers” estimate that between 30 and 40 percent of IT will be laid off.(Opens in a new window) temporary workers from India. Considering the global estimate of 200,000 IT workers directly affected by layoffs since November, this means that approximately 80,000 people are now faced with the task of finding permanent employment within 60 days before being forced to return to their countries of origin.
Most of these workers, including many technical workers from China(Opens in a new window), are on nonimmigrant worker visas such as the H-1B, a three-year temporary visa with the option to extend. In 2022, many tech workers and advocates opposed the current limits(Opens in a new window), and lack of oversight, for workers on visas like the H-1B, which they say are often used by employers who need them. This follows an industry uproar sparked by the administration’s 2017 decision to freeze H-1B visas.(Opens in a new window)and an executive order signed by former President Donald Trump that requires H-1B visas to be issued to high-wage and highly educated workers.(Opens in a new window), rather than a lottery. The Trump administration’s foreign policy decisions have confused women and their spouses(Opens in a new window)also,(Opens in a new window) and even sparking international protests in countries dependent on international job opportunities, such as India.
Now, at the same time layoffs wipe out this group of already accepted workers and job opportunities become rarer and rarer.(Opens in a new window), the demand for new H-1B visas has increased, especially in the technology sector. According to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, computer-related jobs account for about 70 percent.(Opens in a new window) of H-1B applicants in 2021. In 2023, the federal agency received 483,000 petitions, a 57 percent increase, according to Bloomberg Law(Opens in a new window). Visas are becoming more widely available, as the US government announced plans to increase fees for H-1B applicants.(Opens in a new window).
Workers dealing with the sudden withdrawal of their sources of income and migration have relied on networks of people in similar situations. Like Minutes report, others are seeking help through international organizations such as the Global Indian Technology Professionals Association (GITPRO) and the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS), or visa-related websites such as Go Zeno.(Opens in a new window). Others are looking for countless ways to find these important jobs, through Google Forms and job sites like LinkedIn(Opens in a new window), TIME It was announced in December. Although groups of laws(Opens in a new window) are stepping up to help workers search for visa-eligible work, as many seek alternative immigration options to the H-1B.(Opens in a new window).
The tech industry is no stranger to ethical debates about low-cost figures and their human costs, as recent cuts to tech workers coincide with other major concerns about employee retention. For example, the creation of the popular AI ChatGPT program for low-wage workers in Kenya is said to have exposed workers to cyberbullying and violence. Some workers, such as call center workers in countries such as India and the Philippines, face online harassment and even threats.(Opens in a new window) at work. And automation that goes as far as masking workers’ voices through robotic, “white noise” AI has helped revolutionize a booming industry that is now shedding more of its workforce.
But beyond the inhumane level of mass layoffs and business goals is the reality of those who are doing creative work – thousands of real people who are supporting real families with immediate needs, who now just want to protect their future.
