[ColdTakes]

It is not about wage suppression. It is about obedience. An H-1B visa is the biggest chance for upward mobility people from less wealthy countries will get. Listen to whatever we tell you to do, work however many hours we tell you to work, or get fired and sent back to your own country.

[foogazi]

Maybe with the lottery, because getting another one is subject to luck. But H1Bs are transferable - why wouldn’t companies shut out of the lottery hire away another companies H1Bs ?

[ColdTakes]

The company hiring an H-1B has to plenty of fees, needs authorizations, and then needs to submit a lot of documentation to the Immigration service for processing that can take 3 months and still get denied. Many companies just say they won't transfer H-1Bs rather than deal with the trouble.

[foogazi]

How is that different than requesting H1B in the lottery?

I've transferred H1B before, lawyers know what they are doing, if someone already has one it's less risk

[slt2021]

I would argue its about improving labor productivity. What you are saying is American corporations want labor with higher productivity and even willing pay more for more productive labor (by paying immigration costs).

Thats why SWE salaries overall increased and H1Bs are making the same salaries as citizens, because of higher competition leading to higher productivity.

Importing foreign workers (and culling bottom 10% via forcing curve/pip) forces average labor productivity to increase

[ColdTakes]

I'm sure people are very productive when they have a metaphorical gun to the head.

[bdangubic]

all of that AND wage suppression :)