[thingylab]

That's a bit of an exaggeration. Many H1-Bs work in high-value industries and make a decent amount of money (I should know, I'm an H1-B holder). I don't think many of them consider themselves slaves.

The green card process for a H1-B is particularly annoying and restrictive though, as is the arbitrary time limit.

Not sure what you mean by "the H1-B visa employee is legally bound to the job". Sure, your company's name is printed on your visa but it is excessively easy to transfer to a new employer.

[potatolicious]

The H-1B becomes a whole lot more restrictive the moment you apply for a green card, since your transferability just vanished.

This is less of a problem for people from non-Indian and non-Chinese backgrounds, since the wait time is reasonably short. The priority dates for Indians and Chinese though make it such that once your green card is started you're stuck for literally years.

[refurb]

Once you've applied for a green card and the PERM and I-140 has been approved and your I-485 has been pending for 180 days, you do have portability. You can leave your current employer, but you must find another position that is substantially similar.

Labor certification and I-140 processing used to be painfully slow. I waited 3.5 years just for my labor certification. However, the new PERM process is much quicker, so you'd probably only have to wait 1 or 2 years to be eligible for portability.

[isb]

You can't file for an i-485 if your date is not current which is the case for folks from India/China. So there is no true portability.

[IvyMike]

I think you have never been laid off.

I know a few H1-B visa holders who were and I cannot imagine the stress they went through. Fortunately they all found jobs in time, although when you've got a time limit, you end up making some compromises.