Support Needed for Immigration Reform (Last of a six-part series)

It is fairly certain that comprehensive immigration reform will occur before next year’s election. However, we are not sure whether the reform will include the changes we badly need in the immigration system.

What will be interesting to observe as the debate for immigration reform heats up is the political configuration of the ruling Republican party on this issue. At the opposite end of the Republican ultra-conservatives who want to adopt an enforcement-only approach to immigration reform are comprehensive reform Republican advocates like Senators Chuck Hagel and John McCain.

In between the ends of the immigration reform political spectrum is a wide swath of gray that could vote one way or the other—a window of opportunity for us who want to fix our broken system.

We need to grab every opportunity to influence our lawmakers to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill. According to a report by the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the House Judiciary Committee is expected to mark up an enforcement-only legislation in the week of December 5 and that there will be floor consideration by the full House the following week. An anti-immigrant legislation is something that America does not need right now.

Filipino American Concerns

The Filipino American community is among those hardest hit by the broken immigration system. The most recent visa bulletin indicates that family-based visa wait-time for the Philippines ranges from 4 to 22 years. There is something truly amiss with an immigration system that has kept thousands of Filipino American families apart simply because of visa backlogs.

In the meantime, America cannot deny that 11 million undocumented immigrants, of which more than a hundred thousand are Filipinos, have become an indispensable part of its social and economic life. Our immigration system must provide a mechanism for undocumented immigrants to legalize their status.

H-1B Visa Reform

Thousands of professionals and highly qualified Filipinos seek employment opportunities in the US because the Philippine economy cannot sustain them. These are hardworking, talented and motivated young Filipinos who are ready to make positive contributions to American society. At present, numerical limits on employment-based immigration and unnecessary requirements hamper their entry into America. As a result, we are losing this valuable human resource to our global competitors.

The most important case in point is the H-1B temporary visa program which is used by a lot of Filipino professionals. During the past three years that the annual cap has reverted to 65,000, H-1B visa numbers have been exhausted even before they became available for the succeeding fiscal year.

The H-1B program has proven to be extremely helpful to US employers who need to keep up with the demands of a global economy. Apart from filling job vacancies that the existing US workforce could not satisfy from time to time, the H-1B program enables US employers to take advantage of the special skills and knowledge of foreign professionals such as current trends or conditions of the international markets.

The H-1B visa program needs to be modified further. The 65,000 numerical limit simply does not meet the requirements of US employers who need to keep up with global competitors. It is not a simple matter of picking a number upwards of 65,000. There must be some room for flexibility as the demand for H-1Bs could change from year to year.

There is also a need to re-examine the additional fees for filing H-1Bs. Small US employers must not be prevented from having access to top foreign talents, which the training fee and anti-fraud fee under the H-1B Reform Act does at present. Such expense, in addition to the lengthy processing time practically discourages small US businesses from taking advantage of the H-1B program.

LULAC Class Members

To be considered a Newman (LULAC) class action member, the applicant must meet the Residency Requirement but his/her application was refused by the INS because s/he returned to the US from travel abroad with a visitor’s visa, student visa or any other type of visa or travel document, even if the applicant was otherwise eligible for legalization.

A person is also considered a Newman (LULAC) class action member if: (a) s/he (his/her parent or spouse) applied for employment permit under the Newman (LULAC) case; and (b) during the Application Period was turned away by the INS or its representative because s/he returned to the US from travel abroad with a visitor’s visa, student visa or any other type of visa or travel document, or was refused or unable to procure the legalization forms from the INS because of such travel; and (c) the applicant was otherwise qualified.

Better Rules for Foreign Nurses

The Philippines being a major source of health professionals like nurses, we would like to see reform in employment-based immigration rules.

We are well aware of the deteriorating situation in US healthcare facilities. Many hospitals and nursing homes all over the country are seriously understaffed, causing worries over the quality of healthcare in the country.

This situation is bound to worsen, if not addressed immediately, given the aging of current nursing workforce and with the baby-boom generation requiring medical attention as they approach their 60s. The Department of Labor has identified nursing as one of the top 5 growth occupations, further stating that the country will need over a million new and replacement nurses by 2012.