Immigration, Small Law Firms

We Need A Low-Skilled Work Visa To Help Reboot The Economy

While this lack of ‘low-skilled’ workers has always been an issue, it is exacerbated by the pandemic.

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America has an alphabet-long list of visas, all of which were set decades ago and likely were fitting and appropriate in their time. But as the world grew into a more connected global collective, these visas did not. Now more than ever, what is desperately needed but missing in this long list of visas is a general low-skilled visa program, one that would fill a growing and critical worker shortage we are faced with in this country.

As a business immigration attorney, I have the privilege of helping not just high-skilled immigrant workers but the businesses and business owners who employ them. I get to hear the joy in their success stories but also the woes from the effects of an economic downturn. These days, most of the calls I get
are about the problems. Here are some examples:

Client A owns several fast-food restaurants, including a Denny’s and a Papa John’s Pizza, as well as a construction company and two other service-oriented businesses. Since the COVID-19 pandemic started last year, his businesses have suffered immense loss. All of them.

Now, as the economy is opening back up and people are returning for service and dining, he faces a different problem: a crippling worker shortage. He called me last week to say he had customers lined up in front of his restaurants but had to turn them away because he didn’t have enough staff to serve them.

Clients have told me that despite continuously advertising for workers, there have been few to no applicants. And among those who do apply, they say, many fail to show up for interviews. Client A is operating on a limited-hours schedule and even that is a struggle. He’s losing thousands of dollars daily,
and he’s not sure if he’ll be forced to permanently shut his businesses. Client A and the challenges he’s facing represent just one example of many businesses in the hospitality industry.

And then there’s Client B, who owns a home health care business. He serves elderly people who need 24-hour supervision and assurance of nourishing meals, hands-on care, and who have medical plans that will be strictly and carefully followed. Even before the pandemic Client B had trouble finding home health care workers to fill jobs. These positions require some medical training, preferably nurses, and it has always been a challenge to find such skilled workers. Now, in the midst of a pandemic, it has become practically impossible to find workers in this industry that plays such a vital role in our society. Client B is an example of care homes across the country that are struggling to find the workers they desperately need.

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Client C owns a construction company and has not been able to fulfill staffing needs for some time. When we last spoke, about two months ago, she told me that despite offering $65 per hour she cannot find people who “know the right side of a saw” and will stay in the job. This client, too, is an example of
what is happening in the construction industry.

All these clients and businesses have at least one thing in common — they need workers who are able, willing, and have skills in their respective industries. Since they cannot find workers here in the U.S., many have been looking outside the country. Client A was looking for workers in South Asia, Client B was looking in the Philippines, and Client C was looking in the Caribbean. And while they found people they wanted to recruit, the U.S. does not have a “low-skilled” visa category that would allow them to bring those workers here.

Among the alphabet soup of visas is the H-2A and H-2B guest worker programs, which are limited in their usage. H-2A is specifically for the agriculture industry, and H-2B is for seasonal, intermittent, or
one-time work. Additionally, there is a limited quota that does not satisfy demand. But ultimately, none of these clients would benefit from the H-2 visa because their circumstances do not fit the visas’ requirements.

While this lack of “low-skilled” workers has always been an issue, it is exacerbated by the pandemic.

One solution is to create a simpler, lesser-skilled, nonseasonal work visa program, such as the one proposed in the comprehensive immigration reform bill of 2013. The W-visa had the endorsement of American labor unions, which at the time said the visa “will be created for employers to petition for foreign workers in lesser-skilled, nonseasonal nonagricultural occupations, which include occupations in hospitality, janitorial, retail and others.”

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Why is this important now? The American economy is hurting. Despite millions of people out of work, my clients simply cannot find workers to fill their jobs. That can only mean American workers don’t want these jobs. Home health care businesses unable to get adequate staffing are then unable to
provide a vital service to American patients. My 75-year-old client, struggling to look after his disabled 70-year-old wife, who is suffering from late-stage dementia, is an example of why home health care workers are so desperately needed.

To get our economy back on its feet, we need to use all the resources we can. As Congress considers immigration reform, this visa category must be a top issue for them. Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy. Helping them recruit immigrant workers who are willing, able, and grateful for the opportunity is a win for everyone. Let’s recognize and utilize immigration as a tool for economic growth at a time when America needs it most.

Tahmina Watson is the founding attorney of Watson Immigration Law in Seattle, where she practices US immigration law focusing on business immigration. She has been blogging about immigration law since 2008 and has written numerous articles in many publications. She is the author of Legal Heroes in the Trump Era: Be Inspired. Expand Your Impact. Change the World and The Startup Visa: Key to Job Growth and Economic Prosperity in America.  She is also the founder of The Washington Immigrant Defense Network (WIDEN), which funds and facilitates legal representation in the immigration courtroom, and co-founder of Airport Lawyers, which provided critical services during the early travel bans. Tahmina is regularly quoted in the media and is the host of the podcast Tahmina Talks Immigration. She was recently honored by the Puget Sound Business Journal as one of the 2020 Women of Influence. You can reach her by email at tahmina@watsonimmigrationlaw.com or follow her on Twitter at @tahminawatson

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