The Garden State Immigration Policy Institute is hosting an online event exploring the future of the H-1B visa program, which provides businesses with highly skilled foreign-born employees who work primarily in tech services, consulting, finance, and STEM-related research.

The free March 24 webinar will feature opening remarks by Julie Gelatt, Associate Director of the Immigration Policy Program at the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., followed by two panel discussions on recent changes to the program and suggestions for the future.

Foreign-born H-1B visa holders temporarily fill labor shortages in industries where there are not enough qualified US-born workers to fill open positions. Any employer seeking to hire a foreign worker through the H-1B visa program must show it will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers.

Recent changes made to the H-1B program have impacted smaller businesses by raising the petition fee employers pay to $100,000 per applicant. Another change replaced the random lottery selection process with wage-based selection criteria that gives priority to more highly compensated applicants, who, because of their higher salaries, are more likely going to be working for larger corporations.

Go here to register for “The Future of H‑1B: Securing NJ’s High‑Skilled Workforce,” which will be held from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 24.

Other speakers and panelists participating in the...

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