changes to the programme for highly skilled foreign workers that has come under scrutiny by the administration, according to a White House official. The signing could come as early as Friday, the official said. The official was granted anonymity to speak in advance of the proclamation signing. The proposed proclamation was first reported by Bloomberg News. H-1B visas are meant to bring the best and brightest foreigners for high-skilled jobs that tech companies find difficult to fill with qualified US citizens and permanent residents. The programme instead has turned into a pipeline for overseas workers who are often willing to work for as little as US$60,000 annually. That is far less than US$100,000-plus salaries typically paid to US technology workers.

The programme was created in 1990 for people with a bachelor’s degree or higher in fields where jobs are deemed hard to fill, especially science, technology, engineering and math. Critics say they allow companies to pay lower wages with fewer labour protections. Historically, these visas – 85,000 per year – have been doled out through a lottery system. This year, Amazon was by far the top recipient of H-1B visas with more than 10,000 awarded, followed by Tata Consultancy, Microsoft, Apple and Google. Geographically, California has the highest number of H-1B workers, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services. (Jamaica Gleaner)