Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Oct 9: US Vice President JD Vance has accused major technology companies of misusing the H-1B visa programme to replace American employees with lower-paid foreign workers, alleging that the practice allows firms to reduce labour costs while laying off domestic workers.
Vance claimed that H-1B visa holders earn around USD 20,000 less than American citizens in comparable positions, while workers brought in through foreign outsourcing firms earn approximately USD 48,000 less.
“So I’m sure that everybody here understands the game that is being played,” Vance said. “You bring in indentured servants from outside the country, you lay off American workers and, if you’re a corporation, you make a ton of money by undercutting the wages of American workers.”
Vance specifically criticised Microsoft, citing its workforce reductions in 2025. He claimed the company had laid off around 6,000 American workers while continuing to receive thousands of H-1B visa approvals and filing applications for permanent residency.
The Trump administration has also taken action against several technology companies, including Microsoft, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, Cognizant, HCL Technologies, Capgemini and Adobe, suspending them from the employment-based green card programme amid allegations of misuse.
Vance’s remarks have triggered debate on social media, with users divided over his description of foreign workers as “indentured servants” and whether restrictions on the programme would protect American jobs or affect the technology sector.
Shobhit Mathur, co-founder and vice-chancellor of Rishihood University, defended the contribution of H-1B workers, citing his experience at Amazon. He said he had joined the company on an H-1B visa when it was operating at a loss and was part of the initial team that helped build Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Mathur said AWS now contributes more than 60 per cent of Amazon’s profits and argued that foreign skilled workers had played an important role in the company’s growth.
“There were about a hundred H-1B visa holders like me in the initial team of Amazon. Good luck building companies and wealth without these ‘indentured servants,’” he said.
Other social media users expressed support for stricter oversight of the programme, arguing that H-1B visas can benefit the US economy but should be monitored to prevent alleged misuse. Some called for broader scrutiny of outsourcing firms and other employment-based immigration routes, while others demanded the programme be ended.
The debate highlights the continuing disagreement over the role of skilled foreign workers in the US technology industry, with supporters pointing to their contribution to innovation and business growth and critics raising concerns about wages and employment opportunities for American workers.
The allegations against the companies and the claims regarding wage differences have not been independently verified in the material cited.