CNN Interview with Donna Conroy, Director
Cook County Urges H1-B Reform
One of the largest county governments in the nation voted on Tuesday to open the H-1B visa-hiring program to US citizens and legal residents – in opposition to 13 governors who earlier this week urged Congress to expand the program, without ever requiring employers to seek local talent for top-dollar, white-collar jobs. more...
::: BFJ In Print :::
NYT:"Court Orders Three H1-B Sites Disabled," Dec. 29, 2009 The routine intimidation of Indian tech workers has now been directed at American tech workers who wouldn't snitch on an Indian tech worker, threatening all Americans' free speech on the Internet.
New Jersey and Free Speech: "The action has labor rights activists, free speech activists, and even some beneficiaries of the H1-B visa program united in voicing opposition to the court decision," according to an editorial in the Oakland Journal, a local New Jersey paper.
Businessweek:"Jobs and Protectionism in the Stimulus Package," February 16, 2009 Critics of the H-1B program hailed the inclusion of the amendment as a victory. "The demand to reform corporate recruiting policies that ignore highly skilled local talent now moves center stage," says Donna Conroy, director of Brightfuturejobs.com, a lobbying group for visa reform.
Businessweek: "H-1b Visa Season is Here", March 31, 2009: On Mar. 31, Bright Future Jobs, a U.S. tech worker lobbying group, posted on its Web site 13 advertisements for jobs in which the employer designated a preference for H-1B visa workers or targeted them specifically for the positions, according to the Web site.
Businessweek:"H-1B Visa Law: Trying Again", April 24.2009: U.S. tech worker advocates praised these and other provisions in the bill. "We're thrilled that Senators Durbin and Grassley are requiring employers to seek local talent first," says Donna Conroy, executive director of Bright Future Jobs, a lobbying group for U.S. tech workers. "They recognize that American IT professionals have the talent, knowhow, and experience to push America's economic recovery into high gear."
Businessweek: "An Academic's Labor Helps Fight H-1B Visas," June 28, 2009
Anti-H-1B activists say they're worried less about academic research and more about shaping policy. "The thing that's missing in Norm Matloff's strategy is fighting for a seat at the table," says Donna Conroy, executive director of Bright Future Jobs, a lobbying group that advocates restricting the H-1B visa program. "We need a political movement that allows us to help craft legislation. All the numbers [Matloff] crunches won't have nearly the impact as American technical professionals standing up for themselves."
CIO MAGAZINE: "H-1b Reform Bill Could Complicate Offshore Outsourcing,"
Many rank-and-file IT professionals laud the legislation. "The Durbin bill will put a stop to the outsourcing of American jobs and the discrimination against American IT professionals," says Donna Conroy, a former IT professional and director of Bright Future Jobs, a grassroots lobbying group for American IT workers. "This bill was written for us."
H-1B Reform Bill Could Complicate Offshore Outsourcing
sunglasses: In fact, many other reliable glasses makers have detected this opportunities and prompted some low end eye wear, placing the stones in those holes con...
Internal Documents Reveal Microsoft Strategy Behind Subsidy Bill
Internal documents on Washtech's blog reveal that the "Microsoft subsidy bill" (HR. 1487) is part of "Microsoft’s efforts to change state laws on immigration." In a misleading statement, Rep. Ross Hunter, sponsor of the bill, remarked to the Seattle Times that he was responding to a "bunch of people in my district" -- allowing readers to conclude that visa workers lobbied for such a benefit.
They did not. At an average salary of $92,000 in addition to generous benefits, these foreign citizens temporarily stationed at Microsoft had no such hand in shifting public funds to employees of Microsoft.
But Microsoft's lobbyists did - and even drafted the legislation, according to the documents. This "audacity of arrogance " is a callous disregard for the rule of law, fair play, and the democratic process. But it could not have occurred without the flawed judgment displayed by Ross Hunter.
Hunter has proven he can't be trusted with government funds. He's running for King County's Executive, a race he wants to win on August 18th. This race makes him vulnerable right now.
Can you use your power to defeat Microsoft's candidate by donating $14.87 to one of his opponents?
Don't promote Ross Hunter. He has proven that he will take a hacksaw to the ladder of opportunity that Washington state residents - with an average income of $42,000 - so desperately need to move into the middle-class: good schools and a college degree. Send $14.87 to one of his opponents (or all!) to make sure that he loses the race:
Ross Hunter has tied his wagon to this "audacity of arrogance." He fiddled with this private money-grab while he burned $1.5 billion off the state's education budget. Show him -- and his opponents -- that decisions like this will be met with defeat:
