At a time when Vice President JD Vance announced that he would like the H-1B visa program to be abolished, a few Republican leaders have proposed a new legislation to increase the salary threshold of the H-1B visa holders so that there is no scope for American companies to hire foreign employees at a cheaper rate. Congressman Glenn Grothman (R-WI) introduced the Protecting American Workers Through H-1B Modernization Act, which would close an outdated loophole that allows H-1B dependent employers to bypass certain American worker protections. Senator Jon Husted (R-OH) has introduced companion legislation in the Senate.“American workers should come first in their own country,” said Grothman. “Employers should not be able to use a salary threshold established nearly three decades ago to bypass protections for qualified Americans. There is no excuse for leaving this threshold unchanged when it should have been raised years ago. Washington’s failure to act shows how little the Establishment cares about unemployed Americans when employers want access to cheap foreign labor. This bill would update that threshold and help ensure American workers have a fair opportunity to compete for these jobs.”“For decades, companies have been able to sidestep hiring American workers because of a salary threshold that hasn’t budged since 1998. That’s not modernization, that’s a loophole. This bill simply asks that when a company is heavily reliant on these visas and wants to bring in more H-1B workers, they shouldn’t be relying on an outdated law to get around offering these jobs to qualified American workers first,” said Husted.
What is the present H-1B salary threshold? $60,000 per year
Under current law, H-1B dependent employers, companies whose H-1B share of their workforce exceeds a particular threshold, must attest that they have first tried to hire American workers before sponsoring additional H-1B visas. However, employers are exempt if they pay the H-1B worker at least $60,000 per year, or if the worker holds a master’s degree or higher.The $60,000 threshold was set in 1998 and was intended to be twice the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) National Average Wage Index at the time. It has never been adjusted for inflation. Today, the SSA National Average Wage Index is nearly $70,000, meaning the original threshold, adjusted for inflation, would be nearly $140,000, the Republican leaders said.The Protecting American Workers Through H-1B Modernization Act would replace the fixed $60,000 threshold with a dynamic standard equal to two times the national average wage index, as calculated by the SSA. This would ensure the threshold keeps pace with wage growth going forward, rather than remaining frozen in place.
It doesn’t mean H-1Bs will get more salary
The bill is just legislation and far from being approved. But even if it does, it won’t make every H-1B earn $140,000 per year. it would raise the salary threshold at which a worker can qualify for the exemption which is now set at $60,000.
