Bill Gates: We Need Immigrants

<p><img width="165" height="165" class="left" title="(Matt Mahurin)" alt="(Matt Mahurin)" src="/files/washingtonindependent/folders-pics-icons/Immigration.jpg" /></p>

<p>The U.S. needs immigrants, lots of them. So says Bill Gates, a man whose company has the cash to buy the best workers that money can buy. His focus is on H-1B visas–temporary permits for highly-skilled workers who, not infrequently, end up staying here. <br />

&quot;Congress’s failure to pass high-skilled immigration reform has exacerbated an already grave situation,&quot; Gates said in remarks to be presented before the <a title="House of Representatives" target="_blank" href="http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5i48NxIEq0z3_TAoLLNgxIghOPCxA" id="man4">House of Representatives</a> Science and Technology Committee.<br /><br />

He explained the consequences: &quot;As a result, many US firms, including Microsoft, have been forced to locate staff in countries that welcome skilled foreign workers to do work that could otherwise have been done in the United States, if it were not for our counterproductive immigration policies.&quot;<br />

Gates underlines the competitive recruitment that is taking place: &quot;Other nations are benefiting from our misguided policies. They are revising their immigration policies to attract highly talented students and professionals who would otherwise study, live, and work in the United States for at least part of their careers.&quot;<br /><br />

Canadians agree. That country’s visa bureau warned the same day, Mar. 12, that &quot;Numerous recent surveys suggest that Canada’s businesses are growing <a title="increasingly worried" target="_blank" href="http://www.visabureau.com/canada/news/12-03-2008/canada-immigration-should-be-encouraged-not-hindered.aspx" id="of5x">increasingly worried</a> about shortages of vital skills in fields like construction and energy. The only way to get the people with the skills needed to power future economic growth into Canada is to make it easier for people to live and work there, and to make the best use of the skills they have, Mario Paron, partner and chief human resources officer at KPMG, has argued.<br /><br />

The visa bureau referenced Mr. Paron’s <a title="opinion" target="_blank" href="http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/331935" id="jcit">op-ed</a> in Monday’s Toronto Star: </p>

<blockquote>Sixty-six percent of Canadian employers have difficulty filling positions due to a lack of suitable talent, according to a 2006 Manpower Inc. study. This problem will only be exacerbated in coming years as baby boomers retire, birth rates continue to fall and not enough skilled people graduate to fill positions.<br />

By 2011, 100 per cent of net labour force growth will come from immigration, according to Statistics Canada. Yet once these immigrants arrive in this country, their foreign credentials and work experience may not be recognized by the licensing bodies that must assess them before they can practise in Canada. For its part, the New Zealand Visa Bureau reported that New Zealand and Australia were <a title="complaining" target="_blank" href="http://www.visabureau.com/newzealand/news/12-03-2008/new-zealand-immigration-vital-for-the-countrys-economy-.aspx" id="u9b2">complaining</a> of the same thing:

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<div style="margin-left: 40px;">In news which may boost New Zealand immigration, a new international survey has suggested that the availability of skilled labour is being cited more and more by New Zealand businesses as a constraint on their growth. The study has been conducted by accountancy firm Grant Thornton, and it covered 34 countries.</div>

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New Zealanders, while looking for immigrant workers, are worried that their home-grown talent is being lured away to Australia, even as &quot;Australian businesses also warned of skill shortages, with 58 per cent of companies concerned – compared to a global average of just 37 per cent.&quot; <br />

&quot;Just&quot; 37 percent, globally?<br />

The competition for skilled workers is on, worldwide, just as it is for oil and gas and metals and fresh water. And the developed world, of course, is getting the lion’s share.</p>

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