Scholarship for USA » USCIS

New Jersey Consulting Company Fined for H1B Violations

shumon — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:43:50 +0000

The Department of Labor (DOL) has cited Peri Software Solutions, a software consulting company in New Jersey for violation of labor and H1B laws, as reported by DOL on February 18.

An investigation by the Department of Labor found that Peri Software had withheld over $1.4 million in back wages that are owned to its’ employees. The investigation also found that Peri Software paid lower than average wages to its H1B consultants. This is a direct violation of H1B laws. The law states that H1B workers must be paid the same wage rates that are paid to U.S. workers for the same work performed in the same geographical location. DOL also uncovered that Peri Software forced its’ employees to sign employment contracts and then sued the employees when the contracts were broken.

Also read: Email From an Indian IT Consulting Firm

Department of Labor has fined Peri Software a $439,000 fine for its’ violations. The company may also be barred from participating in the H1B program for two years.

In 2009, United State Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) had arrested 11 H1B consultants and taken legal action against another New Jersey software company for H1B violations.

2010 H1B Update as of Dec 21, 09

Scholarship for USA — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:59:18 +0000

USCIS has reported that they have received sufficient applications for
2010 H1B visas. As of December 21st, 65,000 applications have been
received that fulfill the cap for 2010 H1B visas. USCIS has also
received 20,000 petitions for applicants with advanced degrees that are
exempt from the 65,000 cap. Any applications that are received after
December 21st under the 65,000 cap will be rejected by USCIS. A lottery
will be conducted for all H1B visa applications that were received on
December 21 and are subject to the cap.

USCIS to Conduct 25000 H-1B Inspections

Scholarship for USA — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:22:13 +0000

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has planned to conduct 25,000 onsite visits to companies that have hired workers on H1B visas this fiscal year. The move is a part of the on going investigation by USCIS to uncover H1B fraud and reduce and the abuse of the program.

Last year USCIS had conducted 5,191 inspections of companies hiring H-1B workers. The number this year has increased almost 5 times becasue of greater resistance by opponents of the H1B program who are lobbying the government for greater enforcement. In a letter to Senator Grassley, Director of USCIS Alejandro Mayorkas has stated that the inspections will be carried out to validate the H1B petitions. During these onsite visits, USCIS will be checking for the following things:

if the location of the employment exists
if the H1B visa holder is actually employed at the location
if the H1B visa holder is performing the jobs described in the H1B application
and if the H1B visa holder is being paid the salary stated in the application.

USCIS is aware of H1B visa applicants that are on bench and only start working when they are able to find a project/contract. This is against the H1B visa rules and the government is taking a tough stance against this practice. Earlier this year 11 H1B visa holder that had applied with fraudulent documents were arrested by the goverenment. Legal action was also taken against the company that had sponsored these H1B workers. This latest move by the government is a continuation of its’ effort to curb the abuse of the H1B visa program.

Further reading: The Truth About Indian IT Consulting Firms Revealed