There is No Shortage of High-Tech Workers in the U.S.; All Job Growth since 2000 Went to Immigrants

High immigration is hollowing out the American middle class, in keeping with Obama’s promise to "fundamentally transform America."  

How often have you heard politicians make the following statement?

"Employers are telling me that they want to bring in engineers and other high-skilled workers from other countries to expand their businesses but are stymied by restrictions in the current visa system."

These politicians assume there is a labor shortage among American citizens.  They need to recheck their premise.     

Recent reports dispute two myths:  Myth 1:  There is a shortage of native born high tech (STEM) workers.  Thus, we need more H-1B visas.  Myth 2: Amnesty and more legal immigration are needed, because the country has a labor shortage, and more immigration increases job opportunities for native-born Americans.

You have heard and read about the need for foreign laborers, both skilled and unskilled.  But take a hard look at the opportunities for your own family.  Are your children finding a full time job upon graduation from high school?  Are they finding a good, full time job upon graduation from college? Can they find a job in their field of study?  Are they able to pay off thousands of dollars of student loans?  If they are struggling, they aren’t alone.  See Millennials Unemployment Report: 15.2% of workers 18-29 Out of Work – More Jobs Needed

In Study Finds No Shortage of High-Tech Workers in U.S.

"If STEM workers are in short supply, wages should be increasing rapidly.  Predictably, though, due to the surplus of STEM workers, ‘wage data from multiple sources show little growth over the last 12 years,’ as ‘real hourly wages adjusted for inflation grew on average just .7 percent a year from 2000 to 2012 for STEM workers."

In spite of the facts, the myth perpetuates, and it hurts our native born Americans.

"Egged on by the millions the Chamber of Commerce and high-tech lobbies like Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg’s FWD.us have spent, Congress has ensured that STEM wages have been suppressed, according to Camarota and Ziegler.  But the high-tech industry still perpetuates the myth of a high-tech worker shortage and wants even more H-1B visas."

Another stinging reality is that, since 2000, both legal and illegal immigrants have made employment gains, while native born Americans have been steadily losing jobs.

In Immigrants Account for All Job Gains Since 2000:  Native Born Workers’  Employment Has Fallen:

"Immigrants — both legal and illegal — have accounted for all of the job gains in the U.S. labor market since 2000, according to a report that highlights the stiff competition for jobs in a tight economy as Congress debates adding more workers to the mix.

"The Center for Immigration Studies report, which is being released Wednesday, says 22.4 million immigrants of working age held jobs at the beginning of this year, up 5.3 million over the total in 2000. But native-born workers with jobs dropped 1.3 million over that same period, from 114.8 million to 113.5 million."

Other significant findings include:

"Because the native-born population grew significantly, but the number working actually fell, there were 17 million more working-age natives not working in the first quarter of 2014 than in 2000.

"The share of natives working or looking for work, referred to as labor force participation, shows the same decline as the employment rate. In fact, labor force participation has continued to decline for working-age natives even after the jobs recovery began in 2010.

"Immigrants have made gains across the labor market, including lower-skilled jobs such as maintenance, construction, and food service; middle-skilled jobs like office support and health care support; and high­er-skilled jobs, including management, computers, and health care practitioners.

"The supply of potential workers is enormous: 8.7 million native college graduates are not working, as are 17 million with some college, and 25.3 million with no more than a high school education."

According to the study, 58 million working-age natives are not employed. See Study: All Employment Growth Since 2000 to Immigrants.  

The solution?  We don’t need to import foreign workers.  We do need to enforce our laws and secure our borders.