The article about the upcoming policy changes regarding U.S. work permits for high-tech workers’ spouses must have struck a note with many families in the Northwest [“Tech workers’ spouses ready, eager to work under new immigration rules,” Local News, April 8].
We are living in a region which owes its prosperity to the tech industry — where many, like my family, are expatriates contributing to it. The proverbial “golden cage” is an unfortunate repercussion of a vastly vacuumed world. Instead of welcoming illustrious, educated and desirous human resources for their countries, authorities pigeonhole and place employment restrictions on spouses of high-tech workers.
Double-income families are likely to boost domestic consumption, invest and pay taxes locally — benefiting the economy.
The article missed another important counterpoint for those still skeptical about a freer employment policy for knowledge workers. In competitive markets, the influx of knowledge workers will bring in all the benefits of competition for the native labor supply. All job seekers would benefit from competing in a competitive and high-caliber pool.
Most Read Opinion Stories
They will strive to upgrade their knowledge and skills. Organizations would adopt innovative hiring strategies to attract the best and brightest, and would no longer only have access to the ones with a piece of paper showing their legitimacy to enter the country.
Yavnika Khanna, Kirkland