Bill to stop H-1B abuses and prevent outsourcing of jobs reintroduced in House

The Keeping American Jobs Act, sponsored by Democrat Derek Kilmer and Republican Doug Collins, was initially introduced in the last Congress.

Yet another bipartisan bill to stop companies from sending jobs overseas by abusing H-1B visa program was reintroduced in US Congress on Thursday.

The Keeping American Jobs Act was introduced by Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA) and Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA).

According to the sponsors, the legislation would prevent companies that have H-1B employees from using them to train workers in the country and then move those jobs to a foreign country.

“We can’t allow the law to be exploited to displace American workers and send their jobs abroad,” the two congressmen said in a statement. “The Keeping American Jobs Act protects American workers by preventing bad actors from abusing the system in order to offshore jobs.”

The bill was initially introduced in the last Congress on February 24, 2016.

It called for the amendment of “the Immigration and Nationality Act to modify the provisions governing employment of nonimmigrants under section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of that Act to prevent the transfer of knowledge from United States workers for the purpose of facilitating their jobs being moved abroad.”

The bill had died in the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.

“Our policies should promote jobs in America,” Kilmer, a Washington Democrat, said in a press release. “They shouldn’t be about sending jobs done by hard working Americans overseas. That’s why I’m continuing my push with Representative Collins to keep H-1B visas from ever being used to send any job to another country.”

Collins, a Georgia Republican said: “Protecting American jobs is crucial in order for our economy to continue to gain strength and momentum. Companies have the opportunity to bring workers from overseas on H-1B visas in the event that qualified Americans aren’t available, but we can’t allow the law to be exploited to displace American workers and send their jobs abroad. The Keeping American Jobs Act protects American workers by preventing bad actors from abusing the system in order to offshore jobs.”

The new bill is one of the many bills that seek to crack down on the H-1B visa programs, which have been introduced or reintroduced in the current Congress.

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