This outreach assumes significance since many Indian skilled professionals have lost their jobs in recent months, as US tech giants have laid off employees.
In an interesting outreach by the US-based Jewish community to the Indian community, the American Jewish Committee (AJC) has asked the US Immigration authorities to be considerate towards the laid-off Indian skilled professionals in the US and increase their two-month grace period to one year.
This outreach assumes significance since many Indian skilled professionals have lost their jobs in recent months, as US tech giants have laid off employees.
AJC, in coordination with an Indian diaspora outfit, has written a letter to the US Citizenship, and Immigration Services (USCIS) director, which says, “We are jointly writing to you with reference to the recent mass layoffs in the tech arena which have required many foreign-national parents of US-born children to relocate with their families back to their countries of origin after the two-month grace period offered to them on their H1B work visas.”
Jason F Isaacson, who wrote the letter, is the Chief Policy & Political Affairs Officer of the AJC.
He wrote, “It is our view that this very limited grace period both imposes an undue hardship on highly skilled and motivated workers who must quickly obtain alternative qualifying employment to retain their status, and potentially denies US industry ready access to workers who have made, and would continue to make, significant contributions to our economy and toward helping our country maintain cutting edge technological leadership. It is our understanding that a majority of these workers are from India, a close strategic partner of both the United States and Israel.”