Issue:
As a result of extraordinary growth and expansion in information technologies (IT) over
the past 5 years, demand for highly skilled workers has vastly outstripped supply. IT
companies worldwide are facing a
severe shortage of knowledge workers
.
Global IT leadership in the next decade – both among companies and countries –
will go to those who can most readily recruit, develop and retain talented IT workers.
Limits on industry’s access to the top talent (H-1B Visa limits) threaten continued
sector growth and leadership.
Impact:
Even as IT companies like
Cisco devote millions annually to train U.S. students and
teachers in information technology skills, industry
relies on H-1B visas to recruit and keep the top technology
talent in the world. The shortage of IT service and support
staff is impacting worker productivity in the U.S. at an
estimated price tag of $4.5 billion a year and
reducing the entire economy by $105.5 billion annually
( CompTIA ).
Continued growth in America’s high-tech industry depends
on our ability to reach out globally to employ the best
workers, especially during periods of such incredible economic
expansion.
Position:
Cisco supports increasing the number of H-1B visas awarded annually to address the
immediate workforce shortage. With access to the most skilled workers, the American high
tech industry can fill many of its near-term hiring needs. At the same time, Cisco
supports initiatives to re-train workers and to improve American education and help U.S.
students and teachers acquire IT skills for the 21
st
century.
Background:
American high tech companies face a severe shortage of highly skilled technology
workers. Current estimates put the shortage of IT workers at over 350,000 ( American
Electronics Association
). This shortage results from increased demand and decreased
supply of highly skilled workers (see below).
Congress established the H-1B Visa program to allow U.S. high tech companies access to
the top technology talent from around the world and to avoid workforce shortages. The
number of H1-B visas available to companies looking for highly skilled foreign workers was
unlimited before 1990, when it was capped at 65,000 a year.
Once the cap is reached, companies have to wait until the next fiscal year to hire
workers under these visas. Due to the booming high-tech field and tight labor market, high
tech employers reached the H-1B cap for the first time in August, 1997. In 1998 Congress
passed a bill ( S.1723
)
that increased the H-1B visa cap from 65,000 to 115,000 for FY 1999 and 2000, and 107,500
in 2001.
High tech employers reached the H-1B Visa cap in September, 1998. The ceiling was hit
on June 15, 1999 and on March 21, 2000.
INCREASED DEMAND FOR IT WORKERS
:
- Demand for database administrators and computer scientists is expected to jump 118% by
2006. ( U.S. Dept. of Commerce
,
June 1999).
- Demand for workers in IT occupations requiring at least an associate’s degree is
expected to grow by 57% by 2006. ( U.S.
Dept. of Commerce
, June 1999).
- Almost half of all U.S. workers will work in industries that either produce IT products
or use IT products extensively by 2006. ( U.S. Dept. of Commerce
, June
1999).
- Nearly 400,000 e-commerce jobs were added from Q1 1998 to Q1 1999. (UT’s Internet Indicators
, Oct. 1999).
DECREASED SUPPLY OF DOMESTIC IT PROFESSIONALS
:
- U.S. graduates with high-tech degrees down 5% since 1990 (American Electronics
Association).
- U.S. graduates with degrees in electrical engineering down 33% since 1990 (American
Electronics Association).
- U.S. graduates with degrees in computer & information
science down 27% since 1990 (American Electronics Association).
The Bush Administration has indicated concern with H-1B
visas as a temporary solution to a long-term problem, namely
the retraining of American workers.
Involvement:
To address workforce issues and concerns Cisco is partnering
with organizations including:
Cisco has established several private initiatives to
provide Americans with the IT skills they will need for the 21
st
century. For
example:
-
Cisco Networking Academy Program teaches students
to design, build, and maintain computer networks, prepares
students for the real world, & serves as working model
for successful e-learning.
-
Workforce
Transition Project
— a program to provide high-tech skills training to military
veterans & other workers in the Communication Workers of America’s retraining and
apprenticeship programs.
Fast Facts:
- The shortage of Information Technology (IT) service
and support staff nationwide is impacting worker productivity
in the U.S. at an estimated price tag of $4.5 billion
a year and reducing the entire economy by $105.5 billion
annually. ( CompTIA
, Oct. 1999).
- In 2000, high tech companies reached the annual cap of H1-B visas on March 21. In 1999,
it was June 15. In 1998, the 65,000 H-1B cap was reached May 8. And in 1997, it was
reached in August. The cap had never been reached before the Internet revolution (and did
not exist before 1990).
- Silicon Valley’s workforce falls short of meeting area high tech employers’
needs by 1/3
rd
, a shortage costing employers at least $3 billion annually,
according to a report by public interest organization Joint Venture
Silicon Valley
.
- In Massachusetts, job growth in nine key innovation-oriented sectors slowed to 2.7% in
1998 from 3.5% in 1997 because new hires are so hard to find, with nearly 1 in 11
positions for skilled production workers unfilled. ( Massachusetts
Technology Collaborative
, Nov. 1999).
- High tech centers have lower unemployment rates than the 4.5% national average… as
of May / June 1999, unemployment was 3.3% in Silicon Valley, 2.6% in Austin, Texas, and
1.7% in Fairfax, Virginia. (American Electronics Association, CyberEducation 1999).
- By 2006 the demand for database administrators, computer science specialists and
computer scientists is expected to jump 118%, while the demand for system analysts will
double from 506,000 to more than 1 million. "The Digital Work Force: Building
Infotech Skills at the Speed of Innovation," ( U.S. Department of Commerce Report
,
June 1999).
- The demand for workers in IT occupations requiring at least an associate’s degree
is expected to grow by 57% over the decade. ( U.S. Department of Commerce Report
,
June 1999).
- Our K-12 Educational system is not meeting the challenge.
The Third International
Math and Science Study revealed that in Math, US
12 th graders ranked 19 th out
of 21. US 12 th graders ranked 16 th
out of 21 in science.
- The total number of US students earning high tech degrees dropped 5% between 1990 and
1996, even as the total number of degrees awarded increased 16%. (AEA)
- U.S. bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering down 33%.
- U.S. bachelor’s degrees in computer & information science down 27%.
- The U.S. University system is awarding more and more high tech degrees to foreign
nationals. (AEA) Of the total degrees awarded by U.S. universities, foreign nationals
earned…
- 45% of the total doctoral degrees
- 64% doctorates in engineering technology
- 46% doctorates in computer science
- 45% doctorates in math
- 32% of the total doctoral degrees
Useful High-Tech Immigration / Education Links:
The
National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching
for the 21st Century (Glenn Commission)
Cisco
Networking Academy Program
Other
Cisco E-Learning / Worker Retraining Initiatives
.
American
Electronics Association’s H-1B Issue Brief
& CyberEducation Report
(available to government offices at no charge).
"The Digital Work Force: Building Infotech Skills at the Speed of
Innovation," U.S. Department
of Commerce Report
(6/99).
Joint Venture’s
Workforce Gap Study
.
National Center for Education
Statistics
The
Condition of Education, 2000 (US Dept. of Education)
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