> Alternatively, I would be okay with eliminating the lottery and giving visas out on the basis of the premium companies are willing to pay over the salary a domestic worker would be paid. If your company is willing to pay 2.0x foo for a position, then you will get the H1-B visa ahead of a company only willing to pay 1.5x foo. The floor would be set at something like 1.1x foo.
That would only help the largest companies, and would put the relatively new and smaller companies at a disadvantage...
This. You need to make money to be able to pay for the workers you need for your business to function. To argue against this reality is akin to saying: "I want there to be H1-B visa holders so wages remain low", which is the exact what the top most comment is saying H1-B visas do.
Developers are valuable. We should be paid accordingly. Many of us are employees now. A fraction of us will become founders one day. This approach simply allows companies to actually get the talent they urgently need to succeed. Paying a premium should absolutely not be a problem if you in fact do have a genuine need for talent that doesn't exist in the US at any price (which is the argument being made in this blog post).
I want to be paid a fair wage. I also plan on being a founder (again. failed once). If engineer wages rise making some business models inviable, c'est la vie. I will just have to make sure to start a business that can actually earn money and pay the bills to hire the talent I will need. When I do found my own company, I am more interested in being able to get the talent than paying a premium.
The way things are now, the benefit basically already goes to the Google's and Apple's of the World. How many startups actually go through the whole process of trying to get H1-B visas to get talent. Every startup I know doesn't consider the process viable because it's not expedient. If I need an engineer within 6 months and I have a candidate willing to work for my business from another country, it would be amazing to pay a 1.5x premium to actually be able to have them over here in the US and helping me and my colleagues build a business together ASAP. The H1-B visa process is so drawn out right now that by the time you get your H1-B visa candidate you're already at the end of your runway.
I would love to see AeroFS write a blog post considering the solution I proposed (which many agree with judging by the number of upvotes thus far).
Tons of the so-called engineering shortage complaints can be condensed to not paying as well as google/fb/linkedin/netflix, offering at best the same environment and working conditions (though often much worse), then bitching that skilled engineers aren't jumping at the chance to work for you.
When hiring managers are asked to consider some subset of {more money, more vacation, true flex time, remote work, 4 day work weeks} in lieu of the cash, benefits, and environment the top tier employers pay, they refuse. And continue the bitching.
Also, the stunning discovery that, post incorporating in sf, people from the peninsula and south bay are unfathomably not as excited about a 50-60+ minute one-way commute as you thought they'd be.
Maybe, but the problem is that the larger a company is, the harder time they have recognizing talent, so it seems like a wash to me.
There is a reason why successful startups tend to be friends who closely know eachother and recognize the talent in eachother. Recognizing talent takes time and knowledge and it isn't something you can foist onto an HR department or recruiter.
That would only help the largest companies, and would put the relatively new and smaller companies at a disadvantage...