The law that governs the migration of skilled workers into the United States, the Immigration Act of 1990, has been mired in controversy for most of its 30 years and has seen little improvement since its passage. President Trump’s recent threats to limit temporary visas for skilled foreign workers predictably led to a rehearsal of familiar arguments: Leading tech firms claimed that limiting the temporary H-1B visa will severely hinder their ability to fill labor shortages for STEM talent. Others claimed that foreign workers, especially in entry-level IT positions, displace U.S. workers at lower pay.
