Lawmakers seek answers from major firms over H-1B visa use amid layoffs
Reuters
WASHINGTON - Lawmakers asked major U.S. companies - including Apple, Amazon and JPMorgan - on September 25, [2025] to explain why they are hiring thousands of foreign workers on H1B visas while cutting other jobs.
.....
The letter comes after the Trump administration announced last week [09/19/2025] it would ask companies to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B visas, which allow businesses to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations.
..... The United States has also released a proposal that would rework the H-1B visa selection process to favor higher-skilled and better-paid workers.
..... Senators Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, asked 10 major employers for detailed information on the number of H-1B workers they employ, the wages they are paid, and whether American workers have been displaced in the process.
..... "With all of the homegrown American talent relegated to the sidelines, we find it hard to believe that Amazon cannot find qualified American tech workers to fill those positions," the senators wrote to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy. The Wall Street journal first reported the letter.
.....
Big Tech companies, including Meta, Amazon and Microsoft, which are investing heavily in AI, have all announced job cuts this year. [2025]
..... Deloitte, Alphabet's Google, Meta,, Microsoft, Walmart, Cognizat Technology solutions and Tata Consultancy Services also received the letter.
..... India was the largest beneficiary of H-1B visas last year, [2024] accounting for 71% of approval beneficiaries, while china was a distant second at 11.7%, according to government data.
..... In the first half of 2025, Amazon and its cloud-computing unit, AWS, received approval for more than 12,000 H-1B visas, while Microsoft and Meta had more than 5,000 H-1B visa approvals each.
..... Walmart, Amazon, Apple, Alphabet, meta, Microsoft and Cognizant did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.