Microsoft is facing growing pressure to explain its high demand for H-1B visas despite laying off nearly 16,000 employees this year. The tech giant has applied for over 6,000 visas since October, sparking concerns about the company’s reliance on foreign workers.
The company has been under scrutiny after announcing another round of layoffs, affecting around 9,000 employees, following two previous waves in May and June that impacted 8,000 more staff. Microsoft has a global workforce of 228,000, with nearly 16% of its employees recently being let go.
In the weeks following those layoff announcements, claims emerged on social media that Microsoft had also applied for over 6,000 H-1B visas since October. While this number could not be independently confirmed, the company has historically been a significant recipient of these visas.
Microsoft’s applications for H-1Bs have raised questions about the company’s use of foreign workers to replace American staff. Critics argue that the visa program allows companies like Microsoft to hire workers at lower costs and without having to provide benefits or training.
Steven Camarota, director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies, told Newsweek that “the advocacy or use of guest worker programs is entirely disconnected from the actual behavior of businesses.” He added that the data does not support the idea that the US is short on workers.
Microsoft’s H-1B applications have been trending downwards in recent years. The company received around 4,700 approvals out of the top ten U.S. corporations with the most H-1Bs issued in 2024.
The tech giant’s use of foreign workers has sparked outrage among some who oppose the visa program. Newsweek reached out to Microsoft for comment on its H-1B applications and how they relate to its layoffs, but received no response.
The debate over H-1Bs is largely divided between those who believe the program helps businesses by allowing them to hire skilled foreign workers at lower costs, and those who argue that it takes away jobs from American-born workers.
Source: https://www.newsweek.com/microsoft-layoffs-h1b-visa-applications-2094370