In a major development of the H-1B row, the US President Donald Trump-led administration is taking action against companies which are discriminating against American workers. The programme, which allows foreign workers to fill roles in the US, has long been criticised for limiting opportunities for native-born Americans.Assistant attorney general for Civil Rights, Harmeet Dhillon, confirmed to Patrick Reports that the department of justice’s (DoJ) civil rights division is actively investigating civil rights complaints linked to the H-1B programme. “Through our Protecting US Workers Initiative, the Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights section has numerous open investigations into hiring practices that discriminate against American citizens, and the list continues to grow,” InfoWars quoted Dhillon.She further added, “We encourage anyone aware of such practices to notify the Civil Rights Division so we can determine if an investigation and enforcement action is needed.” The Indian-American Trump aide took to social media platform X calling out people to send leads against employers. “We have several open investigations and have taken action against some employers already! Send us your leads!” Dhillon has long criticized the H-1B system. “The H1B system is broken and needs reform. What does that have to do with medical education? Nothing, and it’s lazy to conflate the two broken systems,” she had said earlier.The H-1B visa programme is capped at 85,000 new visas per year, excluding renewals for existing holders. Workers on these visas are often dependent on their employers for legal status, allowing companies to treat them more harshly than American employees and giving them an advantage in the hiring process.The Trump-era department of labour (DOL) also faced scrutiny from the Office of Inspector General over its handling of H-2B applications.While critics argue that the system continues to favour foreign workers, the DOJ’s renewed focus on protecting American employees offers a potential turning point. Citizen activists and job-seekers are now calling for continued pressure to ensure cases of H-1B-related discrimination are prosecuted and legal precedents are set to protect non-visa workers.
