Many Indians who are employed in the US on visas like the H-1B have been affected by layoffs across the IT sector, particularly at companies like Twitter, Meta, and Amazon.
Journalist Savita Patel, who lives in California, discusses with employees who risk being compelled to return to India if they can’t find work elsewhere.
Surbhi Gupta, an Indian engineer who has been employed in the US since 2009, was shocked when Meta let her go this month. She claims, “I was doing well at work.
The first mass layoffs in the company’s history occurred when Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, said on November 9 that it will reduce its personnel by 13%.
in 11,000 employees losing their jobs. “None of us slept that night,” Ms Gupta says.
“At 6am, I got the email. I couldn’t access my computer, nor the office gym. It felt like a break-up.”
Now she is among thousands of educated and skilled immigrant workers fired by US tech companies this month.
Report said, most of them work in the US because of the HI-B visa. It’s a non-immigrant visa that allows firms to employ foreigners for up to six years in positions for which they have been unable to find American employees.
It also allows holders to apply for permanent residency in the US and buy property in the country.
Ms Gupta says she worked very hard to build a life in the US for “over 15 years”.
Her visa now hinges on finding her next job.
Worldwide, more than 120,000 tech workers have lost jobs as a result of cutbacks by US tech companies, according to the Layoffs.fyi website, which tracks tech job cuts.
While companies have not released India-specific numbers, San Jose-based immigration attorney Swati Khandelwal says “it’s hurt the Indian community particularly hard.”
“who have not been laid off fear that they might be [fired] later.”
For Indian tech workers, the layoffs do not just mean seeking new employment but also finding employers who are willing help them continue with their work and pay for the associated legal costs.
“If a new employer is unable to transfer your visa petition in 60 days, the remedy is for people to leave [the US] and re-enter for work after the paperwork is complete,” Ms Khandelwal says.
“But the practical aspect is that people will get stuck in India as there are not many visa stamping appointments available in consulates,” she says.
Wait times for a visa appointment at US consulates in India have reached 800 days in some cases.
This is why the layoffs have come as an unwelcome surprise for Indian workers.
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