With the continuous fight for immigration reform here in the United States, there are also many concerned citizens who wonder how the job market will be affect if these changes do happen. According to an informative article by BusinessWeek, they describe the fact that the current job market today is rather difficult as it is. There are a large number of recent college graduates (whether they bachelor graduates, or they have their masters or doctorates), many of these individuals are having a very difficult time finding jobs. BW brings up a concern that with the job market being already so scarce, if immigration reform occurs, there is a very real possibility that it will become even harder to find work.

According to the recent bill that was proposed by Senate, their idea is that a large number of visas will be granted to immigrants (termed as highly skilled foreigners) so that they can contribute to the working community. However, people not in favor of this reform believe that more and more work will be offered to the foreigners rather than the locals because of their skills. One representative with the Migration Policy Institute says that between 4 and 5 times as many visas will be offered out if this bill does pass. In contrast to this argument, many people in favor of the bill believe that having these highly skilled thinkers in our country and work force will help improve our society as a whole both in the country and in the world.

Today, there is a system that basically gives the winning contestant the opportunity to have a work visa. There is a "lottery" and basically there is an annual first come, first serve policy awarded to 65,000 people. On top of this, another 20,000 are set aside every year for graduate students who want to enter into the country to study. Many companies in America are not in favor of this current cap on visas because it severely limits their ability to higher new innovative thinkers for their teams. They believe that with this limitation they are much less able to have the qualified workers they need.

According to an immigration expert with the Brookings Institution in Washington, Neil Ruiz, who says that in just 5 days this year the available visa slots were filled, meaning that 60% of people who applied (39,000 other people) were denied the opportunity. Another key factor the legislators in favor of reform argue is the idea that if there is an easier way to obtain a visa here in the states, those who come to study in America are more likely to remain and offer their talents to American companies rather than going elsewhere; essentially benefiting our country rather than another. If this bill passes, many of these undergraduate students will be able to obtain a green card once they get their diploma, giving around 343,000 students the opportunity to remain here to work after graduation.

While that is a large number of minds to allow the opportunity to help the country grow in the world economy, it is also going to create a large barrier for American nationals to have the opportunity for employment when they graduate college alongside the immigrants. According to the opinion of the BusinessWeek writer, this change in immigration is a good thing for businesses who are hoping to expand and recruit outside thinkers, and good for immigrants who want to stay here in the states; though it may make things more difficult for those who are your average graduates born in America.

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