10,000 Green Cards for Unskilled Workers
Many Companies in the US are Struggling to Find Unskilled Labor with Unemployment at Very Low Levels
By Chris M. Ingram, LL.M., ESQ
Congress has long recognized that that there are some jobs that it’s almost impossible to fill locally. Just the other day, we had a company that was finding it almost impossible to hire and retain truckers for its fleet. Therefore, you help US companies struggling in this effort. Congress has allocated 10,000 green cards per year to these employers as an incentive for foreign workers to take up these positions.
10,000 Green Cards for Unskilled Workers Can Really Make a Difference
How Does the Progress Work?
There are some steps involved, so I’ll walk you through them.
What is An Unskilled Worker?
An unskilled worker who is ready, willing and able right now to do a job that requires less than two years training or experience for which qualified workers are not available in the United States.
This program is designed mostly for companies that are experiencing a chronic employee deficit and not for companies how may only need to need to fill one or two vacancies and that’s it.
Proving Local Americans Are Not Available?
Before the employer can hire an alien, they must first be able to prove that they have exhausted all reasonable efforts in trying to find Americans to take up these positions. The Department of Labor has created and set up minimum advertising requirements that the employer must comply with. As lawyers, we will walk the employer through this process and document the employer’s full compliance. Once the Department of Labor (DOL) is satisfied the Employer does indeed have a recruitment problem, the DOL will issue the employer what called a Labor Certificate which grants the employer the right to hire aliens for the vacancies. Typically, employers will only go through this process is they have a serious chronic employee shortage.
Companies working in remote areas can often find it difficult to find people.
Claiming Your Green Card?
Once the employer has obtained the Labor Certification and has selected their alien employee(s) then we can file for green cards, not only for the new employee but their entire family too. However, the employer would only be expected to pay for the paperwork for the main employee.
How Long Does the Process Take?
From start to finish the process can take 9-12 months, but if all of the 10,000 green cards get taken, then a backlog forms and this will extend the processing times considerably. At the time of this article there are no backlogs however, we can check for you at any time.
For many aliens the chance at getting a green card is a massive incentive to relocate and take up a secure position. Even of the processing time is quite lengthy – its certainly worth the wait.
Building a Work Force Pipeline
The Unskilled Worker Green Card program is designed so that the employer can be adding new recruits to the administrative process each month because of the 9-12 months it can take to clear all of the hurdles. So, if an employer knows that they will have a continuous need for alien workers due to the chronic shortage of locally available workers, they should always be adding to their pipeline as the people who get their green cards will eventually move on and so the employer does not want to then have to start the process from scratch and wait another 9-12 months.
If you have a chronic employee shortage, talk to us. We can help. Hurry, because these green cards are not always available as they get taken. Please call today.
Conclusion
Being able to offer an alien a green card is a massive incentive for them to come and work for an employer, including jumping through all of the hoops required and the long wait before they can start. The employer will be willing to go through the process and build up a pipeline because once the pipeline is built, they will have a never-ending flow of recruits anxious to get their start. So, it’s a win-win for everyone.
If you or someone you know is having a really horrible time filling vacancies for unskilled workers please let us know and we’ll go over the program and see if this is a program that will work for them.
The Law Offices of Chris M. Ingram is passionate Making America Great Again with Immigrants. Immigrants built America – let’s keep them coming so they can join us and keep America strong.
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