Several industry leaders and powerful corporations throughout the United States have taken a stand in support of immigration reform to increase legal immigration and bring millions of undocumented workers out of the shadows. As they continue to push for the development of new visa programs, amnesty, and simpler routes to citizenship, these companies claim that comprehensive immigration reform will not only grow the American economy, but level the playing field for businesses throughout the United States as well.
Attracting and retaining the world’s most highly-skilled talent and creating the human capital necessary to fill workforce needs at all skill levels is vital to grow the U.S. economy and ensure America’s global competitiveness. Many countries have already rewritten their immigration policies to encourage productivity and innovation, and powerful companies and industry leaders here in America have been pleading for changes to our country’s own system for many years. In fact, in a letter sent to the United States House of Representatives in 2013, officials who represented more than 100 corporate interests throughout the United States demanded amnesty for aliens already residing in America, and asked for new visa programs to increase immigration.
While President Obama took steps to make some improvements to America’s failing immigration system, those changes weren’t nearly enough. Immigration reform continues to be a high-profile topic of debate- especially among the 2016 presidential candidates, and major corporate interests have no intention of backing off. Corporations that are advocating for immigration reform include those from a wide variety of high-tech industries that are in need of individuals with strong science, math, engineering and technology skills, but major companies in the hospitality, food services, construction and agriculture industries are pushing for change as well. A couple of the industry leaders pushing for immigration reform include:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerburg, the CEO of Facebook, is one high-profile advocate for the reform of immigration in the United States. He stresses the importance of creating an easier road for high-tech companies to employ workers with special skills and education in technology.
- Yahoo! and Google: Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer was called upon by President Obama in 2013 to offer advice on immigration reform. She emphasizes the need for highly-skilled professionals to help create more jobs and grow the American economy. Google co-founder Sergey Brin claims immigrants are “a powerful force for entrepreneurship and innovation at every level”.
