Tag Archives: H-1B visa

H-1B End Clients With Blind Eyes?

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united states currency eye- IMG_7364_web (Photo credit: kevindean)

The attorney-authors have represented many H-1B workers, some of whom have done project work for some of the biggest companies in the U.S.  Some things that seem remarkable to us: (1) the epidemic of H-1B workers across the country who are underpaid or not paid during benched time and are not paid, underpaid or have delayed payment, even during project time; (2) the fact that this epidemic of H-1B underpayment is well-known in large social circles, including H-1B sponsor employers themselves, immigration attorneys, etc.; (3) the fact that many large U.S.-based corporations themselves sponsor H-1B workers (whom they usually pay their full required wages), BUT the same large employers often employ, as independent consultants for project work, H-1B consultants whose H-1B visas are sponsored by other, smaller, body-shop employers who systematically underpay the workers and violate H-1B laws per their business models and systemic practices.

Our question: don’t these large end-clients (at least some of them) know that their project consultants are sponsored by H-1B-bodyshops who underpay and mistreat the workers?

It seems implausible that so many large U.S. corporations use bodyshop H-1B consultants, but are not aware that these same workers are often victims of exploitation by their sponsor employers.  Are big companies turning a blind eye, and knowingly accepting the benefits of H-1B bodyshops’ dirty work?  We’d be curious for our readers’ thoughts on this issue.

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One-Year Deadline Passed for an H-1B Wage Complaint at DOL? There May Still Be Options For Getting Your Wages

If you are an H-1B worker with unpaid wages, as we have described before, there is a 1-year deadline for a particular type of legal complaint you could pursue.  That is, there is 1-year deadline to file a WH-4 complaint at the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL).

We have found that many H-1B workers (whether they have read our blog or not) are aware that a WH4 complaint can be pursued at DOL as a way to seek unpaid wages.

However, some H-1B workers who are past the 1-year deadline for a WH4 complaint may assume they have lost their chance to pursue unpaid wages.

Please know that often this is not the case.  There often are options an H-1B worker can consider when the unpaid wages were earned more than one year ago.  For example, several Federal and State laws (unlike the H-1B regulations and WH4 process) allow deadline periods of 2-6 years to pursue unpaid wages.  So, if an H-1B worker’s employer had failed to pay wages that were due more than a year ago, that worker– while not having options at DOL per the WH4  complaint process– may well have options under other Federal or State laws.  The attorney-authors of this blog can speak to this firsthand, as we have represented H-1B workers in several legal actions with legal claims seeking wages owed from several years prior.

The take-home points for you, as an underpaid H-1B worker, are these: (1) if you’re owed wages from more than one year ago, don’t assume you are beyond all legal deadlines to pursue those wages, unless a competent attorney tells you that following a consultation; and (2) if you are interested in a potential legal complaint, promptly have an attorney evaluate your situation, potential legal claims, and deadlines.  The longer you wait, the more likely it is that all applicable legal deadlines will pass.

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Filed under Considering Legal Action - Employee, Employee Tip - H-1B, H-1B