An analysis released Monday by JM Financial warns that the U.S. Department of Labor’s sudden suspension of Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) applications for eight major tech firms—including Microsoft, Infosys and TCS—will likely increase operating costs and spur local hiring drives in the United States. Reported by The Tribune’s business desk, the note projects that higher prevailing-wage requirements for replacement U.S. workers could widen on-shore project budgets by 8-12 percent. Announced on October 8 by the Trump administration, the PERM freeze prevents the affected companies from filing new green-card sponsorships until they pass an extensive audit of past cases. While existing H-1B holders can continue working, employees close to the six-year visa limit may have to leave the country if their PERM applications are stuck in limbo. JM Financial estimates up to 25,000 workers could be in that cohort. Indian outsourcing firms have responded by ramping up recruitment at near-shore delivery centers in Mexico and Canada, but clients—mostly Fortune 1000 enterprises—still prefer U.S. time-zone alignment for agile sprints. Some contracts now include ‘‘visa-risk’’ clauses allowing customers to shift work if staffing gaps emerge. For corporate mobility and global-talent teams, the takeaway is clear: expect bidding wars for niche skill sets already in short supply, from cloud-security architects to SAP S/4HANA functional leads. HR leaders should also revisit assignment durations, as a shorter project-based L-1B rotation may prove more feasible than a long-term H-1B-to-green-card path in the current environment. The Labor Department has not given a timeline for completing the audits, leaving investors and employees alike in limbo. Analysts caution that any prolonged uncertainty could accelerate the exodus of tech talent to Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.
Source: The Tribune (India)
