Throughout the year, there comes a time when hiring is at its peak. And then the same things happen. Any administrator who is supervising or managing the operations appoints the ideal candidate: the data engineer who knows the perfect stack, the actuary who has done the exact job before, but suddenly some human resources person reminds everyone that he/she needs a sponsor. Four weeks become twelve months.
It is in this gap that the staffing company specializing in H-1B recruitment usually makes money.
The Problem is Usually Not Lack of Talent
The vast majority of companies seeking to hire H-1B employees do not have a shortage of interested candidates. They have a shortage of processes. The number of visas per year stands at 65,000 general visas and an additional 20,000 for graduates of U.S. universities holding master's degrees. The annual demand often exceeds the quota severalfold. Registration takes place within a limited period of time in early spring. Selection is made randomly. Visa recipients cannot begin working until October.
Missing the registration period does not mean "try again next month." It means trying next year.
This affects small companies the most. For example, a company having two human resources specialists does not have anyone who could keep track of filing dates, work with immigration lawyers, and hire nine other candidates at the same time.
Staffing Agency vs. In-House
A U.S.-based staffing agency operating in this domain is fulfilling three roles: sourcing, sponsorship management, and timing.
Sourcing is the obvious task. Businesses that revolve around the recruitment of international staff maintain their own networks of potential candidates who were sourced through years of experience.
Sponsorship administration is the hidden element. Labor Condition Applications. Prevailing Wage Decisions based on the position, grade, and location of work. Public Access Files that must exist and be up to date, in case of an audit. Posting of notice. Nothing about any of it is rocket science. Everything about all of it can be screwed up if no one owns it.
And then there is timing, which is nothing more than discipline. A good staffing company that does H-1B recruitment works back from the deadline and begins conversations with candidates in the fall, not in March.
The Transfer Pathway Many Employers Are Ignoring
Not all employees have to rely on the lottery.
Those who already possess H-1B status may transfer to another company using the transfer petition, which usually allows them to start their duties after the petition has been filed, not waiting until the petition has been approved. The cap-exempt entities – colleges, non-profits connected with them, particular research organizations – are simply not subject to the annual lottery.
A U.S. recruiting company with experience understands that some employees qualify under these requirements. This information alone may cut a recruitment period from ten months to six weeks.
Who Really Pays the Cost?
Agencies are pricey when you compare the fees to the cost of posting on a job board. The comparison is misleading.
Filing costs, legal fees, and the time invested in the filing happen regardless of whether the filing is successful. An unsuccessful filing is wasted time and money, and the job remains open. Agency risk is mitigated across numerous job placements and, in most cases, includes absorbing some of that risk themselves. Multiple agencies actually hire the employee themselves and therefore do not have the sponsorship obligation of the employer, which is appealing to organizations that want to hire H-1B employees but not build their own immigration department.
The real cost is the unquantifiable one: leaving an essential position vacant for eight months.
Choosing an Agency Worth Its Price
Not all agencies are created equal, and the cheaper ones can be expensive in another manner altogether.
It may be pertinent to inquire about how many petitions the agency submitted last year and how many were successful. Whether immigration lawyers are employees or outsourced. How the prevailing wages are set. Whether the agency has ever been audited before. Vague answers to precise questions are still answers.
Reputable agencies reject jobs as well. Any staffing agency offering H-1B placement and guaranteeing a successful petition in a lottery system cannot possibly know what will happen. This fact is well understood by professionals who recruit foreign talent.
The recruitment of foreign talent pays off when companies are prepared, and fails them when they wing it. The ones that do it throughout the year always land the talent they seek. The ones that begin in March will have to wait till March again.
It is the right U.S. staffing agency that can turn hiring of H-1B visa workers into a plausible effort for employers unable to take care of it themselves.
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