Fact-checkers Call Rubio’s H-1B Claim ‘Mostly False’

During last week’s GOP debate, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) called the actions of employers who fire American workers and replace them with H-1B foreign workers “illegal”. The Washington Post has fact-checked Rubio’s statement and gave the comments three Pinocchios, or the equivalence of a “mostly false”, writing “Rubio’s characterization is not accurate.”

During the debate, Rubio said:

“It is illegal now under that program to use it to replace American workers. Under that program, you have to prove not only that you’re not replacing Americans, but that you’ve tried to hire Americans. And if a company is caught abusing that process, they should never be allowed to use it again.”

As NumbersUSA noted last week, the Washington Post highlights the fact that only H-1B dependent employers are required to prove that they tried to first recruit American workers before using the H-1B visa program.

“There is a ‘no displacement’ requirement and a recruiting requirement, as Rubio said. But these requirements apply to ‘H-1B dependent’ employers that have a large number of H-1B workers (for example, a company of 51 or more full-time employees is considered H-1B-dependent if 15 percent or more of its workforce are H-1B workers). Employers that are not deemed H-1B-dependent are not subject to this requirement.

“H-1B dependent companies are not allowed to lay off U.S. workers without a valid reason, then replace them with an H-1B worker to do essentially the same job with the same core responsibilities.

“This requirement doesn’t apply if the foreign worker is paid at least $60,000 per year, or has a relevant master’s or higher degree. And most H-1B workers fit that bill, making it largely irrelevant.”

– Washington Post, “Marco Rubio’s claim that it’s ‘illegal’ to replace American workers using H-1B visas”

Rubio dropped out of the race for the GOP nomination on Tuesday after he lost his home state to Donald Trump. A blog from NumbersUSA President Roy Beck charts Rubio’s decline since joining the Senate Gang of 8 in 2013, which pushed more amnesty and increased legal immigration.

“As a former member of the Gang of Eight, Rubio really should know better than to make a sloppy statement like this.”

– Washington Post

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