This blog post has been updated with the latest H‑1B jog change figures here.

Critics of the H‑1B visa for skilled foreign workers often claim that the status amounts to “indentured” servitude. Indentured servitude is a contract to work for a single employer for a predetermined period without pay. H‑1B workers are not only paid—they receive wages in the top 10 percent of wage earners in the United States. As importantly, although they face more obstacles to changing jobs, H‑1B workers are not tied to a single employer, and they change jobs regularly.

In fact, H‑1B workers are leaving their initial H‑1B employers more than ever. Figure 1 shows the number of H‑1B workers changing to a new employer by fiscal year. From 2005 to 2021, H‑1B workers changed jobs about 1 million times. The number of switches grew from about 24,000 in 2005 to 91,282 in 2021.

In fact, H‑1B job shifting is now almost as common as H‑1B workers starting H‑1B employment for the first time. About 43 percent of all H‑1B workers starting with a new employer were hired from existing H‑1B workers in the United States. This means that U.S. employers are almost as likely to hire an H‑1B worker in the United States already in H‑1B status as they are to hire a new H‑1B worker not already in H‑1B status.

Several causes for this increase are possible. The labor market has generally been tighter, leading to more job switching in general. In addition, more H‑1B workers are employed in the United States now for other employers to poach, and since the H‑1B cap has been so quickly met every year since 2014, there is more reason to poach. The government also made it somewhat easier to switch H‑1B jobs in 2017 by giving them a 60-day grace period to find a new job after losing a job. Finally, the jump in switching in 2021 is at least partially attributable to the record number of green card applications filed that year. After 180 days, H‑1B workers who have filed a green card application may change jobs without the employer being forced to restart the green card process, easing the job switching process.

Of course, it is true that H‑1B workers are still not treated equally in the labor market. New H‑1B employers have to pay hefty fees to poach them, and the shortage of green cards for Indian workers can wrongly make those workers feel that they have to stick with their existing employer to complete that process. The best solution would be to make conversion to a green card automatic rather than requiring a renewal after 3 years. The 60-day grace period to find a new job is still not long enough to give many workers confidence to simply quit a problematic job without a new one already lined up.

Despite these government-imposed obstacles, the existence of widespread H‑1B job shifting further refutes the idea that H‑1B workers are “indentured” servants. The government has wrongly unleveled the playing field for H‑1B workers, but options still exist to find better employment within the H‑1B system. The government should expand those options rather than try to reduce or eliminate these workers who contribute so significantly in the areas of science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine.