Trump's next executive order draft to target tech companies, hit work visa programs

Elizabeth Gurdus
Olivier Douliery | Pool via Bloomberg | Getty Images

President Donald Trump's next target in his administration's immigration policy will focus on what Silicon Valley fears most : the work-visa programs that tech companies rely on to hire tens of thousands of workers each year, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The executive order is still a draft, according to the report, but if enacted, it could mean major overhauls in the way tech giants like Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), and Amazon (AMZN) recruit their employees. Under the order, companies would have to prioritize hiring American workers, and if they must hire foreign workers, then they must prioritize the most highly compensated, according to the report.

"Our country's immigration policies should be designed and implemented to serve, first and foremost, the U.S. national interest," the draft says, according to a copy obtained by Bloomberg.

"Visa programs for foreign workers … should be administered in a manner that protects the civil rights of American workers and current lawful residents, and that prioritizes the protection of American workers — our forgotten working people — and the jobs they hold," the draft states.

Trump's order affects a number of visa programs including H-1B, L-1, E-2, and B1. H-1B visas are commonly used among tech companies to recruit high-skilled workers from overseas when they can't find domestic talent to fill positions.

The new administration's proposed order would also create more transparency around visa programs by publishing statistics on who uses the programs within a month of the federal government's fiscal year.

Trump's original executive order banned immigration from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen, and Somalia. Over the weekend, a number of tech companies, startups, and others in the industry voiced support for the American Civil Liberties Union , and joined in protests at New York and San Francisco airports in a show of solidarity with the United States' immigrant community.

Read the complete Bloomberg report here.



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