NEWS
The New Hampshire
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
15
US curbs work program for foreign college students By HOLBROOK MOHR Associated Press
JACKSON, Miss. - The State Department put a freeze Monday on expansion of a program that lines up summer jobs in the U.S. for foreign college students, citing persistent complaints about young people getting ripped off and exploited. At issue is the J-1 visa program, which began in 1963 as a way to encourage cultural understanding by allowing young adults from other countries to spend their summers living, working and traveling in the U.S.
to work as a stripper in Detroit in 2005. The State Department, which oversees the program, said Monday that is it limiting the number of future participants to this year’s level, or about 103,000 students, and that it has temporarily stopped accepting any new “sponsors” - companies that help students arrange for visas and find jobs and housing in return for a fee. Most of the abuses have been blamed on unregulated, third-party labor brokers who work with the students, but critics say the sponsors have done little to protect them.
“The worst part is that when you go to get
your visa at the embassy, they say to you that you have rights, you are protected, and there is somebody who will help you, all you need is to call a number.”
John Bilan
Economics student from Romania Nearly a year ago, The Associated Press reported numerous abuses, including cases in which students were put up in shabby, crowded apartments and forced to work grueling hours at backbreaking, menial jobs for $1 an hour or less. Some ended up going to homeless shelters for food or a place to sleep. At least one woman told the AP she was beaten and forced
In the meantime, the State Department said, it is taking a closer look at the program’s regulations. Under the program, foreign students are granted visas for up to four months and often land jobs at hotels, resorts and restaurants. Participation has boomed from about 20,000 students in 1996 to a peak of more than 150,000 in 2008, and roughly 1 million foreign students
have taken part in the past decade. Last summer, after years of complaints about abuses, the State Department revised it rules to shift more responsibility onto its 53 designated sponsors. “Yet, despite these new regulations, the number of program complaints received this year continues to remain unacceptably high and includes, among other issues, reports of improper work placements, fraudulent job offers, job cancellations upon participant arrival in the United States, inappropriate work hours, and problems regarding housing and transportation,” the State Department said Monday in announcing the freeze in the Federal Register. State Department officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. John Bilan, 22, an economics student from Romania who worked during the summer at a candy factory in Pennsylvania, said the changes are not enough, and come too late for students like him. Bilan said he would like to see the sponsor he used shut down and the program return to a focus on cultural experiences. “It should not be about bringing cheap labor for American companies,” Bilan said. “And the worst part is that when you go to get your visa at the embassy, they say to you that you have rights, you are protected, and there is somebody who will help you, all you need is to call a number. But in reality when you
stand up for your rights, the sponsor representatives come to your house to try to intimidate you.” Danielle Grijalva, director of the Committee for Safety of Foreign Exchange Students, said abuses in the program “harm the reputation of the United States.” The moratorium on accepting new sponsors “should remain in effect until the State Department implements even stronger rules sanctioning sponsors that retaliate, intimidate and coerce students to remain quiet when reporting violations of U.S. laws,” she said. The J-1 program has become big business over the years, generating millions for the participating employers and middleman companies. The students pay fees that reach several thousand dollars. Many employers say they need the seasonal help to meet the demands of tourist season. Businesses that hire a foreign student over an American can save 8 percent because they don’t have to pay Medicare, Social Security and unemployment taxes. Also, the foreigners must have their own health insurance. George Collins, an inspector with the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Department in the Florida Panhandle, said Monday he is glad the State Department is recognizing problems with the program, but he is skeptical about how much of a difference will result. He said the State Department has failed over the years to deal
Romney touts fiscal plan, avoids fray on Iowa trip By THOMAS BEAUMONT Associated Press
DUBUQUE, Iowa - Trying to stay above his party’s fray, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney focused Monday on shoring up support in this early-voting state and presenting himself as the GOP’s most electable alternative to President Barack Obama. The former Massachusetts governor stressed his recent fiscal proposals and business credentials at stops in eastern Iowa’s Dubuque and Scott counties, where he won during his campaign for the Republican nomination four years ago. Romney said nothing about the latest allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior against fellow national GOP poll leader Herman Cain. Instead, Romney stuck to the script during a 15-minute speech stressing his private-sector background and proposal to trim federal spending. He tried to remind voters with his words and campaign schedule
that he is running as much against the Democratic incumbent as he is trying to distinguish himself from his GOP rivals. “I believe that one of the reasons we’ve had such a hard time getting our economy going again is because of the huge deficits being racked up by this president, and by politicians in Washington,” Romney told about 100 GOP activists at a Dubuque sheet-metal products manufacturer. He said nothing about Cain or any of his rivals for the nomination. His only mention of the nominating campaign came in an oblique reference to Iowa’s leadoff nominating caucuses, for which Romney has campaigned lightly but quietly has begun paying more attention to in recent weeks. “You guys were helpful for me last time around, and I expect you’ll be helpful for me this time,” he said. “I’m planning on it.” Romney has sought to more tightly control the message coming from his campaign than he did
four years ago. In Dubuque, he tested an update of his standard campaign speech, incorporating the new fiscal policy he proposed last week. In it, Romney pledges to cut $500 billion from the federal deficit in his first four years in office. “I will slay the deficit beast,” he said. He shook hands with members of the audience but answered no questions from them or the corps of local and national reporters tailing him. Monday’s visit was Romney’s fourth to Iowa this year and it came 18 days after his last trip, a stark shift from his aggressive, $10 million campaign for the 2008 caucuses that ended in a disappointing second-place finish. Aides have sought to minimize expectations this time around while quietly staying in close touch with Romney’s 2008 campaign supporters in hopes of a surprise Iowa finish heading into the New Hampshire primary, where expectations for him remained high.
Romney recently said he would like to win Iowa. He has promised a more aggressive travel schedule in the final seven weeks and plans more than one telephone event where he talks to thousands of Iowans and answers questions. Romney has polled at or near the top of surveys of likely GOP caucusgoers since entering the race in June, while GOP rivals Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry and Cain have ignited curiosity as more conservative alternatives. He has been unable to pull away from the GOP pack but continues to pose the greatest threat to Obama in national surveys. In a Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted last week, one-third of Republicans and GOP-leaning independents said Romney has the best chance of beating Obama in November 2012. And Romney’s path Monday, south along the Mississippi River from Dubuque to Davenport, follows the route Obama took on his national bus tour in the fall.
Ethanol spill contained in Pasco rail yard after crash STAFF Associated Press
PASCO, Wash. - Two trains collided in a railroad yard at Pasco, causing two locomotives and 10 rail cars to derail early Monday, spilling 10,000 gallons of ethanol and some corn syrup.
Emergency responders plugged the punctured tanker of fuel additive just before noon and lifted an evacuation that had kept about 20 workers away from nearby businesses in the Port of Pasco. There are no homes nearby. There were no injuries and no significant environmental damage,
said Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman Gus Melonas. Another tanker spilled some corn syrup, but Melonas described it as just a drip. The ethanol was contained by dikes and sprayed with foam. Cleanup work began right away and there was no risk to the nearby
Columbia or Snake rivers, Melonas said. The derailment should be cleared by Tuesday, but it only blocked part of the switching yard. Comments,critiques,complaints?Contactzackcoxat
tnh.me@unh.edu
with the “severe exploitation” of young people, and he has called problems with the program “epidemic” in his area, a tourist region with white sand beaches on the Gulf of Mexico. Year after year, he said, he has seen labor recruiters charge students exorbitant rent for packing them into filthy, sparsely furnished apartments so crowded that some have to sleep in shifts, a practice known as “hotbunking.” Last August, dozens of workers protested conditions at candy factory that packs Hershey chocolates in Pennsylvania, complaining of hard physical labor and pay deductions for rent that often left them with little money. Under the program, the visas are issued year-round, since students come from both the Northern and Southern hemispheres on their summer breaks. They work all over the country, at theme parks in Florida and California, fish factories in Alaska and ski destinations in Colorado and Montana. The State Department has said most participants enjoy the program, make memories and friends they keep for life, and often apply to participate more than once. But critics of the program say the weak economy has made it much harder for students to earn back the money they pay just to participate. Many students complained that they were threatened with deportation or eviction if they quit their jobs.
In Brief Pastor of NH city’s oldest church resigns CONCORD, N.H. - The pastor at the oldest church in Concord, N.H., is resigning, less than six months after surviving a vote on whether to remove him. The Rev. David Keller has led the First Congregational Church since 2000. His last day is Dec. 8. Keller told the Concord Monitor that some people feel very strongly that the church will not thrive as long as he’s there. He said his resignation letter was mailed to the congregation Thursday. He has started looking for another parish ministry. Keller started the church’s cold-weather shelter in 2004.
NH suicide prevention conference being held BEDFORD, N.H. - State groups working to prevent suicide in New Hampshire are holding a conference to share ideas. The New Hampshire Suicide Prevention Council, state chapter of the Alliance on Mental Illness and the New Hampshire Youth Suicide Prevention Assembly are holding the eighth annual New Hampshire Suicide and Prevention Conference titled Healing, Hope and Health on Friday in Bedford.