Six more Republican congressmen have added their voices calling for President Donald Trump to expand his ban on most immigration to include guest-worker visas.
The half dozen House lawmakers, led by Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Biggs from Arizona, asked Trump in a letter Wednesday to halt the guest-worker program for at least one year to help those who have lost their jobs during the novel coronavirus outbreak, TheHill.com reported.
“We should not force Americans to compete with foreign nationals while jobs are scarce, and Americans should get priority consideration for employment when businesses are able to reopen," the letter reads. "We urge you to suspend granting any new guest-worker visas for at least one year, and potentially longer depending on the strength of the economy."
The letter, also signed by Reps. Paul Gosar of Arizona, Louie Gohmert and Brian Babin of Texas, Mo Brooks of Alabama and Steve King of Iowa, comes two weeks after Republican Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas, Charles Grassley of Iowa, Josh Hawley of Missouri and Tom Cotton of Arkansas wrote to Trump to ask him to suspend H-1B and H-2B visas.
The guest-worker or temporary visas allow companies to hire workers to fill short-term labor shortages.
H-1B visas cover skilled workers and are popular with tech companies while H-2B visas usually involve seasonal employees in industries such as agriculture or resorts.
Thirty-six million people have applied for unemployment compensation since restrictions and prohibitions on some businesses went into effect in March to halt the spread of the novel coronavirus. The unemployment rate reached 14.7 percent in April, the highest rate since the Great Depression in the 1930s.
An executive order was signed by the president last month, suspending certain green cards from being issued for 60 days, a move the administration said was aimed at preserving jobs during the coronavirus outbreak. The six House members, however, said that did not include the temporary guest-worker visa program.
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