There has been a nearly 60 percent jump in computer occupation job vacancies to 1.4 million in the past year in the United States. However, the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) on Monday said that the key issue is talent gap.
“There are 11 job vacancies in the computer occupation field for one IT worker, who is applying for that job. This has grown from six in the last year to 11,” Shivendra Singh, VP & Head-Global Trade Development, NASSCOM, told CNBC-TV18.
According to Singh, the problem can be bridged in two ways. The first is to work on growing the talent piece in the US, for which the tech industry has spent more than a billion dollars working with nearly 130 colleges and universities to upskill and get more employees.
The other is to get short-term high-skilled visa workers, and those numbers vary for 2021 and 2022 as many employees have been working from home.
He explained that non-immigrant workers play a critical role until the time demand and supply match in the US. "We are very keen that we get the demand and supply match so that the dependency on visas comes down drastically," he said.
His remark comes at a time when the appointment wait time for first-time non-immigrant visitor visa applicants to the United States in India has surpassed over 700 days, which means a waiting period of two years. Those planning to travel to the United States may have to wait till October 2024 to obtain a visiting visa.
Meanwhile, Indians with H-1B visas working in America cannot come home for personal reasons as they are not getting timely appointments to get their visa stamped at the US Consulate in India to return to America.
If a person leaves the US to make a trip to India, the person runs the risk of losing their job if they cannot make it back in time to the US within a certain period.
According to NASSCOM’s Singh, the challenge is that there is an interview process, and the moment that is required, there is a delay. The second is the limited appointment window, as a result of which individuals are unable to get the appointment and hence, the tremendous delays.
“The critical issue is that work gets hampered as a result of this. In terms of B-1 and B-2 visas, where there is a tremendous delay, including DropBox facilities, which were supposed to speed up things, but even there the appointment window is short. Companies are not able to get people on time due to which projects tend to suffer,” he told CNBC-TV18.
Most large companies are facing this issue. "We are told that around September-October, things should improve," he said.
Singh also pointed out a pent-up demand, reflected in the travel requirements since relaxations began.
(Edited by : Kanishka Sarkar)
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