In a continuation of a troubling trend, a Florida based company was found to be replacing American IT workers with foreign-workers this week. Catalina Marketing has replaced about 50 IT workers in favor of H-1B visa holders from one of the largest outsourcing firms used by companies in the U.S., Mindtree.
PETITION: Tell Congress we don't need MORE foreign-worker H-1B visas!
As NumbersUSA described with Disney, employees affected by the layoffs are reportedly being asked to train their foreign replacements.
"Employees are expected to personally train their Indian replacements, reverse roles and watch their replacement work," said one IT worker who spoke on the condition of anonymity, fearing retaliation by the company. "Once management is satisfied with the transition, the American worker is laid off."
After the report surfaced, Florida Senator and Republican Presidential hopeful, Marco Rubio, broke his silence on H-1B abuses and called for companies to be held accountable.
"Of course we're concerned about these reports," a spokeswoman for Rubio's Senate office told The Daily Caller News Foundation in an emailed statement. "If the program was misused, then people should be held accountable."
Sen. Rubio's office went on to call for reforms to the H-1B system intended to protect American workers.
"The program is designed to protect, not displace, American workers and any misuse should be addressed," Rubio's spokeswoman told TheDCNF. "Senator Rubio supports reforms that would make the system stronger and less subject to abuse without unduly burdening American businesses that work within the program in good faith."
However, the Daily Caller reports that Sen. Rubio declined to explain why he is sponsoring the "I-squared" bill that would triple the number of H-1B visa holders businesses could hire every year.
Former Florida governor and presidential candidate Jeb Bush declined to comment. Bush is also a big supporter of the H-1B program, along with the majority of the 2016 candidates.
For more on this story, read My Fox: Tampa Bay and The Daily Caller
