Following strong criticism from India over the language used to describe Indian professionals working in the United States, US Vice President JD Vance has acknowledged that his description of H-1B visa workers as “indentured servants” was poorly worded.
Speaking at a CBS News town hall, he said his comments were aimed at companies and the visa system that can leave foreign employees dependent on their employers to stay in the country. He said that his choice of words had been imperfect and clarified that he was referring to certain H-1B holders and employment practices, rather than the entire category of visa workers.
“To the extent my rhetoric has been imperfect, that’s on me. What I said about certain visa holders, certain H-1B (holders), is not (for) the entire category. This is what happens often… when they come in with an H1B and the company is certifying that they are doing a job that they cannot find an alternative American labourer apt for it. Importantly, their visa is their only lifeline to the United States of America,” he said.
He argued that workers could face deportation if they lost their jobs or disagreed with their employers, giving companies considerable control over their employment and immigration status.
Vance targets H-1B visa system
Explaining his use of the phrase “indentured servants”, Vance said the term was meant to describe the power employers hold over foreign workers whose right to stay in the United States depends on their jobs.
“So, when I say indentured servitude, that is not a criticism of H1B visa holders; that is the criticism of the company, which brings a person who sometimes will lay off an American worker and knows that if they complain, if they have disagreement with the boss, they could just lose their job… They can be shipped back, which I think gives way too much power to the employer. Maybe my rhetoric has been imperfect here… it is the criticism of the visa system that allowed people to be treated as indentured servants, as they can be shipped to their countries of origin,” he added.
He had used the phrase earlier this month during a news conference on alleged visa fraud. He accused foreign outsourcing companies of using H-1B workers to undercut the wages of American employees and said the practice allowed businesses to reduce labour costs.
“If you are working as an H-1B visa in the United States of America, you are earning $20,000 less than an American citizen hired in the same position. If you were brought in by one of these foreign outsourcing firms, you are making $48,000 less than an American citizen in a similar position,” the vice president said.
He also accused companies of replacing American workers with foreign employees brought into the country through the visa programme.
“So, I am sure that everybody here understands the game that is being played. You bring in indentured servants from outside the country, you lay off American workers and, if you are a corporation, you make a ton of money by undercutting the wages of American workers, replacing them with people who frankly shouldn’t be in the United States of America to begin with,” he said.
India calls terminology offensive
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had strongly objected to Vance’s description, saying it disregarded the contribution of Indian professionals to the American economy and its innovation sector.
“We have also seen some comments in this context by the US vice president. We believe that such descriptions are unwarranted and ignore the fact that Indian professionals in the United States are highly educated and skilled contributors to its economy and innovation ecosystem,” it said in a statement.
The ministry also referred to the historical associations of the term used by Vance.
“Indeed, the history of the United States itself has been shaped by generations of immigrants whose labour, enterprise and innovation have contributed to its growth and prosperity. Resorting to terminology that carries painful historical and colonial legacy connotations is deeply offensive,” it added.
