At 02:45 PM 6/15/98 -0700, Laurie Dougherty wrote: >There has been discussion on pen-l about the validity of claims that >there is a shortage of skilled workers in high tech labor markets. >Today's Boston Globe has an article about the software industry >comparing the skills shortage claim to the high unemployment or >underemployment among older workers with a history in the industry. > >http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe/globehtml/166/Software_job_glut_eludes_old er_work.htm A question: What defines labor market in computer software industry? Programming does not require the knowledge of English (or any other language for that matter) or the presence in any particular physical location. Different parts of a program can be written by programers in Bombay, Sofia and Shanghai, sent via e-mail to the US (or Europe) assembled and encrypted by a single person. With that in mind, why would computer companies take the effort of changing immigration laws for programmers to 'beef up' the US market, instead of outsourcing overseas? Regards, Wojtek Sokolowski
