San Francisco Snow, New H-2B rules

Posted by admin on December 19, 2008 · Leave a Comment 

December 19, 2008

Volume 6, Number 40

Dear Friends,

December in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin is white and about 10 degrees (-12 Celsius); December in Jackson Hole, Wyoming is white and about 5 degrees (-15 Celsius); but here in San Francisco, California December is green, with some grey, and about 50 degrees (10 Celsius) – usually. This week the San Francisco Bay Area changed color as a Canadian storm blew through bringing in cold air and white snow! Children who usually play basketball in t-shirts this time of year were throwing snowballs and building snowmen. Parents who are usually hard at work took the day off to go sledding with the kids who they took out of school. Apparently, for weather-deprived Californians, understanding the look and feel of real snow is an important educational experience.

H-2B Visa Changes
On December 18 the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services submitted its Final Rule changing the requirements of the H-2B visa program. One major change is that neither employers nor recruiters can impose fees on prospective H-2B participants.

For more information please see http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f 6d1a/?vgnextoid=332cef590da4e110VgnVCM1000004718190aRCRD&vgnextchannel=68439 c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

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Thanksgiving International; H2B Visa Cap Numbers

Posted by admin on November 26, 2008 · Leave a Comment 

November 26, 2008

Volume 6, Number 37

Dear Friends,

As people from around the world come to the United States to live and work, they often adopt many of our – formerly foreign – customs. Like tomorrow’s celebration of Thanksgiving. While, back in Algeria or Albania for example, one would never consider eating a turkey with cranberry sauce, once in the United States, people from everywhere can be found at a Safeway grocery store purchasing “Stove Top Stuffing,” gravy and pumpkin pies – items that can’t even be found back “at home.” I believe it is safe to say that most of these newcomers learn to enjoy our traditional meal on Thanksgiving day – even if they can’t quite understand the other Thanksgiving tradition that us Americans can’t live without: 6 hours of football on television.

H2B Visa Cap Updates
This week the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service updated their cap numbers for the H visa, and as of, November 21, there were already 4,663 H-2B applicants approved with another 5,602 pending of the 33,000 available for the second half of the 2009 fiscal year which does not begin until April 1 of 2009. (The J Visa which we use, does not have a formal numerical cap nor does it require the job to be seasonal – it is always available.)

We are now accepting applications for a variety of hospitality-related jobs located in the New York area and the Mid-West for the spring of 2009.

Hope you enjoy your turkey this week, with or without the football,

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