Pakistan · World · Independent Digital Newsroom
If they lose that job, they have to leave the country.”Across the tech sector, there have been more than 131,000 layoffs in 2026 alone, according to Layoffs.fyi, which tracks job cuts across the tech and startup industries.Neither Adobe nor Microsoft responded to Al Jazeera’s request for comment.Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling also said that several major information technology firms will be suspended from the programme as well.
Among them are Indian tech giants Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services.The Department of Labor also said it had uncovered $22bn worth of visa fraud.“Today we are protecting something far more valuable than any dollar amount.
We are protecting the American worker,” Sonderling said.During the news conference, officials also announced a crackdown on alleged J-1 visa fraud involving nine universities, including MIT, Harvard, Yale, Stanford and Cal State, amid allegations that they brought in international students to undercut US wages.
A J-1 visa allows foreign nationals to enter the US temporarily for education or cultural programmes.
Universities use these visas to bring in international PhD candidates or scholars.Vance claimed that when schools employ an American as a researcher, that person earns $20,000 more than someone brought in under a J-1 visa.Al Jazeera asked for data supporting this claim, but the White House did not respond.Microsoft’s stock slumped 7.5 percent on the heels of the news, while Adobe was up 4 percent in midday trading on Thursday.
Visa probe also targets universities for allegedly exploiting international students to reduce US wage costs.
