You may have read about proposals in the “stimulus” legislation that would limit the ability of companies that get federal bailout aid from hiring H-1B temporary professional workers.  The Economic Times provides a good summary.  If this bars remain in the final bill, that’s a very bad sign for immigration reform.  H-1B workers add no more than 85,000 workers a year to the workforce.  That’s not enough to impact the wages and working conditions of U.S. workers.  Plus, it is such a hassle these days to get H-1B workers, that employers generally go through the process only when they really need the worker.