Abstract:
According to Business Insider, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella had a bizarre day on Thursday local time in the United States. On Thursday morning, U.S. Vice President Vance held a press conference to announce that the United States would suspend an important visa program for Microsoft employees.
Trump awards Nadella Medal of Science and Technology Innovation
Although multiple technology companies were affected by the action, Vance criticized Microsoft by name, claiming that no company in the United States has abused the Permanent Labor Certification Program (PERM) more seriously than Microsoft.
“If you do the math, for every employee Microsoft lays off, it will be replaced by 1.5 foreign contract workers,” Vance said. “This system is ridiculous, and yet we have allowed it to exist in this country for so long.”
Vance slams Microsoft for visa fraud
As Vance blasted Microsoft, a giant banner behind him read: "Protect American Workers" and "Fight Visa Fraud."
However, just a few hours later, US President Trump began to praise Nadella again.
At a White House event celebrating a "new golden age" of science, Nadella walked up to Trump and accepted the National Medal of Science, Technology and Innovation. Don’t forget, the Trump administration just accused Microsoft of visa fraud.
Trump said at the event: "For more than three decades, Nadella has been a key figure in Microsoft's transformation. He has completely transformed the company and empowered businesses, students and consumers around the world with the most powerful and even unimaginable software in history." Afterwards, the two took a group photo.
Nadella posted on X, thanking Trump for the "great honor" but did not mention Vance's accusation.
A Microsoft spokesperson shared a company blog post with Business Insider. The article stated that of Microsoft's approximately 6,000 H-1B visa applications, 80% were submitted for existing employees rather than for recruiting new employees.
"Microsoft only submits H-1B applications for people who meet the strict criteria for this visa category," Microsoft said. "The vast majority of Microsoft's employees in the United States are Americans."
The embarrassing scene Nadella encountered on Thursday was the latest example of Trump putting business leaders in a dilemma. Compared with previous presidents, Trump has been more actively involved in business affairs.
Trump has used his executive influence to encourage business leaders to support his initiatives, such as the Trump Account savings program for American children. At the same time, he also lashes out at his opponents. As recently as Thursday, Trump said anyone who doesn't support his decision to officially rename AI "superintelligence" will be considered an "enemy" by the White House.
Comments