With
an eye on India's vast market, a leading US trade group has engaged two
powerful firms to lobby for changes in the proposed comprehensive
immigration reform bill to attract skilled technical professionals from
India.
The US-India Business Council ( USIBC)
has retained top lobby firm Patton Boggs for lobbying at the scale of
the US-India civil nuclear advocacy effort, augmented by a public
relations campaign to be spearheaded by APCO Worldwide.
Two former US ambassadors to India, Frank Wisner and Tim Roemer, will lead the effort at Patton Boggs and APCO respectively.
"USIBC
supports the free movement of technical professionals. This freedom of
movement is essential to US job creation, and is at the heart of our
future economic prosperity," said USIBC President Ron Somers.
"USIBC
endorses immigration reform, but the legislation as currently written
restricts a company's ability to source skilled talent, which hamstrings
American competitiveness," Somers added.
Meanwhile,
USIBC also announced the establishment of the Coalition for Jobs and
Growth to help ensure that American businesses of all types have access
to the international expertise they need to continue to drive forward
economic growth and job creation.
"The
USIBC-led Coalition for Jobs and Growth believes that an open American
economy helps give the United States the influence it needs to ensure
that other economies stay open as well," it said in a media release.
"India's
vast market can only be encouraged to open to global trade,
facilitating greater American exports and investment, setting the
standard for the protection of intellectual property, if the American
market maintains highest standards and remains reciprocally open," it
said.
As the US economy recovers, the US is
relying on high technology requiring skilled professionals to drive
efficiencies and spur growth, USIBC said.
"Until
the US can produce sufficient numbers of skilled professionals
domestically, talent must be sourced from around the globe so US firms
can outpace global competition," it said.
The Coalition's members are drawn from the nearly 400 businesses, trade associations and public policy members of the USIBC.
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