I, H1B - Adapted from I, Pencil

I now provide you with the modern version of the 'I, Pencil' essay.

Title: I, H1-B Worker: The Illusion of Cheap Labor and the Frozen Ladder of Prosperity  

[Adapted from Leonard E. Read’s “I, Pencil”]  

 

 I, H1-B Worker  

I am an H1-B worker—a temporary skilled laborer brought to the United States under the pretense of filling a "shortage" that no one can quite define. Corporations claim I make pencils cheaper, that my presence keeps innovation alive, that without me, America would fall behind. But peel back the story, and you’ll see a different truth: I am not here because the market needs me. I am here because the system has been rigged to ensure that the wealth of this nation stays locked in the hands of those who control it, while the next generation is told to wait its turn.  

 The Myth of the Indispensable Foreign Worker  

They say no American can do what I do—or at least, not at the price they want to pay. They claim that without H1-B workers, the cost of technology, medicine, and engineering would skyrocket, that pencils would become unaffordable luxuries. But this is a carefully crafted illusion.  

1. The Broken Market for Talent – If there were truly a shortage, wages for skilled workers would rise, universities would expand programs, and companies would invest in training. Instead, salaries in tech and engineering have stagnated, internships have dried up, and entry-level jobs demand years of experience. Why? Because why pay more when you can import desperation?  

2. The Bait-and-Switch of "Cheap Labor" – I am told I am "highly skilled," yet my visa ties me to a single employer. If I complain about wages or conditions, I can be deported. The threat of losing my status keeps me docile. This is not a free market—it is a feudal system where corporations, not lords, hold the power.  

3. The Frozen Ladder – The promise of America was that each generation could climb higher than the last. But today, the gatekeepers of industry—CEOs, investors, tenured professors—refuse to step aside. They cry about "labor shortages" while shutting out young Americans who lack "experience," then turn to H1-Bs who have no choice but to accept lower pay and worse conditions. The ladder isn’t gone; it’s being held out of reach.  

 The Unseen Cost of "Cheaper Pencils"  

Every time a company replaces a potential American hire with an H1-B worker, it isn’t just saving money—it’s entrenching a system where:  

- Wages stay artificially low (why train an American when you can rent a foreign worker?)  

- Innovation stagnates (why invest in automation or better education if cheap labor is guaranteed?)  

- Mobility dies (why promote from within when you can import a pre-trained employee?)  

They say this keeps America competitive. But true competition would mean letting wages rise, letting new talent rise, letting the market work. Instead, the H1-B system is a corporate hack—a way to bypass the natural pressures of supply and demand.  

 The Lesson of the H1-B Worker  

I am not your enemy. I am a symptom of a deeper disease—an economy where those at the top have rewritten the rules to keep their wealth intact. They use me as an excuse: "Without H1-Bs, everything would collapse!" But the truth is, without artificial dependence on H1-Bs, the market would adapt. Salaries would rise. Training programs would return. Young Americans would get their shot.  

So when you hear that H1-B workers make pencils cheaper, ask yourself: Cheaper for whom? And at what cost to the future?  

The free market is not supposed to be a tool for corporate feudalism. It is supposed to be a ladder—one that each generation can climb. But as long as the H1-B system lets the powerful freeze that ladder in place, the pencils may stay cheap… but the American Dream won’t.  

And that is the tragedy of it all.