Explain Layoff / Bench and out of status?

[Gc_puli]

I would like to understand differnt issues/situation if one H-1B employee is out of job or facing a job threat.

I am working for a manufacturing company. I am the first H1 visa holder and the direct employee in this company. Number of IT workers are saying that they are in BENCH. That means employer is not paying salary? Is it considered as out of status? What is the legal USCIS term for Bench? Since I am not a IT worker, I would like to understand different legal terms.

Suppose if H1b worker lost a job, is he immediatly out of status on the day one? or Is he in status till the employer inform the USCIS?

If employer layoff h1b worker due to temprory business problem, Can employer employ the H1 employee after few months with same H1 petition? Meantime what could be the legal status of the employee in US (though H1 visa and I-94 still valid for another year)?

suppose if H1 employee is not aware of Layoff till that bad day, Is there any option other than going back to home country and still to maintain a legal staus in US?

 

[joyd]

I would like to understand differnt issues/situation if one H-1B employee is out of job or facing a job threat.

I am working for a manufacturing company. I am the first H1 visa holder and the direct employee in this company. Number of IT workers are saying that they are in BENCH. That means employer is not paying salary? Is it considered as out of status? What is the legal USCIS term for Bench? Since I am not a IT worker, I would like to understand different legal terms.

Suppose if H1b worker lost a job, is he immediatly out of status on the day one? or Is he in status till the employer inform the USCIS?

If employer layoff h1b worker due to temprory business problem, Can employer employ the H1 employee after few months with same H1 petition? Meantime what could be the legal status of the employee in US (though H1 visa and I-94 still valid for another year)?

suppose if H1 employee is not aware of Layoff till that bad day, Is there any option other than going back to home country and still to maintain a legal staus in US?

Not sure if there's a legal USCIS term for bench. Bench is a consulting term when you are not on project, it does not mean you are not paid. If you are on H1, you must get paid from day 1, if your employer is not paying you, it's illegal, you can report that to USCIS and they will black list your company for H1 violations, they won't be able to hire H1s again.

If one gets laid off, he is technically out of status, however you do not have to leave the country immediately, USCIS allows you to look for another job within a reasonable period of time, some say it's 90 days some say it could be more, definition of reasonable in this case is vague.

Hope this helps!