Is a GC worth the trouble ?

M

maxx

Registered Users (C)
I applied for my GC back in Dec' 2001 and visit this forum for info. Most of the postings are by people
Waiting for long periods of time ( most often annoying and stressful wait )
on their GC approvals and once they get it ...most of 'em proclaim ...Freedom ...

I am a software guy and frankly ...looking at what's going on in the Market .. I doubt
whether having a GC makes getting a good job any easier ..

With tremendous amount of outsourcing and hourly rates going down ...is there any future for
software professionals anymore in this country ?

I have known enough people who have considerable software expi ...either not getting good
jobs for long periods of time ..or taking up jobs that are way below their skill set ...

Jobs are very hard to come by and usually ...the assignments are away from where one lives and on top
of that ....most of 'em land up becoming short-term stints ( with not much money paid either ) ...

GC makes life a lot easy because there is no status problem but other than software jobs ...there are hard-nosed blue collar
jobs that many people are not willing to take ...

After coming all the way to this county to make a better living, I have seen people surviving somehow and also
many of 'em are way stressed out ...

So is there a silver linning or things are going to turn from bad to worse to worst for software guys ?

and hence the question ...is a GC worth all the trauma ?


Any comments are appreciated ...



Maxx.
 
This is a good topic for discussion!

I am not in software field, so my experience is not representative of a majority of employment based GC cases.

I too think the same, is my life any better just because I have a GC now? Probably not but I need not worry about another H1 visa. I am now on a level playing field with 275 million other americans! Job opportunities are certainly lesser in the last 2 years.

I was fortunate to be with an employer who is stable and has a diverse product line. I was the ONLY guy on H1 and my employer had NEVER done a GC for anyone! It was a unique experience both for me and my employer. I am with my current employer for 2.5 years.

My opinion is that GC is OK, but not worth all the stress that went with it.
 
What I think...

Maxx
I agree with you that the GC is not everything, especially if you can't find a job with your expertise or what you spend years working hard on your education.
I lot of people I know, they get the GC to keep the bridges and their options with the homeland open.
For me, coming from Iraq, I wouldn't imagine just two month ago what happend last month will be a reality or a dream. Now, I am counting the day to get my I-485 completed to go back beacuse there will be a hell of opportunities there. I don't want to abandoned
the GC ( if I am lucky and get approved)!!!!, but also I don't want to cut all bridges, too.
I think you have to take it from positive point of view in that you have better option than the Americans, in that you have two homes instead of one.
 
In current situations, GC is helpful

to improvise the opportunities to get a job.. not to think it as a life saver. I come across several people who had GC feel proud of it and degrades people who does not have it. This is a different story all together..

Since most of the companies neither want to process H1's nor willing to recruit to H1 candidates, GC may improvise the chances of getting job quicker than H1 candidates. It eliminates the day by day stress and worries of going out of status. In addition, if you earn a lot of money on software jobs so far:D and would like to start a new business, GC will be helpful to settle down without worrying about status.

And of course, the biggest advantage is to claim unemployment benefits in case of layoffs.

Other than that GC is a mere shit and no one wants it for any other purpose..
 
"I come across several people who had GC feel proud of it and degrades people who does not have it. This is a different story all together..". I concur with Vijguy - GC is not your identity. It is just a piece of plastic that lets you sleep without having nightmares that you had thorugh your F1 and H1 days.

GC is a means to an end, how useful it is depends on how useful you want it to be. To many, it is just a stamp on the passport that lets you avoid the visa lines while making the annual philgrimage home. To the rest, it opens up doors to opportunities that you cannot explore on H1. GC will mean a lot if you want to start a business, go to med-school, study law part time, invest in real-estate, be free-lance whatever .....
... or you could be just another software guy with a plastic.
 
The trade is between GC and STRESS.

Stress is in our hands to some extent, and lessen it thinking that GC is NOT THAT ESSENTIAL...

So the profit ( of what ever we get out of that GC) will be then something valueable
:D:D
 
GC will not fetch you a Job, but it removes the restrictions on you
for a job change. That's major relief. The stress we all face while waiting for GC is due to the fact that we came to this country with empty pockets and we are all constantly afraid of losing job.
Losing a job not only puts us financially in a bad position but also
makes us fear about our GC because our company may lay us off
or we may get a RFE when we don't have any pay stubs etc. If we
are working in our home country, then the stress won't be this bad because if we lose job, we can goto our parents, relax in the sofa and watch TV till we are relieved. Here we don't have that luxury. We are without any support here and living an uncertain life. So mere getting the GC is unlikey to relieve the stress. The stress goes off only with financial independence.
On the final note, life will be very tough without GC here. More and more companies are stopping entertaining H1's. Regarding the job prospects for Software guys like us, it's going to be increasingly difficult in the future. I don't see any chances of rates going up or jobs going up. There will be two kinds of people : Those who have jobs and those who haven't.
 
It would be a big help while negotiating the salary, the kind of projects that you would like to work on and chosing the job location (especially for those who have other dependencies like spouse going to a college or her job location). Also, one gets the independence to change companies and has some control in the direction of your career. Basically it becomes a level playing ground with no sponsorship issues but one still needs to be good to be employed. And the sector we are working in has to do well for us to benefit from it.
 
I fully agree with Satish, me and my friends experience was that a lot of emplyers are not preferring H1 as there are lot of people without jobs who has already a GC/Citizen. My brother has to go back after getting repeated answers from employers that they cannot sponsor a visa. A GC would atleast give you some advantage. But now everywhere the mantra is offshore to India (atleast in my field Embedded SW development for Telecom and Automotive applications). Some one was telling recently that on an avergae the time to find another job is 6 to 7 months. I myself got lay off in June last year and with the grace of Shirdi Baba got my present job in Jan.
 
Do you really really want to converse with the graceful, kind, polite Officer at the <whatever> consulate in India every time you want to come into USA? Either that, or get your GC!
GC helps you mainly to stop worrying about such dire issues as the above, and frees you from a lot of job-type, job-duration constraints. It won't make your life less stressful. Stress is a part of your life in USA. The other day I saw a clinic for dealing with stress in the city I live in - it was on the most unreachable side of a super-high-illegal-speed-traffic road with zero parking space for at least a mile around it.. the problem is that some basic concepts of living are missing from this society.
 
I agree with all the postings in this thread so far. Every one seems to agree with the fact that GC gives you flexibility and cushion in your life in US. For average family of 2+2, the minimum expenditure ranges from $1500 - $2000 per month (Bay area and other major metro residents - don't bang me on this), which you can afford as long as you are on the job. If you don't have GC and don't have a job, you have to draw this money from your valuable savings account. Most of the people say 'You are a free bird when you have GC' is for the fact that, you can get part of this money, required for your living, from the unemployment benifit program.

I am from India and the education system over there forces you to choose your area when you pass your 10th grade (central schools exempted). Due to parents pressure, society pressures and conditions most of the students do not end up in the areas in which they are really interested. You also, do not know 100%, what you want to be at that age. Being in US, one will have an excellent opportunity to realise the unfulfilled dreams. For that GC really helps.

Some days appear to be longer and some goes by very fast, though they have equal 24 hrs. If you wait and bother too much about your GC approval, it always appears taking more and more time. If you don't bother about it, then you don't feel that bad. My advice to all the people waiting for their approval is 'Have patience and do not think too much about your GC. It will come when it is supposed to come'.

"Hence the question ...is a GC worth all the trauma - doesn't arise at all"

Good luck to all
Sreeni
 
My 2 cents

Not to have a GC takes away the option to live in USA. My profession (law) is wonderful in this country. I do not have to work within a system that makes it impossible to make an honest living. Here I practice my profession with honesty and inegrity. Back in India, the system has become too corrupt for people like me to hang around.

So, having a GC increases our options, I think.
 
I agree with bbbishop and many others. If one has GC we can at least think of doing something that we always wanted to do, especially in US as it gives lot of options in terms of studying/learning. One can be little bolder if we have GC as we dont have to depend on companies to keep us in status. If one is motivated, the possibilities with GC seem more.
 
just one small phrase summarises it all -

Its better to have and not need than not have and need.

I cannot tell you how stupid I feel about not starting my process earlier ( I was going to do a lot of different things - none of which materialised, and I am caught doing this anyway - just 2 years slower).
but again, that's just my view.
 
Folks,

Thanx for all the responses to my post. All of 'em were very thoughtful and different points of views were splashed across the
board.

Most of the people explained in detail the benefits of having a GC ( which I ..like many others am fully aware of ) ..more important ones
include not having to rely on a visa or anybody else to be in this country ....no visa lines to enter this county ...unemployment benefits and
last but not the least ..opportunities ....

Since I mentioned before ... I am a software guy and can only speak for others in my line .....I have about 8-9 years of good software expi and
I am sure most are like me ...luckily .. I am employed since a long time and hope to be for a while ( at least 1 year + ) ...but the question is ...
then what ?

Many guys mentioned changing lines ....changing lines ( in most cases ) involves going back to school ..because one always wants to maintain the lifestyle one is used
to and to get a similar compensation like we are used to in Software ...a specialization of some kind is a must ...and that means being a lawyer , doctor ...Manager ..
Engineer ( these days ....engineering field jobs are also drying up ) ....so after spending years in the software field ...working on cutting edge technologies ...one has to go back to school to train himself/herself in some other discipline ....which is both impractical and also expensive ....and talking about opening a business is the easiest thing to do ...

Going ahead and putting money, time and effort into something like this and actually succeeding is difficult ....most people who have spent years working in
Software field doing pure techincal jobs can;t suddenly do something totally different like opening like say a gas station ...or opening a similar business ...


"operation" mentioned that he is a lawyer and is quite happy with doing what he is doing ...which is very good ....imagine a situation in which his field saturates ...
then what would be do ? Suddenly changing Ur. line in which U have years of expi. into something else is difficult ...


I my case ....the motto is .. I will figure a way out ... easier said than done eh ....



Maxx.
 
maxx

I think, the reason why you got so many responses was, your posting started with 'Is a GC worth the trouble '.

Most of the respondors feel that having GC will always help you in future, in respective of the market conditions and hence it is worth taking all these pains (if you call waiting long is a big pain). If you had asked 'What can we do after getting GC', not many people would have responded.

We know many people in the forum are undergoing/underwent lot of pains in the current job market, with the hope that the future will be bright. For those people, all these postings will provide a glimmer of hope and encouragement. That is the greatness of this forum, where people are always ready to encourage the others who are getting depressed due to the delays in approval.

I also agree that changing your line of work is not that easy. I was working as Industrial Engineer in India, but took the pains of learning new software to come here hoping for a better future. Its been 5+ years here and I don't have any regrets. And I believe the same logic continues for the future also.

With GC, you have 2 options. If you want to stay here, you do what ever you can to survive, do business, continue working in the same area with lower pays, change your line, etc. If you can't survive, option 2, go back to your home country and pursue other alternatives. At least you have options.

Who knows, you might be a another Ambani in India?

Good luck to all waiting for their approval
Bob
 
Dont let this take over your life

GC or not. You should your life as normal . Dont let this effect you in any ways. For software proffessionals the worst is over and the worst that can happen to you is you have to go back to India/home country. Well thats not that bad because most of us might even prefer that. So, maybe not getting a GC may prove good too.
Just keep you head high and gamble away the $$ :)
 
“Is a GC worth the trouble?” that is a question I never asked myself, because the answer is a very loud YES! I believe that some people may have a different answer, but that depends on what your options are.
The real question is “To which country will you have to go back?”. If you are an Indian, as the immense majority in this forum is, I believe you are in very good shape, as the boom of IT work in Bangalore and other parts of your country is fantastic, as most US jobs are going there (for what I hear).
But, what if you are from a real 3RD world South American country, where a salary of US$6.000,00 per year is a dream. Then you have no doubts about stay here in US no matter what it costs. The quality of life one can get in US working for McDonalds is more than an IT manager back there, and you can’t compete with that.
The violence, the low value of human life, the lack of hope and dreams. All that add up to make you say YES, a GC is more than worth the trouble!
 
Another perspective

GC could be useful. This is my case.

My husband and I both came to the US on different work visas. Mine was a L1 transfer from India while his was a H1. Since my position with the company was quite permanent, we decided to process our GCs through my company and give my husband an opportunity to switch jobs to his liking. Now we are eagerly awaiting our GC so I could take some time off at the end of the year for my new baby!

So it all depends on what your objectives are and how you want to use it :) You could use it to lure better jobs or you could use it to continue your studies while your spouse shoulders responsibility for a while.

A friend of mine decided to continue his MBA after he got his GC while his wife started working.

So my advice is, you have come this far, make use of it appropriately.

Good Luck!
 
my 2 cent

My family and I have lived and I have worked in 4 countries. When we came to US we liked it here and decided that this is our final destination.
Without GC it is very hard for the spouse and the children as they have absolutely no rights as dependents on a temporary visa.

Conclusion: GC is worth the wait. I just wish it would be faster!
 
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