Clinton OKs More Skilled-Labor Visas

President Clinton signed into law legislation increasing the number of visas available for skilled foreign workers, handing a victory to high-tech companies desperate for computer-savvy employees. Overwhelmingly approved by Congress earlier this month, the new law will increase the number of H-1B temporary visas available for high-tech workers and double the fee charged employers using the program. Technology companies, facing a severe shortage of applicants with the skills they need, made passage of the bill a priority. The new law will raise the number of visas to 195,000 per year for the next three years. Without the increase, the number of visas available annually would fall to 65,000 from the 115,000 that were available in 2000, a figure reached in March.