Microsoft applied to fill thousands of foreign worker positions in months before mass layoffs

Microsoft is laying off about 9,000 employees after applying to fill thousands of foreign worker positions in the months leading up to the mass layoffs, according to a Washington Examiner analysis of U.S. Department of Labor data.

DOL quarterly statistics show that Microsoft submitted 4,776 labor condition applications, a prerequisite for filing H-1B visa petitions, between September and March, indicating to the U.S. government that it intends to fill 14,181 positions with foreign workers this fiscal year. The filings, however, include extensions to existing employment (3,680), petition amendments (285), and transfers (487), not just new H-1B hires, although the number of new foreign worker hires (9,738) was still high.