56% of U.S. Citizens Think H-1B Workers Are Taking Their Jobs Away

The American workforce is deeply divided over the role of H-1B visa holders, according to a survey of 4,230 professionals conducted between August 25 and September 3, 2025 by Blind, the anonymous community app for verified professionals.

While 70% of respondents said H-1B visa holders play a crucial role in helping American companies grow, the split by immigration status is striking. Only 49% of U.S. citizens agreed with that statement, compared to 87% of foreign-born professionals.

The same divide emerged when participants were asked whether companies should hire the best talent regardless of citizenship or visa status. 63% of all respondents said yes, but the answers split sharply along visa lines. 60% of U.S. citizens said that U.S. citizens and green card holders should be given hiring priority, while only 11% of H-1B holders and 35% of permanent residents agreed.

Perhaps most telling, over one in three professionals (33%) overall said H-1B visa holders create unfair competition and viewed them as direct competitors for jobs. Among U.S. citizens, the figure was far higher at 56%. By contrast, 27% of green card holders and only 9% of H-1B workers themselves shared that view. 

These divisions come amid growing political and social uncertainties. JD Vance recently criticized Big Tech for laying off Americans while hiring foreign H-1B replacements, and cases such as Jobs.Now PERM sabotage and Walmart layoff scandal have intensified concerns.

On Blind, professionals voiced sharply contrasting views. A Microsoft employee wrote, “The H1B and other visa programs are out of control, and have become a way for the US to hand its best jobs to foreigners. We have enough SWE graduates in the U.S. now that these programs can and should be scaled back SIGNIFICANTLY.”

Others pushed back. An Amazon professional countered, “Stopping H-1B renewals just moves cutting edge development to another country. Tech follows talent.” A PayPal professional added, “Once someone is in the labor pool (i.e. they have a visa) they are 100% equivalent to anyone else in the labor pool. None of this “when there’s layoffs the H1-Bs go first” nonsense.”

While many recognize foreign workers’ contributions to the innovation and growth of the U.S. tech industry, others continue to see them as direct competitors. This data clearly shows the sharp divide within the workforce over how foreign talent is perceived.