Trump’s Immigration Order Sparks Reactions To Google, Apple, Uber, Other Firms
Newly elected President Donald Trump's executive order that bans citizens from seven countries, namely, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, hits Google, Apple, Uber, Microsoft, and other tech giants.
The order bars entry of nationals from the Muslim-majority countries for 90 days sparked reactions from Google, Apple, SpaceX's Elon Musk, Uber, Lyft, Netflix, Microsoft, and all the major companies from the tech world. According to CNET, most US tech industry often relies on foreign engineers as well as the technical experts who work for them.
The tech companies have already sent emails to their workforces to attack the president's move to block refugees and other nationals from the seven Muslim-majority countries. According to Apple's chief executive, Tim Cook, Apple would not exist without immigration, hence actively do not support Trump's policy. Cook added that the biological father of Steve Jobs who is Apple's co-founder was a Syrian immigrant.
Trump's new immigration policies are preventing the tech companies to recruit and retain engineering talent from overseas. As a result of the signed policy, many start-up companies are increasing their branch offices outside the US.
"It's painful to see the personal cost of this executive order on our colleagues," Google CEO Sundar Pichai wrote in an internal memo.
According to Financial Times, 200 out of 60,000 workers of Google are affected. However, the company is preparing for a battle on the highly skilled immigration. President Donald Trump criticized the H-1B visa which gives tech companies a chance to bring thousands of software engineers from countries such as India.
Despite the banning of the refugees from entering the country, Trump ordered that those who are planning to enter the US will also be granted on a "case-by-case basis" and when they determined that the admission of the individual as a refugee is in the national interest.