For many of the thousands of Seattle tech workers who’ve been laid off or will be in coming weeks, the pain will be short-lived.
They’ll update their résumés, work their networks and, eventually, find new jobs in an industry that, despite the current slowdown, is expected to be short on talent for years to come.
But for the newly jobless techies who also happen to be foreign nationals, those pink slips may pose a much bigger problem.
Laid-off employees who have been here as “guest workers” on temporary work visas may be forced to leave the U.S. if they aren’t rehired in 60 days. That has left hundreds and possibly thousands of workers scrambling for jobs at a moment when many local tech companies aren’t taking their calls.