Political Quotes

“I rise to join Senator Hatch in introducing the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act. Mr. President, no company can grow if it fails to find enough employees with the skills needed to get the job done. And that is precisely the situation faced by our high-tech companies today. A Joint Venture: Silicon Valley study found that a lack of skilled workers is costing Silicon Valley companies $3 to $4 billion every year. A Computer Technology Industry Association study concluded that a shortage of information technology professionals is costing the U.S. economy as a whole $105 billion per year. These costs should not be seen as mere abstractions. Because of skilled labor shortages, an increasing number of highly productive firms have had to curtail their economic activities and/or move offshore. At an October 21, 1999 Senate Immigration Subcommittee hearing, Susan DeFife, CEO of womenCONNECT.com, noted that ``as investment capital flows into start-ups and puts them on a fast growth track, the demand for workers will continue to far exceed the supply.”