Have you ever met a young server or a busser or a housekeeper or a cook with a heavy accent and lots of energy at a fancy resort or a restaurant somewhere in Florida or Washington or Vermont? Those are the participants of Work&Travel USA program that brings thousands of foreign students into the U.S. every year. College students from all over the world have to pass an English language test, a background check, and get a J1 visa to fill a short seasonal job in the U.S. The benefits are great for everyone involved - American employers get inexpensive, educated and highly motivated labor without the obligation to pay the benefits, guarantee the hours, or prolong the employment. Young students--especially those from Eastern Europe and Central Asia--get a chance to make good income unusual for their home countries and see the U.S. America gets a chance to market itself in person to the world's brightest youth who takes home the stories and the experience. Each participant usually works for three months, and then is allowed a month in the country to travel.
For a young college student such trip is usually a life-changing experience. Many of my friends and I have come to the U.S.; those experiences have changed our lives and careers in more than one way - some of my past fellow servers and bussers today are highly-paid PWC and EY consultants in Moscow and Kiev, Microsoft employees in Seattle, etc. However, this year many Russian and other Eastern European students will not get the same chance to explore the States and the American lifestyle. In October 2010, more than 20 Eastern European students (11 Russians among them) in the early twenties were identified by the FBI as participants in a grand banking scheme.
A hacker group, based in Eastern Europe, sent out a computer virus named "Zeus," and--using the obtained banking information--stole more than $70 million. FBI believes the group aimed to steal $440 million. The J1 students were just the mules - the human shuttles who were opening American banking accounts, withdrawing $20,000 to $30,000 dollars and bringing the money back to Eastern Europe. They kept 8-10% of the amount as a reward for their services. The FBI arrests were tipped off by an unusual transfer of $44,000 to a newly-opened account in Bronx.
This year, American Embassy in Moscow took unprecedented measures in evaluating the J1 applications. In 2009, only 2% of the applicants were refused visas. This April - 40% of the students were refused J1 visas, and in May - 70%. In the past, a students who was still searching for a job but already passed other requirements would have qualified for a visa. Under the new rules, a student must have a confirmed job offer through an agency that passed the Embassy screening. Since the rules are new, many students who applied early either had not have yet the job offers or used an agency that did not pass the screening.
It is very unfortunate that merely a dozen of selfish and immoral youngsters stole more than just money - but lifetime experiences from thousands of young aspiring students. Was it really worth it for the $3,000 fee they got from the hackers? Most certainly not - their criminal record will never allow them to travel to the U.S. or many other Western countries, and automatically void their opportunities to study or work at a Western-based institution. Despite the severity of the situation, weathered Work&Travel agencies do not blame the States for the harsh measures, and do blame the criminals. Whatever the punishment is, it's not enough, as it does not take into account thousands changed lives and millions of connections and opportunities that now will never take place.
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