US Vice President J D Vance has admitted that his rhetoric has been "imperfect” when he referred to foreign professionals holding H-1 B visas as “indentured servants”.
He also clarified that he meant US companies and the visa system, not H-1B visa holders.
India had objected strongly to the language used to describe foreign professionals calling the terminology "deeply offensive" and saying it carries painful historical and colonial legacy connotations.
Speaking at the CBS News Townhall event on Saturday, Vance insisted his criticism targeted the visa system that gives employers too much power over foreign employees, who can be sent back to their country of origin and effectively treated as “indentured servants”.
“I would say, and to the extent that my rhetoric has been imperfect here, that's on me,” Vance said in response to a question from an Indian immigrant, who became a US citizen five years ago and voted for President Donald Trump.
The Vice President said his comments were "not a criticism of the H-1B holder."
"...Is when they come in on an H-1B, they're very often coming in, and the company is certifying that they're doing a job that they can't find an alternative American labour applicant for. And importantly, their visa is their only lifeline to the United States of America. So when I say an indentured servant, that's not a criticism of the H-1B visa holder. That's a criticism of a company that brings a person in," Vance said.
"It's a criticism of the visa system that allows people to be treated effectively as indentured servants that can be shipped back to their country of origin," Vance said.
He also mentioned his South Indian in-laws while calling for a balance between welcoming foreign professionals and protecting American workers.
"You know where my family comes from, and I love my mother-in-law and father-in-law who immigrated from South India, and obviously their daughter, born in the United States of America, is now the second lady, and I’m very proud of her, and I love her very much."
His wife, Usha Vance, is the daughter of Indian immigrants.
"I will tell you that nobody's perfect, certainly not me. But my goal here is not to dehumanise any immigrant, and in fact, I love a number of immigrants,” Vance said.
Earlier this month, the US suspended several firms, including Indian IT companies, from a programme that lets foreign workers apply for green cards, arguing that the practice has shut Americans out of the job market. Vice President Vance made the announcement.
Indian professionals account for over 70 per cent of all approved H-1B petitions annually.
Vance referred to foreign workers hired on H1-B visas as “foreign indentured servants” and the companies using the programme as “visa mills”.