PipeMan

If he has right to work, then that’s different. That wasn’t clear in his post. And I am first generation both my parents were born in Italy. But if you open up the flood gates on this profession and allow anyone to come in and get hired, then you can kiss the pilot shortage goodbye. Along with our increased wages and work rules. This is something the airlines want to lower labor costs and fix the shortage.

M4HQ

Despite having an E-2 visa and legal work permit, I haven't been able to get accepted by major and legacy companies so far, except for regional ones. I don't need any sponsorship, but companies seem to be avoiding me for an unknown reason. I have over 4,000+ (b737+b777) flight hours and a Master's degree from California State University, but I still can't figure out why major and legacy companies are not responding. I suspect that human resources departments may not want to deviate from standard practices.

flare next time

That’s interesting, and I imagine very frustrating as well. A lot of the majors or legacies require you to be “authorized to work in the USA”, which your situation clearly allows even without sponsorship. I suppose this is the crux of my question, because I’m aware of green card holders working at the majors/legacies but as far as I understand this is also a form of visa which requires a renewal (granted which a much longer expiry), the only difference is that the company usually doesn’t need to be involved with the process.

catrapilot

Usually the airlines only ask for the proper documentation at the end of the process, IMO if you have been here for a while try to contact a decent law firm and do your adjustment of status ( get your greencard)

highfarfast

My experience with the hiring a law firm was everyone, from the beaurocrats to even the lawyer himself, teated us like we were trying to beat the system or some such. Took firing the lawyer and some attention from a Senator to get the application out of a holding pattern and get the so called green card.

We only hired the lawyer because the application process was a bit more complicated than we thought it should be and thought we might be doing something incorrectly or missing something important detail (this was also before most people had computers and there wasn’t much of an internet so research meant reading documents given to you by government beaurocrats or talking to a lawyer).

I’d recommend doing your own research which includes stories from people in your own situation, fill out the correct forms, pay the fees, and wait the process out. Skip the expensive lawyer, he’s really not even going to save you a lot of time… it’s not that difficult to learn today.

morerightrudder

E-2s have to be renewed, so there's a non-zero chance you might lose the right to work here. Majors don't want to take that risk, and there are still more than enough US Citizens/Green Card holder candidates.
On the other hand, the regionals are extremely short staffed and the attrition rate is high. They're used to people leaving within a year or two, so they'd be more lenient.

rickshaw

Don’t get so butt hurt triggered cause somebody doesn’t have your opinion. Put him
in whatever bucket you need to with your xenophobic/msnbc bull5hi7. Not sure which drivel college you just popped out of, but, you don’t always know better. Even when I strongly disagree, it’s a real exercise to not dismiss someone else’s life experiences in lieu of your pushing your righteousness.
​​​​​​

… go work in Spain if you don’t like …. Oops. You need to have a right to work in EU… that’s Xenophobic.

M4HQ

I also don't understand why companies are hiring with the E-3 visa that requires sponsorship but not with the E-2 visa that doesn't require it. My visa is easy to renew and I can work in the United States for up to 6 years. And during this time, I may be able to obtain a green card through Eb-2 NIW or Eb-5. Who knows, I might even win the green card lottery. My current contract ends in October, so I plan to come to the United States by the end of the year and try my luck while flying with a regional airline for 1-2 years.

CRJJ

I won the DV lottery 11 years ago, so it’s doable. I became a US Citizen after 7 years as a Permanent Resident.

M4HQ

I hold an FAA Unrestricted ATP and have type ratings for the B737 and B777. I have flown for Falg Carrier airlines and my risk of leaving is not greater than anyone else's risk of resigning or experiencing health issues. However, I also think that the situation may be a matter of perspective and you may have a valid point.