US tech giants accused of 'monopoly power'

[up148]

Facebook sued for 'denying opportunities to US workers'
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55176516

The US Department of Justice has accused Facebook of discriminating against American workers by giving hiring preferences to immigrants.

A lawsuit alleges the social media firm refused to recruit, consider or hire qualified and available Americans for more than 2,600 positions.

Those jobs instead went to foreigners on temporary visas, the lawsuit says.

Facebook disputed the allegations, but said it was co-operating with the department.

The lawsuit concerns Facebook's use of temporary H-1B visas, which are often used by tech companies to bring highly skilled foreign workers to the US.

In its lawsuit, filed on Thursday, the department alleged that Facebook "intentionally created a hiring system" that favoured H-1B visa holders and other temporary workers over Americans.

That's pretty funny given that to use and maintain such a system that the US Gov't would have to be an active participant since the State Dept. controls issuance and approval of all H-1B visas. I used to be able to hire 1 specialist into my research group under an H-1B and those were like gold when recruiting. They almost all were taken away ~20 years ago so if Facebook is using them, then the State Dept. is approving them. I wonder if DoJ has bothering to wander over to State and ask them about this yet?

BTW, we used H-1B visas for recruiting since US candidates would not take the positions. So, this is quite possibly another fantasy song & dance about foreigners taking American jobs........................that Americans wouldn't do in the 1st place.

That is not always the case and I don't consider working for facebook to be the same as picking crops, but this one will be sorted out. Menial jobs have been taken by immigrants since the birth of our nation. Read about all the European immigrants that came to our country. Low man on the pole (jobs) went from one country to another as they entered the US. Irish, Italian, etc. took over these jobs, which often created violence by the immigrant group who currently held them. Let's see how this shakes out.

IMHO, Mark Zuckerberg is an opportunist, sneak and liar and very, very lucky, but that seems to be accepted as SOP in our business world today. I detest Facebook and don't understand the obsession of the current population to relinquish their personal thoughts and feelings for the world to review (I guess they think life is a great big reality show and the more outrageous you are the better), much less risking the loss of there ID and security.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

That is not always the case and I don't consider working for facebook to be the same as picking crops, but this one will be sorted out. Menial jobs have been taken by immigrants since the birth of our nation. Read about all the European immigrants that came to our country. Low man on the pole (jobs) went from one country to another as they entered the US. Irish, Italian, etc. took over these jobs, which often created violence by the immigrant group who currently held them. Let's see how this shakes out.

And I don't consider the jobs that I was recruiting to fill to be anything close to menial or picking crops. They were for PhD researchers. Nope. US kids wanted more money and other stuff that was not available.

As for immigrants......family was there back in the early 1700's. And the violence was not by the immigrant group, but towards them.

[rogruth]

UP,
I agree about the personal thoughts. I have used facebook. My kids set it up and I did use it for a while. But I don't want to tell everybody what I think or show what I am eating.
I do use e-mail because it is usually addressed to a specific person. Yes, I understand that anybody that knows how can see it.

[HONDO74]

Google widely criticized after parting ways with a leading voice in AI ethics
https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/04/tech/goo ... index.html

CNN Business)Many Google employees and others in the tech and academic communities are furious over the sudden exit from Google of a pioneer in the study of ethics in artificial intelligence—a departure they see as a failure by an industry titan to foster an environment supportive of diversity.

Timnit Gebru is known for her research into bias and inequality in AI, and in particular for a 2018 paper she coauthored with Joy Buolamwini that highlighted how poorly commercial facial-recognition software fared when attempting to classify women and people of color. Their work sparked widespread awareness of issues common in AI today, particularly when the technology is tasked with identifying anything about human beings.

[HONDO74]

US govt, states sue Facebook for ‘predatory’ conduct
https://www.ky3.com/2020/12/09/us-govt- ... -facebook/

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal regulators on Wednesday sued to force a breakup of Facebook as 48 states and districts accused the company in a separate lawsuit of abusing its market power in social networking to crush smaller competitors.

The antitrust lawsuits were announced by the Federal Trade Commission and New York Attorney General Letitia James. The FTC specifically asked a court to force Facebook sell off its Instagram and WhatsApp messaging services.

“It’s really critically important that we block this predatory acquisition of companies and that we restore confidence to the market,” James said during a press conference announcing the lawsuit.

The FTC said Facebook has engaged in a “a systematic strategy” to eliminate its competition, including by purchasing smaller up-and-coming rivals like Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014. James echoed that in her press conference, saying Facebook “used its monopoly power to crush smaller rivals and snuff out competition, all at the expense of everyday users.”

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Hilarious...... So the same folks that want to save capitalism also want to punish anyone that succeeds at it too well, this is just the sort of hypocrisy creates entertainment.

I find Facebook totally repugnant in its business model and actions, but the Gov't set this all up and they only made use of what was handed to them.

[HONDO74]

Hilarious...... So the same folks that want to save capitalism also want to punish anyone that succeeds at it too well, this is just the sort of hypocrisy creates entertainment.

I find Facebook totally repugnant in its business model and actions, but the Gov't set this all up and they only made use of what was handed to them.

Letitia “Tish” James
https://ag.ny.gov/about-attorney-general

Letitia “Tish” James is the 67th Attorney General for the State of New York. With decades of work, she is an experienced attorney and public servant with a long record of accomplishments. She is the first woman of color to hold statewide office in New York and the first woman to be elected Attorney General.

In 2013, Ms. James was elected Public Advocate for the City of New York and became the first woman of color to hold citywide office. As Public Advocate, Ms. James served as a watchdog over New York City government agencies and as an advocate for the City’s most vulnerable communities. She transformed the Public Advocate’s office to be a formidable engine for change.

Her office handled over 32,000 constituent complaints and passed more legislation than all previous Public Advocates combined, including a groundbreaking law that banned questions about salary history from the employment process to address the pervasive gender wage gap. Ms. James successfully took on the gun industry by pushing New York City’s largest pension fund to divest from gun and ammunition retailers. She fought in court on behalf of children and families on issues including children in foster care, children with disabilities, and tenant protection. New Yorkers overwhelmingly elected Tish James to a second term as Public Advocate in November 2017.

Prior to serving as Public Advocate, Tish James represented the 35th Council District in Brooklyn in the New York City Council for ten years. As a Council Member, she passed the Safe Housing Act, legislation that forced landlords to improve living conditions for tenants in New York City’s worst buildings. She helped uncover the corruption behind the Office of Payroll Administration’s City Time contract, a scheme that cost New York City over $600 million. She also pushed through a revolutionary recycling package that included expanding plastic recycling, a new clothing and textile recycling program, and increased access to recycling in public spaces.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

So?