Nina Pelc-Faszcza Quoted In Hartford Business Journal Article Entitled "Federal Rule Changes, Uncertainty Complicate Hiring Foreign-Born Workers in Connecticut" 

Nina Pelc-Faszcza was quoted in the Hartford Business Journal article entitled "Federal Rule Changes, Uncertainty Complicate Hiring Foreign-Born Workers in Connecticut." 

The many Connecticut companies that rely on foreign-born workers have been navigating a legal minefield for much of 2025. The landscape of immigration-related work authorizations — never simple to begin with — has been changing almost week-to-week as the Trump administration excludes or restricts more classes of employees.

The potential problems extend across many industries and a wide range of skill levels, from highly skilled employees on H-1B visas to workers on temporary protected status from countries including Haiti, Venezuela and Ukraine.

“Employers are left with a great deal of uncertainty,” said Nina Pelc-Faszcza, an attorney at law firm Shipman & Goodwin who focuses on business immigration.

She points to confusing guidance tied to a new $100,000 fee on H-1B visas imposed under a September presidential proclamation. An H-1B allows employers to hire skilled foreign workers in specialty occupations — jobs requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher in fields where U.S. labor is in short supply — and is awarded through a lottery system.

“Obviously the vast majority, if not almost all employers, are not going to pay $100,000 per H-1B worker to get them status,” Pelc-Faszcza said.

The implications for Connecticut employers are far-reaching. Almost 1,500 companies in the state applied for H-1B visas in fiscal year 2024, and almost 300 of those indicated they were heavily dependent on such work authorizations.

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