> but not many complained given their visa status. Also, they were actually really grateful to get a developer job that pays ~$40k. They were just regular people.

That’s a typical bodyshop [0]. There’s a good chance some of your “colleagues” were using student visa extensions (that might be fraudulent as well, it’s a well known practice [1] [2]) to gain enough “experience” that they could pass as a specialty occupation and claim H1B status. Or just had this consulting shop file 3-4 applications per seat they planned to fill out so that they could game the quota (kicking out legitimate applicants that aren’t trying to game the system).

Thankfully, the previous administration started issuing more RFEs and catching fraudulent applicants [3].

[0] https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/silicon-valleys-body-s...

[1] https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/former-ceo-bay-area-univer...

[2] https://thewalrus.ca/the-shadowy-business-of-international-e...

[3] https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-h-1b_b_5890d86ce4b0522c...