FedEx questioned for hiring hundreds of H-1B workers while firing US staff after $2.24 billion federal contract: ‘Our strategy is…’
American company FedEx has come under fire after a multibillion-dollar federal delivery contract coincided with a sharp increase in the company’s hiring of foreign workers, even as it cut hundreds of US jobs across multiple states.In December 2022, the US Transportation Command awarded FedEx a contract worth $2.24 billion for the Next Generation Delivery Service-2 programme. The base period runs from April 2023 to September 2026, with options that could extend the work through 2030.According to the Dallas Express, data shows that at the time of the contract award, FedEx had roughly two dozen approved H-1B visa workers. By 2025, that number had risen to about 500. Some of the visa positions were listed with salaries ranging from $100,000 and $115,000.However, the surge in foreign hiring occurred alongside layoffs of US employees. In November 2025, FedEx announced plans to eliminate 856 jobs at one of its warehouses. Earlier in the year, 305 positions were cut in Fort Worth and 131 more in Garland and Plano. Across the country, layoffs also hit Memphis, Kentucky, New York, and Pennsylvania.A company spokesperson told Dallas Express: “FedEx is committed to offering employees the opportunity to grow and advance in their careers. Doing so helps our team members thrive, and FedEx prosper. Our strategy is centred around recruiting a skilled workforce that meets our unique business needs and hiring the most qualified candidates.”Sources familiar with the company said much of the H-1B growth is because of corporate entities joining hands and does not have any direct relation to the eliminated positions, which are not roles eligible for H-1B visas.H-1B visas are typically reserved for jobs requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher, but the program has become a political flashpoint recently. US vice president JD Vance urged companies: “You Might Try Hiring Americans.”Meanwhile, most MAGA commentators and GOP supporters want a total ban on the H-1B system, saying that the program steals jobs and opportunities from native Americans and hands them cheaply to immigrant workers. Most workers coming on H-1B are ready to work for lower salaries than US labour, automatically making them a more efficient option for American employers. However, right-wing media cited how American employees were forced to train their foreign replacements before getting the boot.Business leaders such as ex-DOGE lead Vivek Ramaswamy and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have said foreign labour is necessary and that America needs that global talent to run its crucial tech and IT sectors.FedEx said that it complies with all laws and employs a variety of workers irrespective of their ethnicity. “Across our business, we employ a wide range of roles, requiring a variety of skillsets and are committed to complying with all applicable federal immigration laws,” the spokesperson said. The company has not directly linked its federal contract to its H-1B hiring or domestic layoffs.
