A Good Day for Immigration Reform . . .
Published April 14, 2009 @ 09:50PM PT
The ‘sphere is buzzing today with news that two major unions in the U.S. have agreed on a common position on immigration reform:
A.F.L.-C.I.O. officials said they agreed with Change to Win leaders that, with more than seven million unauthorized immigrants already working across the nation, legalizing their status would be the most effective way to protect labor standards for all workers.
I am glad to see the A.F.L.-C.I.O. follow the service unions' lead and acknowledge that all American workers have a stake in seeing progressive immigration reform succeed. But wait . . .
. . . while the compromise repaired one fissure in the coalition that has favored broad immigration legislation, it appeared to open another. An official from the United States Chamber of Commerce said Monday that the business community remained committed to a significant guest-worker program.
"If the unions think they're going to push a bill through without the support of the business community, they're crazy," said Randel Johnson, the chamber's vice president of labor, immigration and employee benefits. "There's only going to be one shot at immigration reform. As part of the trade-off for legalization, we need to expand the temporary worker program."
I'm fine with that, as long as there's a reasonable path to citizenship included.
I've worked with H-1B clients in the past, and I can tell you that not all H-1B workers are well-to-do, they are exploited at times but often it's a good work situation. The people I knew were happy to be here in legal status and on the citizenship track. There are undoubtedly a lot of problems with the program, and I don't necessarily trust the unions to make H-1B better. It will be a hard tightrope to walk between the Chamber of Commerce and the unions. I hope that the temporary workers themselves aren't forgotten in all of this. Since they don't have an institutional voice, their interests will only come as an afterthought.
All in all, today's news is a positive development.
More here, here, and here. And I would love to hear what Duke thinks about all of this.
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Comments (16)
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David is an attorney in Philadelphia, PA, where he helps immigrants to the U.S. navigate the complex immigration legal system. Views he expresses at change.org are his alone and don't represent the views or opinions of his employer, Nationalities Service Center. The information contained on this site is intended for educational and advocacy purposes only.
You all know that the CHAMBER of COMMERCES are BUSINESS OWNERS!!! E.G. Those who have been and still remain the most militant against any empowerment of workers. Fight anything they say!... as far as I am concerned. Unless they are family businesses or have fewer than 5 workers, e.g. feel like family busnesses...they do NOT have workers rights as their goals except to deny them!
Posted by Lee Dorsey on 04/15/2009 @ 11:19AM PT
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Now, as for the Labor Unions, since they are hurting and membership is down they are again looking to workers rights. But member have to stay diligent with them too, as soon as they get stronger and get more members then the leaders get RICH and POWERFUL... and again stop caring for the workers who can't join the country clubs they just go into.
Posted by Lee Dorsey on 04/15/2009 @ 11:20AM PT
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And once these 7 million illegal workers are legalize, will there be 7 million more to take their place as they move over to the unemployment line?There is a reason that illegal immigration is illegal. A very good reason.
Posted by Wire Paladin on 04/15/2009 @ 03:24PM PT
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Not with strong Unions and enforcing the law. Also if the legal immigration system was reformed workers would come in based on job availability...at a fair wage. Never, in America should employers ever have access to an underground workforce. 7 million will not come in unless we have a booming economy and we need to have a legal way for them to come as our economy grows again. They have no reason to come here unless there is a job. Economic factors have and always will govern the amount of workers that come into our country. The problem is people like you Wire, that like to give employers the gift of an underground workforce by opposing CIR the common sense solution. You are actually their advertisement to keep their budjeted business going at all of our expense. Do you ever think you can actually stop people from comming in when jobs become available in the US? Take a look at history.
Anything that comes into our system undocumented becomes unregulated by laws. This hurts our fellow Americans.
Posted by Mary Pranzatelli on 04/16/2009 @ 09:34PM PT
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But what about the US born citizens who are married to illegals who are working? In some cases (mine) legalizing some people would save a lot of families living in immigration limbo from complete crisis. You shouldn't worry so much about unemployment. I'm pretty sure that an immigrant is gonna be greatful to be legal. They'll find work. Most people will be happy just to be able to drive to work without fear. What you should worry about on the other hand is how many families will be on welfare if you deport instead of legalizing. That would add up to far more than the employment line. Food stamps, medicaid, AFDC, TANF, section 8, you name it. My "illegal" husband is the only thing keeping me and our four kids off complete welfare. Isn't it better just to keep families together? Keep the peace. Don't fight over money.
Posted by J Ceballos on 04/15/2009 @ 05:35PM PT
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J. dont worry the economy will get better. The legalization of the undocumented will help the wage go up. The standards of living goes up for all. Take a look around this country and ask yourself is there work to be done. There is rail to be expanded, bridges across the country to be repaired, solar panels to be made and installed, hybird cars to be built, etc, etc. The problem is that for the last 8 years we had the oil tycoons and bank cronys running our country and exploiting our tax dollars with government contracts. America is on its way to a whole new direction. The undocumented is not stealing jobs...they were doing these jobs before the economy fell apart. Americans still do not want to be working those jobs. Things will change as innovation takes place.
Posted by Mary Pranzatelli on 04/16/2009 @ 09:43PM PT
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I’m excited that the unions are stepping up to the plate, but I'm afraid I disagree with you about guest worker programs. Journalist and immigrant rights advocate David Bacon reveals why temporary worker programs are a bad idea:
"By their nature, guest worker programs are low-wage schemes, intended to supply plentiful labor to corporate employers, at a price they want to pay. Companies don't recruit guest workers so they can pay them more, but to pay them less.
And it's not just wages. The schemes create a second tier of workers with fewer rights and less job security. They have none of the social benefits U.S. workers won in the New Deal -- retirement, unemployment and disability insurance. Instead of including new immigrants in these and other social programs, giving them legal residence and rights, Congress would create a huge workforce without them. Corporations that have pushed for eliminating these standards for everyone would be halfway there.
That's why workers, unions, and community organizations have opposed guest worker programs, but also why corporations want them."
http://www.imdiversity.com/villages/hispanic/nam_guest_worker_0130.asp
For those who would like to educate themselves further, check out the SPLC's report: "Close to Slavery: Guest Worker Programs in the United States"
http://www.splcenter.org/pdf/static/SPLCguestworker.pdf
Posted by a d on 04/15/2009 @ 05:50PM PT
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I would like to see a reasonable path to citizenship, however (although I'd prefer an amnesty to bring long-time residents out of the shadows).
Posted by a d on 04/15/2009 @ 05:58PM PT
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Guest worker programs are a tough issue. I don't trust business on it, but I don't trust the unions completely either--they've come out swinging on behalf of nativists too many times. There's a fine line on this issue between exploitation and nativism. Again, my reference point is my former H-1B clients, who were very glad to be working here in the U.S. making much more than they would at home, with a potential route to citizenship. But their position was precarious, to the benefit of their employers. That's the fault of the government and the laws that business wrote. Some employers treat their H-1B workers well, some don't. I think the details of any guest worker program matter a lot more than whether it has the title "guest worker program." What I am opposed to is a guest worker program that has no path to permanent residence.
Posted by Dave Bennion on 04/15/2009 @ 07:39PM PT
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Good point, Dave. I guess I'm just afraid that business would be the ones to write the rules for any temporary worker program, just based on past history (Bracero Program). However, if there was a path to permanent residence AND safeguards against exploitation, I would certainly be in favor of it.
Posted by a d on 04/16/2009 @ 06:09PM PT
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Im glad to see this article on the Unions. I posted about them on the other page and then I noticed the debate over here. I'm so excited about this Union support.
Im not that crazy about the guest worker programs idea either. It could open the doors to another future mess. If they have a guest worker program they should make sure the worker has the same rights all the workers have...also they should be given a path to be here...otherwise we are going to start up another group that falls into an underground status.
Posted by Mary Pranzatelli on 04/16/2009 @ 09:53PM PT
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analisa, I just saw something really exciteing in political news. Senator Claire McCaskill from Missouri came on board for the DreamAct. It looks like we are probably going to pick up another vote for CIR here. he last time she voted against the reform bill. These Unions that came on board are so important for the cause. This is exciteing immigration news. It just might pass this fall...but we all have to think Senator McCaskill for supportiing the Dream Act.
Posted by Mary Pranzatelli on 04/19/2009 @ 12:17PM PT
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I think that the guest worker program is a bad idea too. If the job is available at the standard wage then they should allow someone to come and do the job...with a path to citizenship.
The employer should never be given access to a cheap labor force that undercuts the American wage.
Posted by Mary Pranzatelli on 04/21/2009 @ 06:54PM PT
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Whenever someone is allowed to enter without a path to citizenship it opens the doors to another person undocumented that has overstayed a visa. We must never give employers access to this.
Posted by Mary Pranzatelli on 04/21/2009 @ 06:56PM PT
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As an ex "immigrant" that just came out of the shadows, after recently receiving residency it feels good to walk with peace and without fear!! But the cause and fight does not only end with me. There is still alot of famillies and young people that are still living in the shadows with fear and the desire for higher paying jobs... "si se puede"
Posted by M G on 04/21/2009 @ 08:55AM PT
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Any temporary worker program that links lawful immigration status to employment with a particular employer represents little more than a return to the dreadful Bracero Program. Jennifer Gordon, a law professor at Fordham, has proposed the concept of "transnational labor citizenship," an attempt to protect workers' rights across national boundaries by "tie[ing] immigration status to membership in organizations of transnational workers rather than to a particular employer." This is an idea worth serious consideration.
-César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández, www.crImmigration.com
Posted by César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández on 04/24/2009 @ 06:31AM PT
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