Thursday, September 21, 2006
What would we do without immigrant workers?
According to the US Chamber of Commerce: "Immigrants now supply from 12% to 22% of our workforce in highly skilled occupations like medicine, engineering, the physical sciences, and computers and mathematics. Foreign-born workers also hold a quarter of the jobs in construction, a third in building cleaning and maintenance, and 44% in agriculture. With unemployment at just 4.8%, serious labor shortages in some communities and sectors, and 77 million baby boomers preparing to retire, it is clear that we need these workers—now and in the future." Via Bender's Immigration Bulletin.
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2 comments:
Here's some info on the USCofC involvement in a far-left organization:
cis.org/articles/2004/markoped033104.html
More here:
lonewacko.com/blog/archives/004577.html
lonewacko.com/blog/archives/004098.html
lonewacko.com/blog/archives/004545.html
And, check out this new press release:
releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=72880
"A new study, authored by economists at Northeastern University and published by the Center for Immigration Studies, finds that young native-born workers are being displaced in the labor market by immigrants. Although one recent report by a Washington think tank found no relationship between immigration and native employment, that study did not focus on young workers who are often in direct competition with immigrants and are the ones most adversely affected."
There some merit to what you are saying. However, the real problem here is illegal immigration and employers who are willing to break the law and hire those illegals at pay rates far below the (ridiculously low) minimum wage.
Remember, employers must pay legal immigrants the same as anybody else or risk legal liability. If the government actually enforced our employment laws, the illegal immigration problem would soon dry up since far fewer illegal immigrants would find gainful employment.
That means more work for natural born citizens as well as legal immigrants. A boost to the minimum wage would also help.
Now, there is some truth to the statement that legal immigration could drive down wages, but I see little reason to believe that that is actually the case at this point in time. Our low unemployment rate would seem to argue against it. In fact, if hiring of illegal immigration were curbed, average wages would go up for everybody; legal immigrants and natural born citizens alike.
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