/ The Truth About Illegal Immigrants
Programs like the Federal H2-A program do allow some seasonal workers to enter the United States legally, but fail to address many of the problems faced by illegal immigrants. H2-A workers are guaranteed a minimum wage and a basic level of living conditions. However, their paychecks are at the mercy of the weather, and they do not have access to safety net programs like welfare and Social Security. The living conditions of some H2-A workers could be considered unacceptable, though the housing provided by farmers for their H2-A workers is theoretically subject to government oversight. And like many illegal immigrants, legal seasonal workers are often stigmatized and isolated from the communities surrounding them.[vi] These shortcomings of the H2-A program must be addressed if migrant worker programs are to be fair to immigrants.
Illegal immigrants face the same problems as legal migrant workers, in addition to a slew of more formidable challenges. To begin with, they are not covered by minimum wage laws when paid under the table, leaving them with no protection from falling wages caused by the recent economic downturn.[vii] Those whose paychecks are above the table pay taxes without benefiting from public services: illegal immigrants are often reluctant to go to hospitals, send their children to schools, and report crimes to the police for fear of imprisonment or deportation.[viii] Others do not even make it to America—thousands of illegal immigrants have died attempting to cross the deadly desert along the United States-Mexico border.[ix] Given the hardships faced by illegal immigrants, it is clear that current immigration policies fail to recognize the important role illegal immigrants play in our economy.
Even if it were possible, closing our borders is not an option. While it may be true that illegal immigrants and seasonal workers take some jobs from American citizens, it is clear that some sectors of the economy would cease to function without immigrant labor. Since we depend on immigrant workers for our economic wellbeing, it is our responsibility to offer them the same basic public services and workplace standards afforded to citizens—anything less is exploitation. Such reform is actually in our best interest: illegal immigrants are often perceived as stealing jobs from citizens by working for less than minimum wage or draining public service programs, and these problems could be ameliorated by making it easy for all immigrants to work legally and above the table.
The truth is that our current immigration policy is unfair to immigrants and to Americans. Immigrants come to the United States to provide for their families while contributing positively to our economy—yet we exploit them, call them criminals, and deny them basic workers’ rights. Americans are hurt when enforcement of immigration laws makes it difficult to find the workers they need to run their businesses, or when they are forced to compete for jobs with illegal immigrants who are paid under the table. It’s time to stop this senseless talk of closing our borders and enforcing immigration laws in their current form. Instead, immigration policy must change to reflect reality: immigrants are a crucial part of our economy and should be treated as such.
[i] Hoefer, Michael, Nancy Rytina, and Christopher Campbell. “Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the United States: January 2005.” Office of Immigration Statistics Policy Directorate, Department of Homeland Security. 20 April 2008 <http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/statistics/publications/ILL_PE_2005.pdf>.
[ii] Preston, Julia. “Farmers Call Crackdown on Illegal Workers Unfair.” The New York Times. 11 August 2007. 20 April 2008 <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/11/us/11immig.htm>.
[iii] See 2.
[iv] Vitello, Paul. “Immigration Issues End a Pennsylvania Grower’s Season.” The New York Times. 2 April 2008. 20 April 2008 <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/02/us/politics/02penn.html>.
[v] Barta, Patrick. “Higher Food Prices May Be Here to Stay.” The Wall Street Journal. 14 April 2008: A2. 20 April 2008 <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120811953255811087.html>.
[vi] The Guestworker. Cynthia Hill and Chalres Thompson. Video. Markay Media, 2006.
[vii] “Illegal Immigration’s Impact on the U.S. Economy.” National Public Radio. 26 August 2005. 20 August 2008 <http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4817071>.
“Employment Situation Summary.” Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor. 20 August 2008 <http://stats.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm>.
[viii] McKinley, Jesse. “San Francisco Reaches Out to Immigrants.” The New York Times. 6 April 2008. 20 April 2008 <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/06/us/06immig.html>.
[ix] “Death on the Border.” azstarnet.com, the online version of the The Arizona Daily Star. 20 April 2008 <http://regulus.azstarnet.com/borderdeaths/search.php>.