Illegal Workers
Alex Zakson
December 06, 2005
Illegal Immigrant workers. We love them. We hate them. We want them. We don’t want them. We need them. We don’t need them. The current controversy centers around those we classify as unskilled. They perform the most mundane jobs, the ones some claim “Americans won’t do!”
Businesses love them. They keep the supply of unskilled labor high, thus they keep wages down. They have no SS number, so businesses don’t pay SS, Medicare and Unemployment taxes, and they do not provide them with medical insurance. Businesses can and do pay them below minimum wage. They make them work long hours without paying the overtime premium. Some unscrupulous employers pay them for fewer hours than they work. Who can they complain to?
Hiring illegals is a low risk proposition. There is little risk of being prosecuted for hiring illegal immigrants, and penalties for violations are negligible compared with the savings that businesses accrue. With the high supply of illegals, employers pick and choose whom they hire. Those who do not submit to abuse go without jobs.
True, most Americans will not do these jobs. They will not allow employers to abuse them financially. They expect SS, Medicare and Unemployment Insurance and Medical insurance coverage. They expect Minimum wage, premium pay for overtime, and to be paid for all hours worked. They expect to be hired based on their ability, not submission to unreasonable abuse. Yes, most Americans will not do these jobs, and whether American or illegal, no one should have to tolerate abuse.
While border walls, added border guards, or other physical impediments might be necessary for illegals that may harm the country, they are unnecessary for the illegal immigrant labor problem. What we need is to stabilize demand. Businesses must be persuaded to treat all workers according to U.S.
labor laws, and there should be severe penalties for failing to do so. Then the supply of American workers for mundane jobs would rise to meet demand, and the gap could be filled with legal immigration. With demand down, illegals would look for other alternatives. I wish the Administration would take this humane, but business unfriendly approach to illegal immigration, and solve many of our social problems.
Businesses love them. They keep the supply of unskilled labor high, thus they keep wages down. They have no SS number, so businesses don’t pay SS, Medicare and Unemployment taxes, and they do not provide them with medical insurance. Businesses can and do pay them below minimum wage. They make them work long hours without paying the overtime premium. Some unscrupulous employers pay them for fewer hours than they work. Who can they complain to?
Hiring illegals is a low risk proposition. There is little risk of being prosecuted for hiring illegal immigrants, and penalties for violations are negligible compared with the savings that businesses accrue. With the high supply of illegals, employers pick and choose whom they hire. Those who do not submit to abuse go without jobs.
True, most Americans will not do these jobs. They will not allow employers to abuse them financially. They expect SS, Medicare and Unemployment Insurance and Medical insurance coverage. They expect Minimum wage, premium pay for overtime, and to be paid for all hours worked. They expect to be hired based on their ability, not submission to unreasonable abuse. Yes, most Americans will not do these jobs, and whether American or illegal, no one should have to tolerate abuse.
While border walls, added border guards, or other physical impediments might be necessary for illegals that may harm the country, they are unnecessary for the illegal immigrant labor problem. What we need is to stabilize demand. Businesses must be persuaded to treat all workers according to U.S.
labor laws, and there should be severe penalties for failing to do so. Then the supply of American workers for mundane jobs would rise to meet demand, and the gap could be filled with legal immigration. With demand down, illegals would look for other alternatives. I wish the Administration would take this humane, but business unfriendly approach to illegal immigration, and solve many of our social problems.
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