Hundreds Of Thousands Of Illegal Immigrants May Get Jobs Thanks To The So-Called "Stimulus" Bill

Awesome!

Studies by two conservative think tanks estimate immigrants in the United States illegally could take 300,000 construction jobs, or 15% of the 2 million jobs that new taxpayer-financed projects are predicted to create.

They fault Congress for failing to require that employers certify legal immigration status of workers before hiring by using a Department of Homeland Security program called E-Verify. The program allows employers to check the validity of Social Security numbers provided by new hires. It is available to employers on a voluntary basis.

...An advocacy group for immigrants, illegal and legal, did not disagree with the 300,000 estimate. Camarota says the estimate is based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau's Current Population Survey and other independent findings that 15% of all construction workers in the USA are either illegal immigrants or lack the status of legal immigrant authorized to work.

But Jorge-Mario Cabrera, director of education for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, said it is impossible to predict with certainty because it is unknown how many jobless immigrant construction workers may leave the U.S., frustrated by the economic recession, before the new spending produces jobs.

He questioned the Center for Immigration Studies' motives.

"Those are fear tactics. … 'The immigrants are here to take your job,' " Cabrera said. "I think that we really should be focusing on economic progress for all."

Heh. I thought the only point of the so-called "stimulus" was to create jobs for Americans. It seems this is one case where it is a zero sum game between illegals and citizens/legalized aliens.

It's also amusing that the Democrats put a 'buy American' provision in this bill but won't put in a 'hire American' provision. By shutting out foreign suppliers we risk a disastrous trade war that would hurt American workers but there's only benefits to American workers by ensuring only legal workers can be hired on federally funded projects.

And these construction and other jobs won't be cheap day labor jobs hired out of the parking lot of a Home Depot. They will be government funded projects meaning the pay scale will subject to the provisions of the Davis-Bacon Act.

So how exactly is hiring non-Americans directly or indirectly on the public payroll helping to put Americans back to work, which was supposedly the whole point of this trillion plus dollar exercise?

posted by DrewM. at 11:11 AM

| Access Comments