US crackdown on hiring illegals irks business community
As the US steps up border security and work-site enforcement, businesses that rely heavily on illegal immigrants worry that they won't be able to keep their doors open.
By Gail Russell Chaddock | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitorfrom the August 14, 2007 edition
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Washington - Seven weeks after the collapse of comprehensive immigration reform in the Senate, the Bush administration is shifting to a plan the president once said could not work: stepped up enforcement of existing laws.
What concerns many of the nation's businesses and farms that use undocumented labor is that it might work all too well.
"It's going to hurt my members and be terrible for the economy," says Craig Silvertooth, director of federal affairs for the National Roofing Contractors Association.
According to US data, about 30 percent of the roofing workforce is "improperly documented," he says. Even with wages at more than $21 per hour, the industry hasn't been able to recruit enough legal workers to meet the demand.
"If a contractor is in the middle of a major project and loses a third of his workforce, he won't be able to complete the job. You'll see businesses contracting and some doors shut," Mr. Silvertooth adds.
The 26-point crackdown, announced Friday, aims to cut the incentive for illegal immigration in the United States: jobs. "If we have work site enforcement directed at illegal employment, we strike at that magnet," said Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff.
The expected disruptions to interests ranging from restaurants, motels, landscaping, the garment industry, construction, and farms also steps up the pressure on Congress to pass comprehensive reform.
"Our hope is that the key elements of the Senate bill will see the light of day at some point. But until Congress chooses to act, we're going to be taking some energetic steps of our own," said Mr. Chertoff.
The administration's plan includes more resources on the border, enhanced enforcement within the US, and stepped up work site enforcement.
Of greatest concern to the US business community is a "no-match" regulation that requires employers to take action if an employee's personal identity information does not match a number in the Social Security Administration database.
Under the terms of the Bush administration's crackdown, an employer receiving a "no-match" letter on an employee has 90 days to resolve the issue. This may require the worker sorting out discrepancies directly with the Social Security Administration.
As the nation's recent passport debacle showed, dealing with any US government bureaucracy can be a daunting task, critics say.
"A lot of burden will fall on the employee to fight the government bureaucracy to figure out what went wrong," says Jenna Hamilton, a spokeswoman for the National Association of Home Builders. "There's a lot of concern in the employer community that there may be legitimate reasons for a mismatch, but you may end up terminating people who are eligible to work because they have not been able to navigate the bureaucracy."
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