What are your thoughts on migrant workers in the U.S.?
960735
Will and has worked.The trick is not to have loopholes in it so that it is abused especially by foreign workers who will try to take away middle income jobs.
494160
On one hand, I feel compassion for the undocumented immigrants who are really just trying to make their lives better by coming to America.  Many of them are not bad people.\n\nOn the other hand, I also feel that they must face the consequences of staying in the US illegally.  They must get punished for that, but such punishment must be done in a humane manner.
456800
Guest workers sound great in theory.  But it will be like having illegals with a voice.  Are they citizens?  No.  But they will march just like the pro-illegals marching tomorrow, and guest workers will have a legal foundation to their argument.  People will be more sympathetic:  "Oh, we invited them in."\n\nI'm against the guest worker program.  Read the following.  It's long but good, and I wrote it.\n\n----\n\n\nIllegals aliens are NOT citizens.  They have only HUMAN rights in the USA.  THAT'S IT.  They have no Constitutionally guaranteed rights.\n\nDeporting them is NOT a civil rights issue.  We have the right to manage our immigration policy however we see fit.\n\nAnd regarding compassion, I have tons of compassion for them.  But we have a country to run, and we can't let people just waltz into the USA.  WE CAN'T ALLOW THEM TO IMPORT POLITICS.  Poor, uneducated, illiterate people tend to like SOCIALISM.  I don't.  I'm not talking about good all-american bleeding heart liberalism. I'm talking about Castro quality SOCIALISM.\n\nAlso, they are massing in the Southwest by the MILLIONS.  Do you realize that the population of TEXAS is 22 million.  And the proposed legislation wants to make 12 million illegals citizens.  And MOST of those are in the Southwest.  So, don't you think the people of these states have the right to not get their vote diluted by potential SOCIALISTS. This is not about race.  I have no problem with people who are here legally.  But when you allow millions of people in, they congregate together and hold the same political leanings (like allegiance to Mexico and socialistic beliefs).  The fact that most can't speak English just strengthens their solidarity and reinforces their beliefs because they can't understand what most Americans are saying.\n\nThis has the makings of ethnic strife written all over it.  Look at Northern Ireland. Iraq. France. Cyprus. Sudan. Turkey AND Iran with the Kurds.  Quebec in France.  Rwanda.  Yugoslavia.  Chechnya.  China.  And let's not forget Mexico itself, with the indian uprising in the Chiapis.  There is a clear correlation between ethnic strife and large areas that do not integrate into the whole.  This is what will happen if we have entire cities with millions of new non-English speaking citizens spring up in the southwest.  And this will happen if we have an open border.  The 12 million that we're talking about right now is just a start.  What about the next 30 years???  \n\nThe homogeneous culture of America is probably what made America as great as it is.  It is the most populace country in the world with a homogeneous culture.  Yes, we are filled with different races, religions, and ethnicities.  But they all came in, interacted with the other ethnicities, and diffused into living side by side.  Small areas did spring up with primarily one race/religion/ethnicity -- and there was almost always some amount of strife in that area.  Fortunately the areas were small enough to not expand to the level of a national conflict.\n\nAnd don't be fooled by the "guest worker" program.  They'll still be dirt poor, but "legal."  Then they'll have a basis for petitioning for rights.  They WILL want citizenship EN MASSE.  It will be the exact same situation, but worse since they'll have been INVITED.\n\nThe best outcome would be that we can integrate them all in.  But that will not happen.  They are poor.  We are typically the product of our homes, and the homes will be uneducated and spanish speaking.  The second best outcome would be a peaceful secession.\n\nPersonally, I'd rather pay a dollar more per pound of oranges, rather than have my kids or grandkids bombed or have to fight a civil war.
496218
I am a human being.\n\nI am Mexican, the same as many of the illegal workers in the USA.\n\nI would like that the work i want and i have, could be closer to my family.\n\nI am underpayed (i couldn't resist, and copied from catnip, sorry, you express exactly how i feel!!): "I am not paid enough to make a decent living, even though I have plenty of skills that employers seem to want."
340522
Bravo, Liz. Kudos to you!!!!! I think we need to remove all incentives for illegal immigration, but it's not going to happen because US businesses need cheap labor, and workers who have no rights!!!
252713
I am glad to have foreigners in my country because they are cheap labor. How many white men do you know that would work for less than 5 dollars an hour in a field under the scourching sun while crop planes drop insecticides on them while they are picking the fruits and vegetables that we eat that we pay hardly anything for. If there were no immigrants our produce and so many other things that we use and eat daily and take for granted would not be accesible because the costs would be to high. So whoever said that immigrants come and take the white mans jobs, you are full of it. They take the jobs that nobody wants, such as housekeepers, field workers, janitors, and so on, I hope that you get the point. For those that live in the U.S. remember 90% of us are descended from immigrants. Mexico is part of America, they are just South America. they did not have to take a boat to get to the America's, they were already here. If you actually look at the statistics most people that are on welfare are white women, not mexicans. I have met plenty of hispanic immigrants that are in the process of learning  English, believe me people it does not take over night to learn a language. Americans are very ignorant and stupid when it comes to things like this. How many of you actually learned a new language before visiting another country? Some of these immigrants really are here on a short term basis, they are here to make money to take back to their families. Just like any American that works or tries a new investment, all you are trying to do is support your family. Be respectful of other people, remember One Nation Under God, it is not very christian to be so ignorant.......
934976
It is not difficult for them to find work as there as too many employers who are willing to hire them.  A lot of people believe that the immigrants are taking jobs away from Americans but that really is not true.  They are doing the jobs Americans wont do for the low pay.  Government on the state. local and federal levels needs to start being more harsh on employers who hire illegal immigrants.  A hefty fine for every illegal working would be a good start and closing down their businesses wouldnt hurt either and it is not just small businesses that hire illegals, large companies also hire them.
624230
well I will have to agree with a lot of you about the traffic , I did get to work much faster, my son also said it was much more pleasant in school because the teacher could focus on teaching instead of having to stop every 2 seconds to explain ( what mean this word )I'm sorry but if they are illegal then they don't belong here, they effect us in many ways , 1 taking jobs from legal Americans 2 bringing down the pay scale because they will work for next to nothing and the employers know that if we turn it down then an illegal will take it, of course for them they feel they are living high on the hog with that pay because I have never seen any of them here that don't have at least 10 plus adults living in 2 and 3 bedroom apartments, now mind you this is just the working adults I did not add all the kids that live in these cramped spaces as well .
490165
This area presents an interesting twist on the immigration question.  Based on a multi-part NPR report on this very matter, it seems that the US Labor Dept. feels that the increasing incidence of filling these "highly skilled" positions (engineering, etc.) with Indian and Chinese workers (on legal work Visas) skews the response of our insitutions of higher learning.  i.e.  We aren't stressing "Widget Engineering" enough in post grad study--- if it's Widget Engineers we need???   Companies must prove their inability to find such workers before they can hire and bring over these professionals.  Then it takes several years to obtain permanent citizenship.  Many leave the US and take jobs elsewhere when they cannot complete the process.  LEGAL immigration is a slow and complicated process---if that were the only contributing source of immigration we'd be fine.  ILLEGAL immigration is another thing altogether.\n\nMy concern is for American jobs, our overall economy, in this new "Flat World" (globalized economy) we need to restructure our college curriuculum, student loan program, public school math and science curriculum or WHATEVER it takes to help produce the professionals needed for these US based jobs.  \n\nIt seems that we our youth just isn't as "motivated" as those from countries where opportunity is more limited and personal wealth is significantly less.  If we have a complacent, un-motivated youth---the least we can do is provide an educational system that equips those who are competitive with the skills needed to meet the demands of the job market.\n\nThis is a complicated problem.  It's encouraging to see some dialogue on the matter.  Problems are never solved by screaming at one another, but by sharing ideas and finding workable compromise.\n\nLet's look for candidates who feel that way too--VOTE.
434361
Yes, I think workers visas are a good idea.  We need to let them in to work and have them pay taxes.  Those of us who are not from the baby boomer generation are going to need more tax payers to support us in our old age!
16248
The argument that they are "strain on the economy" is completely bogus. USA does NOT provide social services for illegal immigrants -- in fact, social services even for American citizens are very skimpy compared to other developed nations (e.g. Canada or Europe). People are loud about this, but it's hard to point to concrete economic benefits of NOT having illegal immigrants in the USA. \n\nIllegal immigrants generally work here, and mostly in jobs that Americans refuse at a low wage level (e.g. picking vegetables for 10 hrs a day in California sun). Kick them out and, among other things, you'll quickly see the price of veggies rise dramatically your local Safeway rise dramatically -- that much for the "drag on the economy" argument.\n\nAlso, imagine for a moment how much it would COST to deport all illegals -- I'm sure it'll work out to several hundred dollars per capita (hidden in the lump sum of your taxes, of course) -- would you be ready to pay, say $300 for this?\n\nU.S. policy on immigration is highly hypocritical -- illegals are pretty much encouraged to come in, in the interest of business community, and then treated as a subhuman species once in the country. \n\nWhat the U.S. needs is a reform of LEGAL immigration -- yes, tighten the borders, but also if we NEED some classes of labor, give temporary worker visas for people WE need to do it. \n\nIf there was no need for these jobs in the U.S. in the first place, nobody would come here. Most immigrants don't come here out of love of our freedom, high moral values and state subsidies but for economic opportunity.\n\nThe illegals that are already in the country are difficult to handle -- but the situation is American government's fault. People, predictably, pursue their happiness, and illegal immigrants are in no way less human or deserving of compassion than American citizens. \n\nIllegals should be given some status and recognition, if only to make it easier for the government to handle them. Giving them full legal status might not be fair to people who came here legally, but any solution is bound to be a compromise anyway. \n\nThe question of "deport or legalize people currently here" does not make much sense in isolation -- both actions are futile, if they are not a part of a more sweeping immigration reform, the one recognizing existing economic pressures and incentives for both U.S. businesses and potential immigrants.
853396
The reality is \nthat we don't have an "Illegal Immigration" problem in America.\n\nWe have an "Illegal Employer" problem. \n\nYet it's almost never mentioned in the mainstream media,\nbecause to point it out \ncould slightly reduce the profits and CEO salaries \nof many of America's largest multi-state \nand multinational corporations - \nwho both own the media \nand contribute heavily to conservative politicians.\n\nEncouraging a rapid increase in the workforce \nby encouraging companies to hire non-citizens \nis one of the three most potent tools \nconservatives since Ronald Reagan have used \nto convert the American middle class \ninto the American working poor. \n(The other two are \ndestroying the governmental protections \nthat keep labor unions viable, \nand \nending tariffs while promoting trade deals \nlike NAFTA / WTO/ GATT that export manufacturing jobs.)\n\nFor example, \nwhen Nike began manufacturing shoes \nin Third World countries with labor costs below US labor costs, \nit didn't lead to $15 Nikes - \ntheir price held, \nand even increased, \nbecause the market would bear it. \nInstead, that reduction in labor costs \nled to Nike CEO Phil Knight becoming a multi-billionaire\n\nThe fact is \nthat we have had an open border with Mexico \nfor several centuries, \nand "illegal immigration" was never a serious problem. \n\nBefore Reagan's presidency, \nan estimated million or so people a year \ncame into the US from Mexico - \nand the same number, more or less, left the US for Mexico \nat the end of the agricultural harvest season. \nVery few stayed, because there weren't jobs for them. \n\nNon-citizens didn't have access \nto the non-agricultural US job market, \nin large part because of the power of US labor unions \n(before Reagan 25% of the workforce was unionized; \ntoday the private workforce is about 7% unionized), \nand because companies were unwilling to risk \nhaving non-tax-deductible labor expenses on their books \nby hiring undocumented workers \nwithout valid Social Security numbers. \n\nBut Reagan put an end to that. \nHis 1986 amnesty program, \ncombined with his aggressive war on organized labor \n(begun in 1981), \nin effect told both employers and non-citizens \nthat there would be few penalties \nand many rewards to increasing the US labor pool \n(and thus driving down wages) \nwith undocumented immigrants. \n\nA million people a year \ncontinued to come across our southern border, \nbut they stopped returning to Latin America every fall \nbecause instead of seasonal work \nthey were able to find permanent jobs. \n\nThe magnet drawing them? Illegal Employers. \n\nOur borders have always been porous \nbut we've never had a problem like this before. \n\nAnd it's not just because poverty has increased in Mexico -\n\nToday, about half of Mexico lives on less than $2 a day, \nbut 50 years ago \nhalf of Mexico also lived on the equivalent of $2 today. \n\nYet fifty years ago \nwe didn't have an "illegal immigration" problem, \nbecause back then \nwe didn't have a conservative "Illegal Employer" problem. \n\nAs the Washington Post noted \nin an article by Hsu and Lydersen on June 19, 2006 : \n\n"Between 1999 and 2003, \nwork-site enforcement operations were scaled back 95 percent\nby the Immigration and Naturalization Service, \nwhich subsequently was merged \ninto the Homeland Security Department. \nThe number of employers prosecuted \nfor unlawfully employing ILLEGAL ALIENS \ndropped from 182 in 1999 \nto four in 2003, \nand fines collected declined from $3.6 million to $212,000, \naccording to federal statistics." \n"In 1999, the United States initiated fines against 417 companies.\nIn 2004, it issued fine notices to three."\n\nThe hiring crimes of Illegal Employers \nare being ignored by the law, \nand rewarded by the economic systems of the nation. \n\nProof that this simple reality is
301544
Absolutely, they should stay. Our economy is extremely dependent on their labor. And as far as paying taxes go... every illegal immigrant pays taxes one way or another. Most pay federal and state taxes through their paycheck because they rent social security numbers from people not working. So not only do they pay taxes and social security, but they will never receive it. Also they pay sales tax on everything they buy. Also, if the US wasn't so discriminatory about our visa policy then it wouldn't be as big a problem. Do you honestly think an agriculture worker from Honduras can get a visa? Hardly.... we should be looking at that as well because we need the labor on farms, in the meat industry, garment industry, etc. Anyone who thinks we don't is blatantly basing their opinion on nothing. Perhaps we should start another huge worker program like we had up until 1960.....
482993
I would put the emotions and nationalism aside and look at what other countries are doing about their migrant workers. We should identify them, create laws so they can pay taxes, provide a way for their families to stay together, and set up a program to provide for their basic health, human, and education needs.
612598
Send em back home! If they want to be here so badly, they'll do it legally. And besides, we'd be better off without them. We have US citizens with no jobs, that are willing to clean, disinfect, and deliver. But yet, immigrants get the job because they work for less. Americans need to quit being cheap, and think about helping out their country by hiring our own people.
469533
Anyone here a member of a union.  The jobs they do, these are not jobs that no americans will do, busboy, valet, waiter, etc.  Maybe Americans want to be paid more but hey, when you have a minimum wage, that's to be expected.  \n\nPersonally, I know a lot of international people.  I hear a lot about their problems getting into this country.  To me, illegal immigration is like cutting ahead of all these great people.  Is that fair, hells no, life in mexico isn't great, but the people in mexico can't complain about anything.  They no nothing about hard life.  If we should allow illegal immigration on the basis of them being refugees, then there are millions in Africa who we should bring in first.  There are two ways of doing it, don't let anyone in illegally, or let everyone in.  And I think we would know what happens if we just opened the floodgates.    \n\nIf the people protesting really wanted to be here, wouldn't they have an american flag, not a mexican one.  I'm really sick of the racial preservation.  You want to be proud to be mexican, go be proud in mexico, because if you want to say you're proud to be mexico and you're illegal, you're saying that you're proud you grew up from such filth that you couldn't help but leave(but you still love being from there).
649934
I'm against immigration entirely.\nwe have huge unemployment to care about. why are we bringing people from outside? \nmany claim that immigrants take less money and work jobs that Americans don't.\nbut i think that its the immigrants them selves are the main reason for that. no one should be paid less the minimum wage. and when no immigrants are working on their (so called) immigrants jobs, Americans will have to work there. I think that most of the immigrants are harming the structure of the American community and disrupting its balance.