Thread: Can fence be built without immigrants?

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Can fence be built without immigrants?

May 31, 2008 - 10:41PM
By Aaron Nelsen, The Brownsville Herald

Can the U.S. border fence be built on deadline without the help of foreign laborers?



With 670 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border fence slated for completion by year's end, construction companies in Texas are questioning the feasibility of completing such a project without immigrant labor.



The irony is not lost on businesses that have come to rely heavily on foreign-born and Hispanic workers to fill vacancies left by a shrinking domestic labor pool.



"Is it possible to construct a wall without undocumented workers?" asked Perry Vaughn, executive director of the Rio Grande Valley Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America. "It's probably borderline impossible to be honest with you."



In recent years, the construction industry has seen a dramatic increase in undocumented foreign-born Hispanic workers, according to a Pew Hispanic report published in 2007.



Based on information collected from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau, the report also found that foreign-born workers held one in five construction jobs in 2006.



In Texas, that percentage is unquestionably much higher, said Jerry Nevuld, president and CEO of the Houston Chapter of AGC.



If foreign-born workers were taken out of the equation, Nevuld believes, it would put undue strain on an industry that is already stretched thin for skilled labor and make construction of the fence a near impossibility.



"There are a significant number of illegals working in construction," Nevuld said. "If you try to build a wall, but take a few thousand workers out of the workforce first, you could have some real problems."



Commercial construction operations are usually careful not to knowingly hire undocumented workers.



Businesses are required to have employees file the I-9 form eligibility verification form, but some undocumented workers invariably slip through the cracks in the system.



In the late 1990s, the Golden State Fence Co., a fence-building company in Southern California, hired undocumented immigrants to build millions of dollars' worth of fencing between San Diego and Mexico.



The company received several warnings, but federal agents found undocumented workers still on the job in 2005.



In 2006, the company agreed to pay $5 million and its executives pleaded guilty to hiring undocumented immigrants.



A start date for segments of the fence in Cameron County have not yet gone out for solicitation, said Barry Morrissey, a spokesman with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, but when they do companies that bid on those projects will be heavily scrutinized.



An industry already under the microscope, only companies accepted into the Construction Multiple Task Order Contracts program can even bid on government projects.



Despite the additional oversight, the likelihood for illegal labor working on the border fence remains a distinct possibility.



"It could happen anywhere in any industry on any given day," Morrissey said.



The agency takes immigration seriously, and companies caught using undocumented labor will face legal recourse, according to Morrissey.



"It's very plain," Morrissey said. "Legally, it's unacceptable. Contractually, it's unacceptable. If we find illegal immigrants working on these projects, we'll have to take legal action."



The AGC straddles a theoretical fence too.



Although the association favors immigration reform that would allow its members to tap into a reservoir of workers across the border, the association also supports increased border security and in some cases the presence of a physical barrier.



The potential for irony underscores the complexities of the immigration debate as few other circumstances have.



As director of congressional relations for AGC, Kelly Knott advocates for immigration reform for the construction industry.



She doubts that Congress will take action this year, believing that the situation will get worse before it gets better.



"They want to make it so hard on employers and the business community" Knott said, "that perhaps it will force Congress to take action."



Immigration is constantly on the mind of Raleigh Roussell, president and CEO of the Dallas chapter of AGC.



He hopes the issue can be resolved soon, so businesses can get back to focusing on projects.



However, he doubts it will impede the progress of construction on the fence.



"They'll find a way to get the job done," Roussell said. "I would say there'll be some mix of domestic and immigrant labor, a fairly high mix, but it'll get done."



Foreign-born workers held one in five construction jobs in 2006.



SOURCE: The Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau

www.brownsvilleherald.com

There is also a poll at the website

Do you think companies do enough to hire only documented workers?
Yes 0%

No 100%

I don't care 0%

Total Votes: 2

Based on information collected from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau, the report also found that foreign-born workers held one in five construction jobs in 2006.

In Texas, that percentage is unquestionably much higher, said Jerry Nevuld, president and CEO of the Houston Chapter of AGC.

If foreign-born workers were taken out of the equation, Nevuld believes, it would put undue strain on an industry that is already stretched thin for skilled labor and make construction of the fence a near impossibility.

Four out of five in construction workers are not foreign born.

Construction stretched thin for skilled labor?
Construction is down and aren't illegal aliens unskilled labor?

They have endless excuses for not building the fence. They need to stop the excuses and get the job done. Build the fence. And the one in five construction worker who is illegal should not be here in the first place. They're taking jobs from Americans. None in five should be illegal. There are plenty of legal workers to build that fence. And if you can't get the job done without illegals then you shouldn't be in business. Someone else will do the job properly.

THE ARTICLE DOES NOT SAY ONE IN FIVE CONSTRUCTION WORKERS IS ILLEGAL. IT SAYS ONE IN FIVE IS FOREIGN BORN.

I AM SURE THEY CAN FIND AMERICANS TO BUILD THE FENCE. ANY COMPANY WHO CANT TAKE ON THE SIMPLE TASK OF HIRING WORKERS WHO ARE LEGAL SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO BID ON THE PROJECT AT ALL.

BESIDES THE ENDLESS POOL OF AMERICAN WORKERS, I AM SURE THERE ARE ALSO SOME PRISONERS WHO HAVE CONSTRUCTION EXPERIENCE.

AND HOW SKILLED TO THEY REALLY HAVE TO BE....ITS JUST A FENCE FCOL. ITS NOT A PALACE OR A SPACE STATION. ITS NOT A ROCKET THAT NEEDS TO MAKE IT TO THE MOON OR MARS. ITS JUST A FENCE.

ANY COMPANY THAT CANT HANDLE THIS SHOULD NOT BE IN THE BIDDING ARENA IN THE FIRST PLACE. GEEZ.

Having been in the construction trades for 20 years in my past, I can tell you that to work on a fence or a wall in the southwest, no matter what time of year, a skilled tradesman SHOULD be earning between $19 and $24 an hour. I'll take that any day of the week. Question is, will contractors pay that amount? Maybe, could be, but more unlikely. That money has to go to their doc fees and clubhouse fees. They all would tell me I'm wrong and that they all would swear up and down that they are barely making ends meet. Now, if that's the case, they're doing something wrong. We already know that, don't we!

My answer is contract with Israel to do it. They know what they are doing and they mean business because they have to mean business with the threats they have. We need foreign born Israelis who get it to do the job not someone hired by Kanjorski like his nephews who got $10 million in earmarks.

I have an idea. Use prison labor, which coincidentally consists largely of illegal aliens. If this is distasteful as some people will find the use of prisoners as forced slave labor, then I am sure there are more than enough legal Americans who would gladly take the job.

Hire LoneProtester and other displaced American construction workers from Columbia, SC. I'm sure that they would do it for the right price!

Ostrich

Texas Born---an excellent idea. There are a large number of young men and women in jail on drug charges. Offer a volunteer program to work at an hourly wage that is on par with the national average. The weekly/monthly cost for maintaining these prisoners should be available. Their paychecks should be docked for their fair share of prison maintenance and a single check paid weekly/monthly to the state/county/municipality that is supporting these prisoners with an accounting statement verifying hours, salary, taxes and deductions. The prisoners should then have the same option as illegal aliens to send some or all of the remaining money home to their families.

Even if it was a 50/50 split--@$10 an hour/$400 a week, Take home should be $340 or more. $170 for prison $170 for savings or remittance.

I like it!!!!!!