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Florida employers support increasing work permits for illegal immigrants

By Ruth Morris
Staff Writer
Posted June 1 2005


Finding themselves short of qualified staff, Florida growers, gardeners and builders said they would welcome efforts to boost the labor market with workers from overseas as proposed in an ambitious immigration bill unveiled last month.

The bipartisan bill, introduced May 12 by Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Democrat Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, would open the way for millions of undocumented immigrants living in the United States on or before that date to pay $2,000 in fees and obtain work permits. Another clause would allow an additional 400,000 nonagricultural and low-skill workers to come from abroad. All would have the option to apply for permanent residency after six years.











Opponents say the bill amounts to a massive amnesty that would overwhelm immigration agencies and depress wages. But for companies looking for men and women to fill jobs in South Florida's muggy fields and on bustling construction sites, the proposed legislation was seen as a step forward.

"We're out here in the trenches and we know what goes on, and this thing is aching for a legal solution," said John Thomas, founder of Thomas Produce, Inc., referring to the droves of immigrants who slip into the United States every year looking for work. The Boca Raton-based company grows tomatoes, peppers and string beans, and provides 2,000 to 3,000 seasonal jobs a year.

Thomas said his company asks all workers for proper documents: a Social Security card and a driver's license. But he said he is having a hard time filling jobs, and the company is concerned about fake documents.

Construction companies also stand to gain if the bill is approved.

"We've got more work than we have people to do it," said John Siegle, executive vice president of the Construction Association of South Florida. While many construction jobs pay very well, he said, American parents strongly encourage their children to pursue university diplomas instead of journeymen's licenses.

"Our kids want to be doctors and lawyers and computer specialists. They don't want to work outside. They don't want to work with their hands," Siegle said.

The bill, which would match foreign workers to American employers, includes provisions to run background checks on workers, tax them, and set down English requirements. Legislators are expected to start debating the measure in July.

Experts estimate there are 10 million to 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States, with about half a million new arrivals every year. The massive numbers, plus strains on hospitals and schools in border communities, have prompted President Bush to promise comprehensive immigration reforms.

The McCain-Kennedy bill faces a steep political climb, however, since many House Republicans balk at providing a path to legal residency for illegal immigrants. Others say the bill plays into employers' hands by providing cheap labor and driving down wages.

"Who would provide oversight for this? The senators believe this is more paperwork that can be shuffled on a desk," said John Keeley, a spokesman for the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies, which supports stricter immigration controls. Referring to the bill as a "greeting card" for illegal immigrants, he said authorities should funnel more funding to agents to make sure companies are hiring documented workers.

For the day laborers who mill around street corners in Lake Worth, the bill's passage would mean more frequent family visits, or the chance to bring children to the United States without risking another desert crossing.

"I tell my daughter on the phone, `Little one, I'll be there soon.' But it's a lie," said one man who asked not to identified because he doesn't have immigration papers.

"We could earn more," said another immigrant, who said he made about $8 an hour on sporadic landscaping and cleanup jobs. "We could work in big companies."

The bill's future hinges on White House support, analysts say, and most predict a slow and bumpy ride through Congress. While the initiative would remove many of the inconveniences of illegal immigration, such as day workers clogging street corners and employers' trouble verifying Social Security numbers, some argue it might also bring in more immigrants than the United States can accommodate.

Public sentiment, meanwhile, tends to shift depending on how immigration reforms are framed.

"Most are troubled by illegal immigration. Americans are pretty law-abiding people," said Rob Williams, director of the Migrant Farmworker Justice Project, which has offices in Lake Worth.

"On the other hand, when people are asked what about these hardworking people who are doing the less desirable jobs in our country ... they recognize we need people to pick tomatoes and work in the poultry plants."

Ruth Morris can be reached at rmorris@sun-sentinel.com or 305-810-5012.