Thread: Hiring illegals hurts other businesses

http://www.newstimeslive.com/news/story.php?id=1027369

Hiring illegals hurts other businesses

By Elizabeth Putnam
THE NEWS-TIMES

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Day laborers wait for contractors at Kennedy Park in Danbury.

This is the third installment in a four-day series looking at immigration and its impact on greater Danbury. Click here to read all the stories.

DANBURY -- Employers who hire illegal immigrants should be fined, if not arrested.

That's what Joe Neverisky sees as a solution to his problem: Undocumented workers in Danbury are creating a cheaper labor market, making it difficult for him to make a living in construction, he said.

Neverisky, who just dissolved his construction company Kalo, LLC at the end of the year because of little revenue, said employers who hire illegal immigrants at low wages are able to "low ball" him on jobs.

"Their bids are lower, and I have to sell myself," he said. "I can't go as low."

Neverisky is one of a handful of contractors in the Danbury area who say they are fed up with employers who hire illegal immigrants to save money.

"You have to have insurance and proper licenses for your employees, but some contractors just aren't abiding by the law," he said.

Neverisky's claims, however, can't be proven with reports or statistics.

No studies have ever been done on illegal immigration's impact on Danbury's labor market.

The Connecticut Department of Labor also has never studied the issue anywhere in the state, said Rachel Meyerhoff, a researcher for the state's Labor Market Information Services.

The issue is undoubtedly complex and continues to be debated nationwide.

Supporters of a crackdown on illegal immigration say illegal immigrants are driving down wages and are taking jobs from native-born Americans, particularly the poor.

Critics of that stance say the opposite -- illegal immigrants help the economy, doing jobs native-born Americans refuse to do.

What measurable impact illegal immigrants have on Danbury's job market likely would fall on the construction business.

At least 100 day laborers, who are mostly in Danbury without documentation, stand at Kennedy Park most days seeking employment. Many of them receive jobs in landscaping or construction.

Nationally, day laborers, who receive an average salary of $10 a day, are primarily employed by homeowners or renters and by construction contractors, according to a national study on day laborers published a year ago in conjunction with the University of California Los Angeles.

Lelah Campo, president of Associated Builders and Contractors of CT, Inc., said there are state and federal laws that prohibit wage theft, exposure to unsafe working conditions and other worker abuses, but some contractors do hire illegal immigrants.

"I'm not going to say that it never happens," Campo said. "For the most part, there are controls in place, but it's difficult to fully enforce."

Until more enforcement is done, Neverisky is looking at his options to either switch careers or go back to school.

"I would never hire (illegal immigrants)," Neverisky said. Those who do hire them, he said, "should be fined."

# Contact Elizabeth Putnam

at eputnam@newstimes.com

or at (203) 731-3411.

The same thing happened to those of us in IT. For starters, most of us never made more than a middle class income if that, contrary to the hype. Then India, Inc. showed up and now I shoo people away from IT (I'm the rare woman IT manager, and expected to be a booster for this profession, but the income roller coaster has become too perilous for those who want families and a house).

For example, see: http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full ... _id=150435

Everyone yells at us to quit complaining and COMPETE. If someone will work for half to a third of what you can live on, what difference does it make how good you are? Upper C-level management is notoriously not picky when it comes to getting what they see as basic jobs done, and finds it very difficult to notice fraud, incompetence, and inefficiency until way too late. By the time we can say 'I told you so.' the wolf has already broken through the door.

"You have to have insurance and proper licenses for your employees, but some contractors just aren't abiding by the law," he said.

Then these companies should have their business liscense revoked, fined, and sent to jail.
Build the wall and deport them all.

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