Thread: Illegal Immigrants Work In Carolinas, No Penalties To Employ

http://www.wral.com/apncnews/4899229/detail.html

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- More than half the 330,000 illegal immigrants in North and South Carolina are employed _ and no employer has been fined, even though it's against the law to knowingly hire an undocumented alien, The Charlotte Observer reported Friday.

Officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement say they concentrate on egregious violators and employers who pose a high security risk, such as airports and chemical plants.

But no employer in the Carolinas has been fined in at least two years, the newspaper reported. Nationwide, only three "notices of intent" to fine employers were filed in 2004, even though an estimated 7 million illegal aliens have regular jobs.

"Let's see, do we go check out the nuclear power plant or do we go check out the fast-food restaurant down the street?" ICE spokesman Tim Counts said. "We don't use employer fines as a measure of success."

Last week, U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., called for raising fines from $250 to $10,000 per illegal worker, and giving some of the money to local law agencies as an incentive to help ICE.

"They've absolutely failed in their mission to fine businesses," Myrick's chief of staff, Hal Weatherman, said.

No employer sanctions have yet been announced in last week's arrests of 40 undocumented immigrants who worked for contractors at the Camp Lejeune Marine base, or in last month's detainment of 48 illegal immigrants employed by contractors at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro.

Employers say they feel trapped between federal laws that require them to verify a worker's identity and legal status, and the risk that inappropriate questions about nationality could provoke a discrimination complaint.

"We are in very much of a Catch-22," according to Allen Gray, a human resource officer with Carolinas Associated General Contractors. "Federal regulations say you have to accept certain types of ID. No one wants to hire an illegal alien."

The Charlotte-based organization represents more than 3,000 contractors in both states.

Its president, Stephen Gennett, said too much of a burden is placed on employers who lack expertise to identify illegal workers.

"The fallacy is the assumption that we know they're illegal," Gennett said. "(An employer) can't tell when he's been given forged documents. As far as we're concerned, he's put his best effort forth to make sure the man or the woman is properly in this country."

That difficulty is one reason why ICE no longer emphasizes fines, Counts said, even as the agency continues to target work sites.

He said ongoing investigations in South Carolina could result in fines or criminal charges against employers.

But the number of agents investigating illegal workers has fallen. Immigration officials devoted 9 percent of their staff to work site enforcement in 1999, but only 4 percent in 2003, according to testimony before Congress.

James Andrews, president of the N.C. AFL-CIO, says he's more concerned about worker safety than employer sanctions.

"I've been focused on making the workplace safe for all workers, whether they're legal or illegal," he says, "because they're here."

But no employer in the Carolinas has been fined in at least two years, the newspaper reported. Nationwide, only three "notices of intent" to fine employers were filed in 2004, even though an estimated 7 million illegal aliens have regular jobs.

But the number of agents investigating illegal workers has fallen. Immigration officials devoted 9 percent of their staff to work site enforcement in 1999, but only 4 percent in 2003, according to testimony before Congress.

This is really unacceptable.....

"We are in very much of a Catch-22," according to Allen Gray, a human resource officer with Carolinas Associated General Contractors. "Federal regulations say you have to accept certain types of ID. No one wants to hire an illegal alien."

Yeah right, a lot of the contractors don't want to hire them. As there filling there greedy little pockets, full of the tax payers money.

Officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement say they concentrate on egregious violators and employers who pose a high security risk, such as airports and chemical plants

every illegal alien that is not apprehended is unlawfully taking jobs that the citizens can do