Thread: 'No match' rule could create labor shortages

Business blather throwing our "red herrings" trying to maintain the status quo:

August 20, 2007

'No match' rule could create labor shortages
Kent Hoover Washington Bureau Chief
http://www.bizjournals.com/extraedge/wa ... reau1.html

Hundreds of thousands of workers will lose their jobs as a result of the federal government's crackdown on companies that employ illegal immigrants, business lobbyists predict.

This will lead to severe labor shortages in some industries and eventually weaken the overall economy, they contend.

"It's a disaster for us," said Craig Silvertooth, a lobbyist for the National Roofing Contractors Association.

The Department of Homeland Security issued a regulation Aug. 10 that's designed to make it harder for illegal immigrants to use phony Social Security numbers to get a job. The new rule, which goes into effect in September, outlines what employers should do if the Social Security Administration notifies them that an employee's name and Social Security number don't match government records.

Workplace enforcement
Under new rules:
• Employers who are notified that an employee's name and Social Security number do not match government records will have 90 days to resolve the discrepancy. If they can't, they must fire the employee or risk legal liability.
• All companies who receive new federal contracts must verify the employment eligibility of their work force through a computer-based system.
• Civil fines for knowingly hiring illegal immigrants will be increased by 25 percent.

About 15,000 of these letters will be mailed to employers each week over a two-month period, according to DHS. In the past, these letters often were ignored. Under the new regulation, ignoring these letters could be used as evidence that employers knowingly hired illegal immigrants.

"That's going to be awfully hard for them to explain to a jury when the time comes for a trial," said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.

The first step employers who receive "no match" letters should take, according to the regulation, is to make sure there wasn't a clerical error, such as a mistyped name or number. The next step is to check the accuracy of the information with the employee, and then, if necessary, ask him or her to contact the Social Security Administration to resolve the discrepancy.

If the discrepancy is not resolved within 90 days, the employer must terminate the employee or risk being held liable for violating immigration laws.

"This regulation lays out a clear path to doing the right thing, which will afford protection for employers who are following the law," Chertoff said. "The person who does their best, in good faith, has nothing to fear from this."

Employers who do the wrong thing have plenty to fear: the Department of Homeland Security plans to increase civil fines against employers for immigration violations and will seek criminal charges against the worst offenders. It already has made 742 arrests for workplace violations this year, up from only 24 in 1999.

People will 'get scared'
The new regulation combined with the stiffer penalties will lead to widespread layoffs and discrimination against Hispanic workers, business lobbyists predict.

"People are going to get scared," said Laura Reiff, an immigration attorney at Greenberg Traurig's McLean, Va., office and co-chair of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition.

Many workers will just walk off the job when they are told there is a problem with their Social Security number, she said.

"It's going to have a dramatic impact on the work force," Reiff said.

That's just what many anti-immigration groups are looking for.

"When illegal aliens and their employers become convinced that we are determined to enforce our laws consistently, fewer people will come illegally and many who are here will leave on their own," said Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform.

Many illegal immigrants, however, may move into the underground economy instead of going back to their home countries, said Angelo Amador, director of immigration policy for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. This would cost the U.S. government billions of dollars in taxes and Social Security contributions.

The new regulation also may accelerate the outsourcing of work to other countries, Amador said.

Businesses, meanwhile, will be forced to hire attorneys, human resources specialists and other consultants in order to comply with the new regulations, he said.

"In the end, small businesses, their employees and the economy will suffer," said Karen Kerrigan, president and CEO of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council.

No pain, no gain?

The pain eventually may serve a purpose: convincing Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform, including a guest worker program and a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants.

Chertoff made a point to say the Bush administration still supports comprehensive immigration reform, which died this June in the Senate.

"I think there is a sentiment within some in the administration that for things to get better, things have to get worse for employers first," Silvertooth said.

"This may simply be cover for the White House to bring back their amnesty push next year," said Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., an opponent of the administration's immigration bill and a candidate for president in 2008. "I hope time will prove me wrong."

They don't care about the towns and neighborhoods overrun with illegal aliens, devastated by illegal aliens, changed by illegal aliens, and they seemingly ignore the criminal elements that they too may become victims of somewhere down the line.

Just the greed, just the bottom line, forget who gets hurts in the process - the American worker, the American taxpayer, the American family, the American system of justice

Psalm 91

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