Thread: AZ Moves Closer to Creating Guest-Worker Program

Arizona Moves a Step Closer to Creating Guest-Worker Program
By The Arizona Republic
2/20/2008



Arizona's conflicted views on immigration surfaced at the state Capitol, as a bill that would create a guest-worker program and another that would make it harder for day laborers to solicit work both won approval in their first outing.

It's the first round of immigration-related bills to be debated by lawmakers. A third measure, which would add illegal immigrants to the list of groups prohibited from carrying a gun in Arizona, died on a tie vote that broke along party lines.

For the second year in a row, Rep. John Kavanagh is pushing a bill that would allow police to cite people for criminal trespass if they are found to be actively soliciting work and disrupting traffic to do so.

It's an attempt to break up the huddles of day laborers who seek work by standing on sidewalks at busy intersections. The practice has been typified by last year's standoffs in front of Pruitts Furniture Store in Phoenix, as people seeking day-labor jobs blocked the entrances to the business and spurred counterprotests.

Kavanagh said House Bill 2412 would give police the authority to ticket people who disrupt traffic, such as by waving or gesturing for drivers to pull over and hire them. Current law, he said, only allows citations if a person is found to have obstructed traffic.

"It's basically a traffic-safety bill," Kavanagh told members of the House Homeland Security and Property Rights Committee. "It's painted as an illegal-immigration bill, because many day laborers are illegal."

Under his bill, people who are standing in a public street or highway, or next to one, and actively looking for work could be cited with a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill defines soliciting work as "verbal or nonverbal communication by a gesture or a nod."

The Rev. Saul Montiel of the United Methodist Church urged committee members to reject the bill, calling it an attack on the immigrant community.

"Are you trying to destroy the economy of Arizona?" he asked, noting that many of the people seeking labor today will be the replacement force for retiring baby boomers.

Kavanagh said he worked on the bill with Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas. It's their second run at legislation to try to curb day laborers. A similar bill passed the Legislature last year, but it was vetoed by Gov. Janet Napolitano.

On Monday, the bill was approved on a 5-3 committee vote, with Republicans in favor and Democrats opposed.

While that bill was winning approval, a proposal to create a pilot Arizona guest-worker program was being discussed by another legislative panel.

The Arizona Temporary Workers Program, or House Bill 2791, drew heavy support from Arizona's business community, whose members said they need the labor pool that Mexican guest workers could provide.

"There are gaps in our labor force," said Glenn Hamer, president of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce.

"There are certain areas where if we don't get much-need workers into our country, we will see business leave our state and our country."

The bill, introduced by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, would allow Arizona employers to recruit temporary workers, from Mexico only, after demonstrating that there is a shortage of local labor to fill jobs.

The bill outlines a process, to be run through the state's Industrial Commission, that would regulate the hiring of temporary workers.

Provisions include a criminal background check of the applicant and a two-year limit on a temporary-worker ID, although the time could be extended. Workers would be drawn only from Mexico and would be authorized to travel between Mexico and Arizona, but not other states.

Click here to read the entire article from The Arizona Republic: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepubli ... n0219.html

http://www.lawnandlandscape.com/news/news.asp?ID=6086

Just wondering, does Arizona have any anti-loitering laws, whose primary targets are teenagers?

There are certain areas where if we don't get much-need workers into our country, we will see business leave our state and our country."





What businesses will leave our state?

People like Montiel go making statements like this but never provide specifics.

If someone is going to tell me that businesses are going to leave our state, and maybe even our country, if they can't have their precious "guest workers", then I want more than vague references.

I don't quite understand this....does AZ have the right to issue permits to foreign workers , pretty soon they will be giving out citizenship on their own....I don't think I like the can of worms this is opening.



>>>>>>>>>>>"RED ALERT"2/20<<<<<<<<<<<<
Utah...We Need callers now!! Please take action!
"It Could be your state next"
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-104592.html
Utah and Indiana.... Call, e-mail, Fax campaign!!
http://www.alipac.us/ftopic-103479-days ... asc-0.html

I agree--this is a can of worms for us. The Feds, under Bush refuse to uphold our laws. The states have started their own actions to protect their citizens, but some state elected officials can be arm-wrestled into going in the open door direction to satisfy the greed of the local employers.
The best solution is to force the Feds to enforce our laws or remove their government from office as recommended in the Declaration of Independence.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."[/b][/i]
"

A bill which only benefits Mexican laborers is clearly discrimininatory and would rightfully upset every other ally we have. Also there are plenty of unemployed or underemployed Americans around the United States. Arizona used to have a much higher population of semi retired Americans. If the pay is good and employers stop favoring illegal aliens over them they will be back.