Monday, July 2, 2007

Reader Comments

at 7/3/2007 8:13:11 AM, Greg in Tucson said:
Let's face it, with the lack of skilled and qualified (young, in particular) people, we need a workforce, and we need it now. We don't need it for 2 years, we don't need to send it back every 2 years (after we've spent thousands training?), we need it for 20 or more years, and as a constant presence. For years we've categorically and across the country gutted our Vo-tech programs and trade classes out of our highschools, insisted our kids go to college if they want to be of any value to society (so they can party on Daddy's money and take class room space from people who really want to be there, but that's another column!!), and now we wonder why we don't have any tradespoeple?? For at least those same number of years we, as a group (and I hear a collective 'not me') have encouraged inexpensive (won't use the work cheap) labor, whatever the source, and built a number of industries and a host of infrastructure on and for the same labor. It's time to pay the piper, if you will. I have no tolerance for and do not advocate knowingly hiring illegal entrants; but we must establish a mechanism to allow those who want to work here to work; to be part of society--whether as a guest worker with a reliably and easily documented verification system, or by providing a path to Citizenship. You can stop the arguments about the criminal element right now; as a percentage, there is no more 'criminal' element than, as a percentage, already existing now in our 'legal' citizen population. That's part of the verification process, and those are the segment who do not pass go and collect $200! And you can stop the whining about 'taking American jobs', because they're not. They're taking jobs that we don't have enough 'Americans' to fill, that 'Americans' won't take, and the list goes on. And remember, too, we've failed, as a Country, to establish a legal means for entry and citizenship, while at the same time fueling the demand for that labor. Think back, do you really think your granparents (or great grandparents) would NOT have found 'other' means of entry had Ellis Island, among others, not been ready to handle the (solicited, I might add) influx of immigrants? Do you think that, during and afer the Irish Potato Famine the Irish would have been happy to float off shore while they waited for us to establish a 'legal path' to Citizenship? Get real. As you might be able to discern, I could go on at great length, and while you may not believe it, I am a red-neck conservative midwestern native. However, I am also a realist. Let's all get real, and realize that without a supply of labor, our industries will continue to go to India, Malaysia, and other parts of the world. But you can't outsource your room addition, plumbing or roofing trades overseas. The time is now, or rather the time was many years ago; so that means the solutions may not be optimal or please everyone, but we just can't wait any longer.

at 7/18/2007 11:50:52 AM, Ken said:
I totally agreed with Greg opionion! We need enough workers to work!

at 7/18/2007 12:50:50 PM, Howard said:
Greg could not have said it better.

at 7/18/2007 5:53:49 PM, C G said:
As soon as they are granted US citizenship, they will go on welfare and/or unemployment and get the same if not more pay anyway. Let them go home and come back legally like my grandfather did in 1929. He became a great American and a plumbing inspector for 45 years starting in the 1930's. People like him built America...let's not un-build it!

at 7/18/2007 7:18:44 PM, Mick said:
Greg is right on the money and CG's comment confirms my belief that we need to reform welfare as well as immigration. Most of the illegals just want to WORK, not become US Citizens. Don't forget a HUGE, HUGE segment of illegals are NOT Latin. This really is a tough problem but a solution does exist.

at 7/19/2007 4:58:11 AM, Joe Jackson from MB NJ said:
There are endless arguments to both sides that Greg & CG have pointed out. My wife and I have tried for over 5 years and spent thousands of dollars trying to get only a few people legalized. It is a very sad chain of events for those that come to work in our land of opportunity. Like many of the rules and regulations in this country, it forces people to go underground. My theory is to allow a registering process that begins with the business owners. Let them hire the qualified people and let that process be a way of registering that person but be sure to make it simple. If they hired them without registering, then that employer would be breaking the law. These new "illegal employees" would become registered on a national list which could track and collect the taxes. Encourage them to stay working by minimizing their benefits of unemployment and or welfare until they have been in the country for X number of years. Anyone in the construction business knows that you have to adapt, improvise, overcome. If you wait till everything is perfect to start a job, it will never get started.

at 7/19/2007 6:14:40 AM, Warren Gross said:
Need workers, look someplace besides the street corner. Instead of hiring illegals at $50.00 to $80.00 a day (plus lunch?), try advertising $10.00 to $15.00 dollars for positions from trainee to third year apprentice. This will not happen, because most enployers hiring illegals pay cash. Paying cash greatly reduces costs for insurance, taxes, back office expenses, etc. If you need illegals so badly, sponsor half a dozen, move them into your home, or an apartment that you can pay for. Pay their wages, taxes, insurance, guarantee their employment for two years. Get your partner, or family members to do the same thing. In no time at all you will have your steady, legal, tax paying workforce. Please stop moaning and complaining about workforce, this is about one thing...MORE MONEY FOR ME!

at 7/19/2007 1:10:14 PM, DD Chicago said:
Greg has some accurate points but not so fast! There are many under employed non-college youth out there that can benefit from these craft jobs. I'm talking about mason, plumber etc. Immigrants from many nations are taking these jobs and doing reasonably good work, but at the expense of many of our kids working at Starbucks! Take a close look at who are building our homes and you'll quickly see that these are good jobs being done less each day by traditional Americans

at 7/20/2007 5:56:08 AM, D Profitt, Charlotte said:
Greg hit it on the head. I came from a blue collar background and have been a licensed GC for 22 yrs. I, like all the other builders in ths area, have a fair amount of non-native faces in our workforce. They don't get paid less than their american counterparts for the jobs they do. In many cases, they do get hired over the native born subs because we have come to learn that once these people are taught the proper way to do a task, they do it that way every time, and don't cut every corner that can be cut. As Greg said, for the most part, all these people want to do is WORK, and earn a living. If you think that is "typical" of our american work force, perhaps you better take a little closer look around you. And while we do have many non-college oriented youth (and I have worked many of them thru the years) they have been taught by our current attitude as a society and the education system that they don't have to be responsible for themselves and they, on the average, aren't intersted in a job that's hard work out in the heat and cold. We have to have someone to build the new homes and remodel your kitchens. If we sent the immigrants back, where are we going to find them? Maybe college grads? yeah, that'll work.

at 7/23/2007 12:56:40 PM, Clark said:
Illegal immigration is helping to turn this country into a 3rd world nation. Look who benefits from this: Homeowners and business owners who are getting rich on the backs of hard working and underpaid illegals. Who is being hurt: Those who work in the trades and unskilled/undereducated workers in food service, hospitality, construction, etc. ALSO being hurt are all law abiding, tax paying Americans who are in effect subsidizing the true cost of illigal immigrants (healthcare, education, social services, etc.) The rich get richer, the poor get poorer and the middle class is squeezed by both. The solution is that the US and other countries that attract illegals need to put real pressure on the governments of the source countries to improve their own economies and get rid of the graft-ridden and bloated bureaucracies that illegals are fleeing from. Supply and demand will raise the wages of Americans who want to work once we stop encouraging illegal immigration. If you want more people in the labor force, treat them better with pay and benefits instead of forcing them to compete with immigrants who don''t pay taxes, who live in substandard housing and have demostrated an overall disregard for the laws of this country.

at 8/15/2007 1:07:01 PM, MS in Houston said:
The point is that no bill or law has been passed yet. Thank goodness. Otherwise, I would not be living in a brand new 1,400 s.f., 2 story, 3 bed, 2-1/2 bath, 2 car garage home only 10 minutes from work on a 1/5 acre with many quality upgrades for only $117,000. I think all of this immigration "debate" is based on fear from the Rove era. Let's end it for good and keep our economy going.

at 8/29/2007 6:21:06 PM, Asunrising said:
We may just not have to worry about it for much longer. According to sources (Google North American Union, also Lou Dobbs on NAU) According to CNN Bush signed an agreement to proceed with plans for this with Canada and Mexico. According to sources there also plan a new currency, the Amero. Goodbye Constitution and constitutionalist. See if you can find out more, as I am. The Amero is expected to be in place by 2010. How do you feel about this US?

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