Contractors and others who employ large numbers of Mexican and other immigrants long have supported an all-encompassing federal policy that would ensure an adequate supply of these workers, especially for jobs many Americans are often unwilling to perform. With the ongoing recession and resulting 25 percent unemployment in the construction industry this need for an adequate worker pool is not as pressing as it was a decade ago. Still, the construction industry is cyclical, and it is expected that the need for more qualified craft workers will again become critical as the recovery gains traction.

Like all loyal Americans, contractors support homeland security efforts and understand that keeping undocumented aliens out of the country is an important part of a workable immigration policy. Contractors support policies that strengthen the borders. So too is a better understanding of the impact illegal immigrants have on healthcare, the education system and employment of American citizens and legal immigrants.

But the issue is multi-faceted, and construction contractors, as much as professionals in any other industry, have a vested interest in protecting the rights of their workers. The vast majority of today’s federal immigration resources are spent on enforcement – Immigration and Naturalization Services raids on construction sites, restaurant kitchens and other places of business. Of course, workers who enter the country illegally and the companies that knowingly hire them should face increased penalties.

But the vast majority of contractors follow all the rules. The few cheaters who hire illegal aliens often pay them less than their jobs are worth and may even ignore basic safety measures, knowing workers in the country illegally have little leverage and will not go to the authorities. These few employers not only take advantage of their undocumented workers, they also enjoy an unfair advantage over good companies they compete with for jobs. These companies find it easy to classify illegal immigrants as independent contractors, skirting laws requiring them to provide workers’ compensation insurance and pay payroll taxes.

Because the reality is that these unscrupulous employers do exist, they must face severe penalties when they’re caught. Unfortunately, by-the-book contractors easily can find themselves employing an illegal immigrant because of our cumbersome, flawed system of immigration checks and balances. Currently, the government wants employers to use an inadequate, incomplete computer verification database to ferret out undocumented immigrants who apply for jobs. With this tool as their best resource, mistakes are inevitable. It would be unfair for force contractors to use this flawed database and then penalize them when an undocumented worker slips through the computer network’s cracks and find their way onto the payroll.

Without a safe harbor provision to protect employers if they mistakenly hire an illegal immigrant even after performing their pre-hire due diligence, a reform package would be worse than worthless. It would be counterproductive, presenting incentives for companies to discriminate against applicants who might appear to be of Latin extraction or who speak with a pronounced accent.

A fair immigration policy also must include a reasonably easy way for workers to enter the country legally. A guest-worker program should allow companies to look beyond America’s borders when U.S. workers are not available. The number of H-2B visas are woefully inadequate to fill the construction jobs that will need to be filled as the economy improves.

A workable system must provide an opportunity for those here illegally to achieve legal status and remain in the country to work. Amnesty is a hot-button word. Many hard-working Americans oppose plans to give immunity and citizenship to immigrants who have lived and worked in the U.S. for years – taking advantage of the nation’s health care and education systems while paying no income taxes. Still, those workers have contributed to the country’s productivity and have established ties to their communities. They deserve to be placed on a path to citizenship after meeting fair requisites.

Clearly, immigration reform involves much more than simply building a 30-foot electric fence along the Rio Grande. True reform will respect the dignity of those who wish to make better lives for their families, deal forcefully with those who take advantage of desperate people for their own unfair advantage and ensure the country’s security, education and health care resources are maintained.

Labels: Commercial, Construction Industry, Industrial