The U.S. business community is the most interested party when it comes to immigration reform, second only to undocumented immigrants. On the whole, business people support the Senate’s proposals to legalize the status of undocumented immigrants.
It would be very difficult, if not impossible, for businesses to survive without foreign labor. However, various groups of employers have differing views on some of the provisions in the legislation that is now being debated in the Senate. They are particularly divided over which foreign workers should be given priority in obtaining entry visas.
High tech companies are unhappy with the quota on H-1B visas for foreign specialists. The drafters of the immigration bill increased the number of H-1B visas to 115,000 from the current 65,000 (this figure can be raised to 180,000 if necessary).
High tech managers assert that this is clearly not enough. They maintain that the country needs professionals required by modern industry, not dishwashers.
Russkaya Reklama has already written about how the quota for H-1B visas was filled in record time this year. On the first day, the total number of applications amounted to 150,000, almost double the annual quota of 65,000. Last year, it took two months for the quota to be filled.
“Clearly, 115,000 is but a drop in the ocean,” said Jennifer Verderi, personnel director at Intel, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.
Bill Gates, the richest man on the planet, frequently addresses the need for a sharp increase in the number of visas for specialists. The head of Microsoft knows the value of foreign professionals: over one-third of the employees at Microsoft headquarters have H-1B visas.
The high tech industry is also displeased with the so-called merit system, which is included in the Senate's version of the bill. Critics of current immigration policy have long pointed out that it ignores criteria like education, knowledge of English, and work experience. Their wishes were finally taken into account with the creation of the merit system, which favors entry visas for people who have a higher education.
In addition to foreign specialists who have been invited by their employers, other foreigners with college diplomas will be able to apply for entry. This means that high tech businesses will have less of a chance of getting the workers they have specific needs for.
“We are very concerned,” said Betsy Mullins, vice-president of Tech-Net, an organization representing the interests of high tech companies. “I believe that personnel policy should be focused on the needs of the market, not on the education of a person applying for an entry visa.”
Feelings towards the Senate's bill are more favorable outside the technology sector.
“This document has our complete support,” announced Tom Nassif, president of the Western Growers Association. “Thanks to it, almost two million undocumented workers who labor in fields and on farms will be able to obtain legal status.”
Nassif, who used to work at the State Department, believes that the U.S. agricultural industry would simply not be able to survive without foreign workers. Even he, however, has problems with the immigration bill, believing that the $5,000 that undocumented immigrants will be fined to receive a green card is excessive.
The meat processing, service, and construction industries also view the Senate’s version in a positive light, particularly the guest worker program. However, they are all against the provision requiring the undocumented to return home to receive green cards.
“This provision will have an adverse effect on our work,” said Archie Sheffer, spokesperson for the food industry giant Tyson Food Inc. “We just can’t lose workers because we have no one to replace them. Training qualified specialists we will be quite expensive for us. The company will suffer great losses if experienced workers have to leave their positions for a long time."
Sheffer was not exaggerating: at many Tyson Food facilities, up to 60 percent of the workforce is made up of immigrants.
Eliseo Medina, vice-president of the Service Employees International Union, agreed that this requirement is not practical. “All Mexicans have to do is cross the border. But what if the immigrant is from China or Ireland?"
Like Sheffer, Medina pointed out the difficulties that employers will face when their workers are forced to return home.
“This requirement should be abandoned,” he stated.
The restaurant business does not have any serious issues with the immigration bill.
“It’s a good piece of legislation,” said Craig Miller, former head of the National Restaurant Association. “My colleagues and I are pleased that undocumented immigrants will be able to obtain Z visas and work in the country legally.”
Meanwhile, senators reached a decision known as a draw. By a vote of 49 to 48, the senators established a five-year limit on the program to attract temporary foreign workers. This amendment was proposed by Byron Dorgan (D-ND), who believes that migrant laborers take jobs that U.S. citizens would otherwise hold.
Many businesses are greatly concerned about a different, extremely controversial measure related to the employment of U.S. born and foreign workers. Businesses that do not comply with this law face stiff punishments. It will be recalled that employers currently participate in the Basic Pilot program, which would serve as the basis for the EEVS [Electronic Eligibility Verification Service] program, on a voluntary basis.
The Senate's version of the bill envisages restructuring this program into the required EEVS program. Under EEVS, employers will have 10 days to verify a worker's eligibility for legal employment. If this provision becomes law, Congress will charge the Department of Homeland Security with rolling out the program within 18 months. Employers will have to verify the status of both new workers and those who have worked for them for a long time. Even though the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has agreed in principle to using EEVS, it believes that verifying the status of all employees and white-collar workers is unreasonable.
“This is like shooting at sparrows with a cannon," stated Randall Johnson, vice-president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Johnson also sees no need for a speedy roll-out. Only one percent of employers currently use the Basic Pilot program. How will all American businesses be ready to start using it within 18 months?
“The U.S. workforce is 140 million strong,” said Johnson. “Let’s say that this system fails one percent of the time. This means that one million Americans will lose their jobs. This will be a real catastrophe for many families.”
A report by the Inspector General of the Social Security Administration places the failure rate even higher, at four percent.
The Senate’s version of the bill calls for stricter requirements for employers, who bear full responsibility for verifying the legal status of all their workers. Business owners will have to pay between $2,000 and $5,000 for each undocumented immigrant found during a raid (that fine is now $250). If the employer is caught three times, the fine increases to, anywhere between $10,000 and $25,000 per employee. The maximum fine will be $75,000.
Edward Kennedy (D-MA), one of the main sponsors of the Senate’s version of the bill, stresses that the EEVS program is part of a compromise. He does, however, admit that the program has shortcomings and that numerous mistakes are possible. Kennedy's colleague Patrick Leahy (D-VT), who leads the Senate Judiciary Committee, maintains that the EEVS program is a pointless undertaking not worth the $23 billion that it will cost. Most business people agree.
