Americans' Protests Rising Against Pelosi's & Obama's Preference for Illegal Foreign Workers

The White House switchboard is barely holding on. Fax machines there and in congressional offices are churning out Americans' protest in peak mode. Pres. Obama and House Speaker Pelosi have started a grassroots rebellion with their new statements of prioritizing illegal foreign workers over unemployed Americans. How angry are you? Let me count the ways . . .

Dear Roy: I can’t get through to the White House to protest the Hispanic Caucus plans. Maybe that’s a good sign.

Lyneil, we're hearing this all day. You are jamming the White House phones with your protests. (The White House comment line number is: 202-456-1111 (if the comment line is busy, try calling the White House switchboard at 202-456-1414))

10:14 AM (39 minutes ago)

The 2006 Swift Raids: Assessing the Impact of Immigration EnforcementActions at Six Facilities

http://cis.org/2006SwiftRaids
By Jerry Kammer March 2009

This is a recap of a report of a study done by CIS (the Center for
Immigration Studies). It reports on what has happened at Swift
meat-packing plants since the “raids”. If you want to read the full report
you can find it at: http://www.cis.org/articles/2009/back309.pdf

And the news is generally good. Wages are up some and working conditions
are somewhat improved. It also reports that, if wages at the plants went
up by a third, it would only cause a 3% increase in the price of the meat
produced.

This report should be used to counter some of the wild claims by “Pelosi
et al”.

jhf

Download the pdf version

On December 12, 2006, about 1,300 illegal immigrants working at six meat
processing plants owned by Swift & Co. were arrested in the largest
immigration enforcement action in U.S. history. Other illegal workers,
fearful of future raids, stopped reporting to work. Additionally, in the
months prior to the raids, new employee screening by Swift led to the loss
of about 400 illegal workers. The plants are located in Iowa, Minnesota,
Nebraska, Texas, Colorado, and Utah. This report examines the raids and
their aftermath.

Among the report’s findings:

As is the case in the entire industry, work at the six Swift plants is
characterized by difficult and dangerous conditions.
Like the rest of the industry, workers at these facilities have seen a
steady decline in their standard of living. Government data show that the
average wages of meatpackers in 2007 were 45 percent lower than in 1980,
adjusted for inflation.
We estimate that 23 percent of Swift’s production workers were illegal
immigrants.
All facilities resumed production on the same day as the raids. All
returned to full production within five months. This is an indication that
the plants could operate at full capacity without the presence of illegal
workers.
There is good evidence that after the raids the number of native-born
workers increased significantly. But Swift would not provide information
on how its workforce has changed. Swift also has recruited a large number
of refugees who are legal immigrants.
At the four facilities for which we were able to obtain information, wages
and bonuses rose on average 8 percent with the departure of illegal
immigrants.
There is a widespread perception among union officials, workers, and
others in these communities that if pay and working conditions were
improved, it would be dramatically easier to recruit legal workers
(immigrant and native).
Worker pay has a small impact on consumer prices. Research by the USDA and
others indicates that wages and benefits for production workers account
for only 7 to 9 percent of retail meat prices. This means that if wages
and benefits were increased by one-third, consumer prices would rise by 3
percent at most.
Research by the United Food and Commercial Workers union indicates that
pay to production workers accounts for only about 4 percent of consumer
costs. If that is correct, a 50 percent increase in wages would cause only
a 2 percent increase in consumer prices.
Turnover is high at all Swift plants, ranging from 40 to 70 percent per
year. Swift accepts high turnover as a cost of pursuing a business model
that emphasizes high-volume production. It spends heavily to replace
workers rather than seeking to retain workers by slowing production.
High turnover imposes severe stress on local communities and social
service agencies. It makes transience and upheaval a constant problem for
the communities. Many residents resent the price their community pays to
have the Swift plant as a large part of their local economy.
Swift has tried to reduce the employment of illegal immigrants with more
rigorous checks of documents presented by new workers. Several months
before the raids, the company contracted with the Tucson-based Border
Management Strategies for advice on hiring practices.
In addition to pay increases, Swift introduced a number of methods to
attract workers after the raids. The company paid bonuses to new
employees, and to current employees who recruited others. It also
advertised heavily, paid relocation expenses, and provided daily
transportation from distant population centers.
Reaction to the raids varied widely within these communities. Many members
of the communities were enthusiastically supportive of the enforcement
action, while other were sharply critical.
The Swift plants in Marshalltown, Iowa, and Hyrum, Utah, illustrate the
immigration connections that were established during the 1942-1964 era of
the braceros and extended through the 1986 amnesty. Many relatives and
neighbors of former braceros now work at Swift plants.

M3 Report

U.S. Immigration reform plans in the works

Posted: 20 Mar 2009 07:44 AM PDT

Several dozen Central American and Mexican newspapers gave prime coverage Thursday to a report that President Obama intends to present a “migratory reform” this year.
An abstract of only one example:

La Hora (Guatemala City, Guatemala) 3/19/09

A small light is now visible in U.S. politics in favor of the migrants. Victory is not yet proclaimed, say leaders, since they expect that it will be an integral reform and would guarantee the end of persecution.
Hispanic legislators who met recently with President Barack Obama asserted that there is “disposition” in the White House for the presentation of a reform to Congress. Luis Gutierrez, Democrat legislator from Illinois, asserted that Obama “reiterated his commitment in a clear and unequivocal way, he has every intention of doing it together with this caucus.”
In Los Angeles, for instance, Guatemalan leaders stated to be hopeful for the project to progress according to the demands put forth to the United States Government on several occasions.
——–

Frontera (Tijuana, Baja Calif.) 3/20/09

* The Mexican airline Aeromexico now has twice a week direct flights from Shanghai, China, to Tijuana. The flights have a 250 passenger capacity, which could translate into 40,000 Chinese visitors this year. A delegation of 26 Chinese travel agents visited Tijuana, Rosarito and Ensenada last weekend to learn about the area and be able to promote it in Asia. The head of the local tourist association in Tijuana said that the visitors felt comfortable and that at no point was the issue of insecurity mentioned.
* A man detained in Tijuana’s Camino Verde area was carrying a case with a loaded .45 cal. submachine gun as well as 18 rounds for AK47.
* At the La Presa area of Tijuana, officials found the body of a man; “heavy caliber” shell casings were nearby.
* And on Tijuana’s Internacional Ave.: the body of a man showing signs of torture and wrapped in bedding.
———

El Economista (Mexico City) 3/19/09

Officials of the Distrito Federal (Mexico City’s surrounding area)government have stated to Mexico’s Foreign Relations and Government Departments “We need the Mexican government to modify its criteria for issuance of visas to Chinese and not to carry out a migratory policy to satisfy wrong assumptions of the North American government that the Chinese who come to Mexico are going to go to the U.S. as migrants.”
———

Prensa Libre (Guatemala City, Guatemala) 3/19/09

“Violent acts - such as assassinations of drivers, ambushes between drug traffickers, homicides, massacres, hold ups, kidnappings and extortions - have occurred during the third month of the year, oppressing Guatemalans at a time when there’s no foreseeable plan to halt them.
Citizens’ groups assert that 15 crimes are reported each day in the capital city and province. Six bus drivers, two helpers and two passengers have died. A psychosis has gripped Guatemalans due to the lack of security and it is aggravated by confrontations between narco groups, homicides and even the massacre of families, extortions against businessmen and individuals, armed robberies of pedestrians and of automobile drivers when they are stopped at a traffic light or by a traffic bottleneck.”
———

Cambio de Michoacan (Morelia, Michoacan) 3/19/09

* A city police officer was shot to death from a passing vehicle while on his way to work at the city of Lazaro Cardenas. (On the coast of Michoacan)
* “Three totally dismembered bodies” - including their heads - were found Thursday morning, plainly visible on the main plaza at Zumpinirito, an area of Uruapan, Michoacan. The three had a number of letters “Z” tattoed on them.
* Three other bodies were found near Chiquimitio, on the highway to Morelia, Michoacan; these three showed “visible signs of torture.” A number of shell casings were also found there.
———

El Diario (Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua) 3/19/09

* Juarez city police have been reissued hand guns, which they may carry only while on duty. Three soldiers now accompany each Juarez police officer on patrol.
* Two men were shot to death in separate events in Chihuahua City and three others were wounded. One of the deceased was found gagged and with a black rope tied around his feet and hands.
———

El Imparcial (Hermosillo, Sonora) 3/19/09

Three men, one of them a U.S. citizen, were arrested in Nogales, Sonora. The men had with them a .50 cal. Barret rifle with nine rounds, a telescopic sight and case, plus a 9 mm. pistol with twelve rounds - four of them hollow points - as well as cellulars, radios and other ammo. The three were using a Chev. Avalanche with Arizona lic. CD85372. (The attachment is a picture of these three men behind the rifle and its ammo.)
———-

El Porvenir (Monterrey, Nuevo Leon) , Milenio (Mexico City) 3/19/09

The bodies of four men were found half buried at the side of a soccer field in the La Venta area of Acapulco, Guerrero. Two were gagged and handcuffed behind their back; the other two had their hands tied with wire.
———-

cal-50
- end of report -

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FORMER BORDER PATROL OFFICERS
Visit our website: http://www.nafbpo.org
Foreign News Report

The National Association of Former Border Patrol Officers (NAFBPO) extracts and condenses the material that follows from Mexican and Central and South American on-line media sources on a daily basis. You are free to disseminate this information, but we request that you credit NAFBPO as being the provider.

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