Posted on 05/29/2006 2:40:47 PM PDT by Jim_Curtis
Dr. Barry Chiswick, head of and research professor at the Department of Economics at the University of Illinois in Chicago, said this:
What about the impact on low-skilled American workers? How does a large amount of new labor into the country impact American workers of low skill?
He was blunt. He told it like it was. He said:
There is a competition in the labor market, and the large increase in low-skilled immigration that we have seen over the last 20 years has had a substantial negative effect on the employment and earnings opportunities of low-skilled American workers.
He goes on to add:
The large increase in low-skilled immigration has had the effect of decreasing the wages and employment opportunities of low-skilled workers who are currently resident in the United States.
We have some Members on the other side who want to bring in five times as many low-skilled workers as we bring in today. Do they want to dispute the professor from Chicago?
(Excerpt) Read more at sessions.senate.gov ...
I've actually seen them use big box store cabinets, the lowest grade. But that ok for me when they want to up grade.
Right there, see, there's an opportunity for someone clever. Well-designed high end cabinets for McMansions. Throw in some antique hardware and you could charge a fortune.
My belief is -- and always has been -- that capitalism is a pure expression of human nature. At its best, it spurs innovation and allows people to really better their lives.
The world seems to be in a real odd place at the moment. It no longer matters where a thing is made. Manufacturing chases cheap labor to the other side of the planet. It no longer matters where you were born -- labor chases jobs across borders (both low end and high end).
The bottomline is that if a significant portion of what's left of the American blue collar workforce gets to a place where they lose hope, then we've got some real serious problems. Political, social and economic problems that'll take decades to repair.
I've seen guys here in NYC -- two days ago they were living in Third World conditions poking a stick in the dirt. They hit the city, get a suitcase full of Chinatown t-shirts to sell on the street and --- voila, they're capitalists!
One of my favorite stories is a local Palestinian guy who opened a store next to -- get this -- an Israeli guy. I go out one morning and there's the Palestinian guy and Israeli guy yelling at an Italian American cop for ticketing the car of an old lady, Irish immigrant, for double parking. Well, there's something you don't see everyday.
Personally, I don't believe we're going to see any action from Washington. My belief is that we're going to see "new and improved" unions come into play...
The union guys are morons. What other organization refuses to adapt? Even after they started dying off, they refused to adapt. Okay, obviously they're probably not morons, but I can't fathom their thinking. Totally opaque to me.
If I were to re-invent the union today I'd do it so that it adds value for the employer. I'd say, we're collecting dues from (random number) 20,000 guys -- we're going to provide health care.
We're going to subsidize unemployment insurance to keep a stability in the workforce that changes jobs.
We're going to offer re-training programs and advanced study programs to keep our guys up to speed with whatever happens in the field.
And, if the gov't ever decides to enforce the law and fine employers who hire illegals, then we're going to do the screening process, which will cut down on fines imposed as well as gov't expense of enforcement agents.
Obviously, the unions aren't thinking of this stuff. They're stuck in some 1966 business model that hasn't existed for decades.
Oh and Mosel Tov (sp?) for those two shopkeepers)
The shopkeepers cracked me up. On slow days they'd stand in front of their stores arguing politics for hours, but shovel each others' sidewalks when it snowed.
People just want a shot at making some money to raise a family, educate the kids, having a few laughs. American capitalism is capable of putting the lie to a lot of the ethnic stuff. Walk into any ginmill in NYC and you'll see guys whose grandfather or great grandfathers would have been at each other's throats in a murderous rage, peacefully drinking together and complaining about Bloomberg.
Okay, Ben, I looked at your link and picked one of the economists testifying, which was Freeman. This is what I found:
Studies that compare wages/employment among groups over time find that immigrants depress the wages/employment of natives...
Et tu cherry picking?
The world changes and you either change with it or risk becoming irrelevant. From my vantage point, it looks as if unions willed themselves into obsolescence. I can't think of another organization so lacking in the self-preservation instinct.
I'm off to work. It's been a pleasure. Take care...
Ciao...!
I assume you mean $20 an hour per worker. . .and not including paint. . .
No. I want to name my own price and then import the labor that is willing to do the job at my offered wage.
There are some people in the world that would by happy to paint my house for $20 complete so why would I import a worker to do it for $20 an hour? Is there something "less illegal" about importing the more expensive labor?
I am offering that is not simply a matter of 'wages' or more to the point, fair wages. . .that lock out American workers. . .but rather a problem of lack of 'will' on behalf of many 'locals' to do specific labor.
I live in a city where unskilled labor is in high demand. . .and where a potential and local work force is not willing to do the labor. PERIOD. . .fair wage notwithstanding. . .
You CANNOT find enough unskilled. . .and willing workers here to get many jobs done.
You - meaning the collective 'you'. . .whether White employers or Black employers. . .CAN pay a fair wage - and I do mean fair. . .for work done by 'legal immigrants' and the same fair wage to illegal; while the local unskilled stay home and collect welfare. . .or otherwise 'work the sysem'. . .or go beyond it. . .
Then those jobs simply don't belong in the US.
If I start a Persian rug business, it would be impossible to find workers to make these rugs for me. It is not a viable business venture here in the US. Just because I want a Persian rug making business doesn't justify the importation of cheap Iranian labor to make my rugs.
That's a very interesting point. My own federal taxes have decreased only slightly, and my salary hasn't really kept up with inflation (though I'm not hurting). The state and local taxes have gone up considerably. Slow bleed of the middle class.
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