I will use HKG as an example. My brother lived there for 15+ years, and they had multiple domestic helpers. They had to go through an agency to find someone. Once someone was identified they would go through the paperwork to get the person to come to HKG for the term of employment. My brother had to pay for this person’s medical insurance and few times back to her home. She was not allowed to bring her family to HKG because she worked there. My brother’s family was responsible for this person until she finds another employment or leave HKG. If this person should “disappear,” then she would receive no benefits in HKG, she would be non-existent as far as the government was concerned. The domestic helpers also do not get to convert their work permit into permanent residency. HKG has millions of domestic helpers from other countries, and they don’t seem to have this over blown immigration problem.
What’s interesting is some of my friends have brought their housekeepers from HKG back to the US, and all of sudden those housekeeps move on to another employment with no worries of not able to stay in the US without papers. They got their relatives come over for visits then they stayed illegally.
Sure we all benefit from the current set of illegal immigrants. That does not mean it is not possible for us to get by without them though. It is not necessary or smart to round them all up and deport them. If our government worked they would sort out where they are and how many we need and then set about enforcing laws industry by industry. Go after the employers and the illegals would self-deport. I think most agree that the children should not be punished and it seems reasonable to allow the parents some sort of status until the kids are 21 or so.
There should be enough legal immigration to satisfy the needs of the country. We are in a great position in that many would be happy to go through the proper channels to come and work here. We need all sorts…laborers, scientists, doctors, etc…ones who sneak across the border should not get special privileges for jumping the line.
After an adjustment period, Americans would go back to doing those jobs, just like before. How many of us middle class people worked at McDonald’s, Burger King or the equivalent when we were teenagers? I also worked in a textile mill, and my friend worked in a dirty factory too. His dad was a doctor, and he himself went on to graduate from Duke with a degree in engineering. So no, I don’t buy that Americans wouldn’t do the jobs. Spoiled, entitled Americans wouldn’t, but then they didn’t back then either. My kids wanted to work what were formerly teen jobs, but they couldn’t get hired at the local McDonald’s type restaurants because adult immigrants keep those jobs year round.
@CaliMex I wholeheartedly agree with you. What most people are doing here is slapping the hand that feeds them. I hope you guys know that you NEED illegal immigrants because they do all they crappy work that you guys wouldn’t even dare to do.
Lots of college spots for kids who earned them. No need to cast blame or scapegoat.
And yes @jyme626, that’s the whole point of immigration reform. We are in denial about our country’s dependence on inexpensive labor from other countries. We need to change the laws so we can receive as many minimum wage workers as we actually need without forcing employers to break the law and hardworking immigrants to live in the shadows. But we are in denial about our need for them… And, frankly, we don’t like brown people. Yes, racism has a lot to do with our anti immigrant attitudes.