Senate Bill Would Seek Higher Wages For “Guest” Workers
The Senate immigration bill would require that foreign construction laborers here under the guest-worker program be paid well above the minimum wage, even as American workers at the same work site could earn less.
The bill “would guarantee wages to some foreign workers that could be higher than those paid to American workers at the same work site,” says a policy paper released this week by the Senate’s Republican Policy Committee. “This is unfair to U.S. workers, inappropriate, and unnecessary.”
My opposition to any sort of guest worker program aside, we should all oppose the government getting involved in setting any sort of wage minimums for workers in America…be they “guests” or citizens.
The free market should dictate wages. If we do create a guest worker program than those workers should work for what the employers are willing to pay them. If the pay is not adequate for these guest workers than they can return to their own country and find a job at a compensation level more to their liking.
Really, though, this bill should be called the “Guest Worker Unemployment Act” as it will only result in fewer guest workers being hired. If the bill requires a compensation level for guest workers that is higher than what American workers will work for then why would any employer continue to hire guest workers? The only reason illegal immigrants are hired in this country now is that they are willing to work for less than Americans will. If so-called guest workers suddenly become more expensive than citizen workers employers will either begin hiring citizens or continue to hire illegal immigrants who fall outside the guest worker program.
Putting it bluntly: This bill is a bunch of worthless nonsense.
Unfortunately, this Senate plan has the backing of Bill Frist and a few other Republican leaders:
The 11-page, harshly critical analysis of the Senate immigration bill on this one point reveals how torn Senate Republicans are over the larger issue of immigration.
Though the bill was supported by Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee and Majority Whip Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, it was opposed by the rest of the Senate Republican leadership and a majority of Republicans in the chamber. And despite the support of Mr. Frist and Mr. McConnell, this week’s policy paper critical of the wage guarantees for foreign workers marks the official stance of the Republican Policy Committee, which formulates and implements the policies of the caucus.
It is hard for me to imagine any true conservatives supporting a bill that allows the government to mandate compensation levels for workers.
Tags: Domestic Issues, JD Donaghe, Red River Flood
