A Symptom of the Need for Immigration Reform
Posted Nov 14, 2003

Last week, the MurthyBulletin, as well as many other news sources, reported the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE's) arrest of hundreds of immigrants who were contracted to clean Wal-Mart stores through third-party contractors. These arrests occurred on October 23, 2003, in 20 states across the United States. Our article, entitled DHS Watch: Arrest of Hundreds of Wal-Mart Employees, can be found on MurthyDotCom.

We constantly educate our clients on legislation affecting immigration enacted by the United States government. Many laws are meant to protect the U.S. and our citizens, like the laws prohibiting the hiring of unauthorized workers. Certainly, we at The Law Office of Sheela Murthy respect and help to uphold the law. However, we sometimes find it difficult, as in this case, to view the recent, sweeping arrests as a victory for law enforcement. The direct result of these raids is to deprive U.S. employers of good employees, and hundreds of hardworking people of the opportunity to make a living wage merely to support their families and loved ones. We believe that the House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) may have a valid point that these raids demonstrate the need for immigration reform. This incident is further evidence that immigration benefits should be made available to undocumented workers in certain sectors of the economy, where their services are clearly needed and where there is a shortage of available, or willing, U.S. workers.

The raids at Wal-Mart stores, apparently, were the culmination of five years of investigation. We have spent substantial government resources and tax dollars seeking out those working illegally at menial labor jobs. Many so-called "unauthorized workers" are paying federal, state, FICA, and other taxes. We believe that the government would find its time, money, and energy better spent on programs that permit the legalization of such essential workers.

Illegal immigrants are evidence that U.S. businesses, vital to our country's economic recovery and growth, have an unsatisfied need for certain "essential" workers. It has even been argued by some that illegal immigrants are a symptom of a flawed immigration system, and that it is neither possible nor feasible for ICE to capture and deport all illegal immigrants. Rather than conducting raids, such as those on October 23, 2003, ICE resources should be focused on efforts to apprehend potential or actual terrorists and criminals who pose a danger to the United States and her citizens. Government raids, such as the ones at the Wal-Mart stores, often result in terrorizing foreign nationals who are here merely to support their families' most basic needs. Making employers primarily liable and holding them accountable may put the needed pressure on Congress to change our immigration laws to allow the legal employment of these essential workers. This would also help our economy to grow and our country to prosper.

~ Sheela Murthy