Raids on Undocumented Workers and Businesses

There has been a recent increase in the number of immigrant raids on businesses in the United States.  As a hot topic for recent political debates, our country is torn between how to deal with the estimated 11million undocumented people living here.  As many people are ready to send these people back, what about the businesses they work for?  What kind of impact would this really have?


I have been employed for the same restaurant for almost 10 years now, and I have seen the impact the raids have had on our restaurant, the company and the individual.  We screen the employees and check their documents, but according to the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, employers cannot discriminate in hiring based on the possibility that an applicant is illegal. 


The best employees I have seen, who are dedicated and willing to work, usually turn out to be undocumented, and we have to let them go.  It is hard to find employees that want to work hard in the restaurant industry, and the service industry in general.  Although U.S. citizens complain that the undocumented take jobs away from those legally here and that they drive down wages paid, do those people really want to do the jobs that they do?  We have a large turnover rate because we can't find people that want to work hard for their money.  America teaches us that making money should be easy.  ?Get rich quick,? is what younger Americans are looking to.  Parents should teach their children the value of a dollar; the value of hard work.  Until then, the same cycle will continue, where we can't find people to work and hire these people, hoping that they will not be taken from us soon.  


Raids definitely promote worker insecurities, often causing them to miss work, especially when there are widespread raids.  In a film titled ?A Day without a Mexican,? by Sergio Arau and Yareli Arizmendi, one morning California wakes up to find that one third of its population has disappeared, which is those people of a Hispanic background.  Although this is fiction and a comedy, it does show the negative impact that immigrant's absence can have on businesses.  According to the Pew Hispanic Center, Florida, California and Texas lead the other states with the most undocumented workers.  So what is the best solution?  Guest worker programs seem to be the most reasonable answer.  According to a recent Zogby International poll for The Miami Herald found that 65% of South Florida Republicans surveyed favor establishing a path to legislation for immigrants currently living illegally in the United States.  The survey also found that 77% of Democrats supported that approach.  To keep them out is impossible, we have to work for a real solution that will work for all of society.