NYT: A Crackdown on Employing Illegal Workers

[Newsjock]

Source: New York Times

Obama administration officials are sharpening their crackdown on the hiring of illegal immigrants by focusing increasingly tough criminal charges on employers while moving away from criminal arrests of the workers themselves.

After months of criticism from Republicans who said President Obama was relaxing immigration enforcement in workplaces, the scope of the administration’s strategy has become clear as long-running investigations of employers have culminated in indictments, convictions, exponentially increased fines and jail sentences. While conducting fewer headline-making factory raids, the immigration authorities have greatly expanded the number of businesses facing scrutiny and the cases where employers face severe sanctions.

In a break with Bush-era policies, the number of criminal cases against unauthorized immigrant workers has dropped sharply over the last two years.

... Last year, according to government figures, the enforcement agency started 2,746 workplace investigations in addition to the audits, more than double the number in 2008, the last full year of the Bush administration. Fines totaling about $43 million, also a record, were levied on companies in immigration cases.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/30/us/politics/30raid.html

[w4rma]

1. Very very very good. They finally being serious about enforcing the law. (nt)

[Trekologer]

2. If the employers stop hiring illegal workers, new ones will stop comming

It is as simply as that. Crack down on the scumbags hiring illegal workers and new ones will stop coming because there aren't jobs to be had.

The tough on illegal workers crowd (who want to go after the workers and not really the employers) are in a way protecting the illegal employers because they are being given power to exploit the workers: if the workers don't work for crap wages, crap hours, and do exactly what they are told, the employers will turn them in.