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Should It Be Legal for United States’ Businesses to Hire Undocumented Immigrants?

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free… Send

these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" These are the

words that the Statue of Liberty uses to welcome immigrants from all over the world into the

United States (U.S.) (“The New Colossus”). However, these words are empty promises to those

who flee to the U.S. without the time or necessary funds to complete the official immigration

process. The government recognizes these people as undocumented immigrants. Although many

come to country in search of work, it is currently illegal for U.S. businesses to hire these

individuals. In President Richard Nixon’s speech, “Address to the Nation on Labor Day”, he

discussed the reputation of the American work ethic, and he praised those who sacrificed

themselves for the good of the nation. Early in the speech, Nixon states “That work ethic is why

Americans are considered an industrious, purposeful people, and why a poor nation of 3 million

people, over a course of two centuries, lifted itself into the position of the most powerful and

respected leader of the free world today”. However, he failed to acknowledge the sacrifice of the

undocumented immigrants who risk criminal charges for the sake of having a better life in the

American workforce. It should be legal to hire these undocumented immigrants because they

positively impact the American economy, they perform jobs that American laborers do not want

to do.

The Pew Research Center reported that there are currently 11 million undocumented

immigrants living in the United States, and they make up about 3.5 percent of the population. In

2014, there were approximately 8 million of these immigrants in the workforce (Krogstad et al.).

Although businesses are prohibited from discriminating based on race or national origin, those
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that knowingly hire undocumented immigrants are subject to a series of fines and criminal

penalties. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services lists the fines for breaking these laws,

and it ranges from 539 dollars per immigrant to as much as 21, 563 dollars per immigrant

(“Penalties”). The only true way that an undocumented immigrant can legally live and work in

the country is to obtain a working visa. According to Amanda Holpuch, a reporter for The

Guardian, the four main types of visas are: H-1B (for temporary, skilled workers), H-2A (for

agricultural workers), 01 (for extraordinary ability workers), and L1 (for intercompany transfers).

Even though these programs are in place, it is difficult for these workers to obtain them because

they are restricted (Holpuch). For example, in 2016, President Donald Trump limited the number

immigrants allowed to obtain a H-1B visa to only 85,000 people per year. Also, the number of

immigrants allowed to obtain a H-2A visa is capped at only 66,000 people people per year

(Solon). Although these restrictions are put in place to regulate the number of immigrants

coming into the country, they only encourage immigrants to come illegally due to the fact that

the visa positions get filled quickly.

It should be legal to hire undocumented immigrants because they are beneficial to the

American economy. Contrary to popular belief, undocumented immigrants do pay taxes.

According to Christy Fujio, a human rights lawyer with over ten years of experience working

with undocumented immigrants, many individuals pay taxes in the hope that by following the

law, they will be granted a path to citizenship. On March 28, 2017, an undocumented immigrant

from Argentina, Belen Sisa, posted a picture of herself paying taxes. In the post she wrote “I, an

undocumented immigrant, just filed my taxes and paid $300 to the state of Arizona.” The young

adult has been in the U.S. since she was six years old, and she has paid taxes for over four years.

In a 2016 study by the Institute of Taxation and Economic Policy, undocumented immigrants
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pay approximately 12 billion dollars a year in taxes (O’Sullivan). This proves that these

immigrants are beneficial to the economy because they contribute a tremendous amount tax

revenue in order to prove that they can be trustworthy citizens and employees.

Another reason why it should be legal to hire undocumented immigrants is because they

are already involved in many industries that Americans laborers no longer want to do. In 2014, a

Pew Research Poll reported undocumented workers outnumbered U.S. born workers in business

services, construction, manufacturing, leisure and hospitality, and the agricultural and mining

industries. However, the U.S. born workers outnumbered the migrant workers in education,

health services, financial activities, information, public administration, and retail trade industries

(Passel and Cohn). This proves that slowly U.S. born workers are moving out of hard labor

fields, while undocumented immigrants are jumping at the opportunity to fill in these gaps.

The opposing perspective of this argument concludes that these workers are not official

citizens, and thus, should not receive the same privileges. For example, the Fourteenth

Amendment of the U.S. Constitution addresses natural born and naturalized citizens as the true

receivers of protections under U.S. law (U.S. Constitution). These people have either lived in the

country their entire lives, or they have taken the time to go through the official immigration

process, which guarantees that this country is theirs. Also, there are various proposals to who

should be performing the country’s more menial jobs. For example, some conclude that

undocumented workers take away jobs from the legal citizens of this country, while others

propose that instead of depending on illegal migrants, the U.S. should allow robots or other

computer systems to take their place. In the article “A World Without Work”, The Atlantic's,

Derek Thompson, claims “the most common jobs are salesperson, cashier, food and beverage

server, and office clerk. Each is highly susceptible to automation.” These are many of the jobs
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that are performed by undocumented immigrants, and if the labor industry automates them, then

the nation will no longer need to depend on illegal workers.

Although it is true that these immigrants come to the country illegally, many of them are

trying to avoid violence, gang activity, or extreme poverty (Fujio). For example, after becoming

bankrupt in Guatemala, twenty-three year old, Eduardo Flores, had an opportunity to come to

Pennsylvania and work at a family member’s landscaping company. Due to immigration laws,

Flores could not obtain a visa, and had to be smuggled into the country. He had to pay 8,000

dollars to his smuggler, leave his wife and family behind, and travel through the mountains

without food or water in order to reach Pennsylvania (Caputo). In “Address to the Nation”,

Nixon states “As the name implies, the work ethic holds that labor is good in itself; that a man or

woman at work not only makes a contribution to his fellow man but becomes a better person by

virtue of the act of working.” From a moral perspective, Flores and Nixon both prove that even

though Flores did not have the same legal status an official citizen, he came to work, which

benefits both Flores and the country.

Although these undocumented immigrants may be replaceable and take away jobs from

other citizens, it is still up to the U.S. to defend their rights. From a political perspective, the

United States Department of Labor declares that their motto is “To foster, promote, and develop

the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States; improve working

conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits

and rights” (“Our Mission”). This motto states that the U.S. is dedicated to promoting the welfare

of wage earners and job seekers, however it does not specifically mention that its only purpose is

to defend the rights of natural born or naturalized citizens. Therefore, the rights of undocumented

workers in this country should also be considered. From an economic perspective, these workers
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make up about five percent of the entire workforce in the U.S., and the nation depends on their

labor. According to Anna Quindlen, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, if all undocumented

immigrants were deported out of the country, prices of produce, such as peaches, would increase,

and hotel rooms and nursing homes would be understaffed (Quindlen). Even though robots can

perform these tasks too, both the political and economic perspectives show that there is a

symbiotic relationship between the U.S. and undocumented immigrants. The U.S. needs the

workers in order to grow in their wealth and stability, and the immigrants in return need the U.S.

to house and defend them. Robots do not need the protection, nor are they are not trying to make

a new life for themselves in a better country.

All in all, it should be legal to hire undocumented immigrants because they are beneficial

to the American economy, and they are productive in many work industries. A possible solution

to this issue is to completely legalize the use of these workers. Once it becomes part of the law,

companies can be properly monitored to make sure that their undocumented employees are not

being abused. These immigrants have shown time and time again that they are dedicated to

working in this country, and the U.S. should not treat their dedication like a crime.
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Work Cited

Caputo, Philip. “Life on the Line: The Arizona-Mexico Border.” Virginia Quarterly Review,

vol. 83, no. 2, Spring 2007, p. 6. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,custuid&custid=s8455861&

db=a9h&AN=24615906&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Fujio, Christy. Personal interview. 8 March 2017.

Holpuch, Amanda. “Undocumenteds Fade from the City They Helped Build.” The Guardian,

17 March 2017, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/mar/17/undocumented-

immigrants-charlotte-north-carolina-construction. 5 April 2017.

Krogstad, Jens Manuel, Jeffrey S. Passel, and D’vera Cohn. “5 Facts About Illegal Immigration

In the US.” Pew Research Center, 3 November 2016, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-

tank/2016/11/03/5-facts-about-illegal-immigration-in-the-u-s/. 14 March 2017.

“Our Mission.” United States Department of Labor,

https://www.dol.gov/opa/aboutdol/mission.htm. 14 March 2017.

Passel, Jeffrey S., and D’vera Cohn. “Hispanic Trends.” PEW Research Center,

3 November 2016, http://www.pewhispanic.org/2016/11/03/industries-of-unauthorized-

immigrant-workers/.

3 April 2017.

“Penalties.” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, 15 February 2017,

https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/penalties. 19 March 2017.

Quindlen, Anna. “If ‘Illegals’ Were Sent Packing, Who Would Do Their Work?.” Fort Worth
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Business Press, vol. 20, no. 34, 20 August 2007, p. 34. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,custuid&custid=s8455861&

db=b9h&AN=26425646&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Richard Nixon: “Address to the Nation on Labor Day.” September 6, 1971. Online by Gerhard

Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.

http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=3138.

Solon, Olivia. “US Suspension of Fast Track for H-1B Visas Leaves Foreign Workers in

Limbo.”

The Guardian, 6 March 2017, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/mar/06/us-

h1b-visa-program-suspended-trump-silicon-valley. 4 April 2017.

“The New Colossus.” National Park Service,

https://www.nps.gov/stli/learn/historyculture/colossus.htm. 3 April 2017.

Thompson, Derek. “A World Without Work.” The Atlantic, July 2015, pp. 50-61.

U.S. Constitution. Art. XIV, Sec. 1.