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Major union push for immigration reform

Posted April 14, 2009 by Patrick Young, Esq.

Both of America’s major labor federations, the AFL-CIO and Change to Win, have joined forces to push for immediate comprehensive immigration reform. The two federations could not agree on a common approach two years ago when President Bush introduced his fatally flawed reform proposal, a factor in its failure.
The accord will be unveiled today in Washington. According to the New York Times “[t]he accord endorses legalizing the status of illegal immigrants already in the United States and opposes any large new program for employers to bring in temporary immigrant workers, officials of both federations said.” This is likely to lessen support among business groups, which want an expanded guest worker program. However, the unions want a commission established to regulate employment-based visas to allow for an increase in the number of foreign workers allowed into the U.S. in times of low unemployment and a contraction when unemployment rises.
The announcement by organized labor follows word from the Obama administration that immigration reform will be put back on the national agenda with a major presidential address next month.
In an editorial today, the New York Times hailed the agreement as a necessary step in winning reform in a period of economic hardship.

Tags : immigration movement, immigration reform, unions

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