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Do Immigrants Take Away Jobs From Native-Born Long Islanders? (VIDEO)

Posted November 18, 2010 by Ted Hesson

Immigrants on Long Island contribute more than their share to the local economy, and do not take jobs away from the vast majority of native-born workers, according to a report released on November 17 by the Fiscal Policy Institute, a New York City-based research organization. To read “The Changing Profile of Long Island’s Economy: How U.S.-born workers have fared as immigration has grown,” click here.

Using census data to draw conclusions about immigration’s impact on the Long Island economy and workforce, researchers found that immigrants have been responsible for “a substantial part of Long Island’s economic growth” and that most native-born residents haven’t suffered setbacks as a result of immigration.

One group did feel a negative impact related to immigration, according to the report: Black men with a high school education or less showed job losses during 1990, 2000, and 2007, the three strong economic years studied by the researchers. In the report’s recommendations, it encouraged Long Island lawmakers to combat this negative effect of immigration by increasing education and job training for that demographic.

The release of the report, which took place at Hofstra University, was accompanied by a panel discussion with Pearl Kamer, chief economist at the Long Island Association, Patrick Duggan, former Nassau County deputy executive, and Omar Angel Perez, the executive director of The Workplace Project.

Both Newsday and The New York Times covered the findings, as did several other outlets. In one related Newsday article, Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy criticized the report, contradicting the opinions of the economists cited in the article, but reiterating his longstanding view on immigration:

Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy, a frequent critic of illegal immigration, said the report “blurs the line between legal and illegal immigration and fails to account for the drain that illegal immigration has been on our health care, educational and corrections institutions.”

At the release of the report, lead author David Dyssegaard Kallick questioned whether Levy had actually read the findings, and, during a separate discussion, contended that when it comes to the debate on immigration, “the facts do matter,” and that “the intensity of anti-immigrant backlash prevents us from solving legitimate questions.”

Watch the videos below and hear Dyssegaard Kallick respond to Steve Levy’s criticisms and explain the importance of “The Changing Profile of Long Island’s Economy”:

Tags : economy, fiscal policy institute, jobs, long island, nassau, new york times, newsday, reports, research, steve levy, suffolk, video

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