Bush Immigration Bill Fails in Senate (6/29/07)
RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum said that Bush's approach to
immigration reform would create "a permanent underclass of workers"
who, because they lacked the same rights Americans, could be easily
exploited by employers.
"There's no question that, given a choice, many employers would prefer
to hire a foreign 'guest workers' who wouldn't have the right to
organize instead of American workers who would," Appelbaum said, noting
that the abuse of foreign workers is particularly prevalent in the
poultry industry.
"When a group of undocumented poultry workers is afraid that supporting
a union could get them fired and deported they're going to keep quiet,"
he added.
"That's why, in the final analysis, the Bush plan wasn't about helping
undocumented workers become citizens, it was about giving business the
right to abuse them," he added.
"We need real immigration reform that helps foreign workers become citizens," Appelbaum added.