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Immigration to the US, both in it's legal and illegal iterations, has become a hot topic in Southern California and across the country. There have been rallies for and against it, there have been talk shows dedicated to it, and it is regularly featured in newspapers. So far though, I haven't seen anyone address my particular view of the issue: stemming immigration is favorable to immigrants.

People who immigrate illegally from Mexico make up a very large portion of low wage earners in the US. They are people with low education levels who work with their hands. They come a country where the standard of living is so low that being exploited by American employers is better than staying
home.

As people spend time in this country, though, their expectations for living conditions, purchasing power and convenience rises; they realize that there is something better, and want to get paid more (the American Dream). The problem is that these low wage earners have no way to increase their own standard of living because they are considered expendable by their employers. They can't demand an increase in pay because they are easily replaced by a fresh low wage worker with low expectations as to compensation. They can't unionize again because they are expendable.

How then can the lowest wage workers raise their standard of living? Supply and demand. When these workers are in low supply - when they are not expendable - they will have power to negotiate. They will be able to demand higher wages and benefits. They will be able to move socially, save for retirement and live in a single family home. They will have better schools, and will be able to send their kids to college. This will all serve to better integrate these immigrants into American society more effectively, eliminating much of the xenophobia surrounding the issue. Whatever divides us, creates "us" and "them", and as long as we are separated these States cannot be United.

The most effective way to give these workers the power to change their situations is to crack down on employers who hire illegal workers. Fine employers that hire anyone who provides a false Social Security number the equivalent of a legal worker's year's salary for the worker. Hire an illegal berry picker? That will be $25k. Hire an illegal construction worker? $50k.

The Social Security Office has recently introduced a system where employers can verify the authenticity of a Social Security Number online (http://www.ssa.gov/employer/s snv.htm) making the practice simple and convenient. Employers can easily identify who is and is not eligible to work.

There would be no greater problem than creating 20 million unemployed people overnight, so there must be some way to deal with the millions of immigrants already in the country illegally. Senator Feinstein (CA) recently proposed an excellent plan to deal with those already here, allowing people who have been in the US for more than 5 years to stay on a work visa, and more than 10 years to apply for citizenship after paying a fine and taking strides to learn English. This amounts to an amnesty, which serves as an encouragement to immigrate illegally, but strict fines for employers would mitigate a new influx of immigrants, and would eventually cut it to manageable levels.

Once employers stop employing illegal low-wage earners, that pool will dry up. It will no longer be beneficial to come the US illegally as there won't be work. The wages of the lowest earners will rise and society as a whole will be better off for it. There are numerous studies supporting a correlation between income, education level and property crime, so the closer the lowest classes come to the highest classes, the better off society will be.

Learn more about this author, Patrick Gunderson.
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