Emerson Weekly Address: American Jobs, American Workers

Statement

"Nowhere in federal law does it dispute the idea that legal, American workers ought to always be first in line for American jobs. Unfortunately, the reality is different from the idea -- in 2007 the Administration cited a figure of 8.7 million workers in the U.S. with invalid or suspect Social Security numbers. Often, illegal aliens without Social Security numbers take jobs in areas where they can be paid under the table. Others forge their documents or use stolen identities. Enforcement is difficult, and the illegal workforce moves often between different jobs in different communities, counties and states.

In the Eighth Congressional District, we have already had two experiences with the problem of illegal aliens taking jobs -- good-paying jobs -- from the Missouri men and women who would love to have them.

Many steps must be taken to stop the problem of illegal immigration in our country. Some of them require political will and others demand commonsense protections of American life and liberty along our borders. Surprisingly, many are already part of federal law but are not being properly enforced. Still more require us to protect the legal immigration process for individuals who have observed the laws of our nation in order to come here to work or live.

Another remedy to this problem is to send the message, loud and clear, that we will not tolerate illegal aliens taking Missouri jobs. We can send that message by prosecuting illegal workers and the companies who hire them to the fullest extent of the law.

I have been assured by the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security that the agency responsible for workplace enforcement is actively auditing employers to assure that they are using legal workers. Not willing to let the matter rest there, however, I have also written to the U.S. Attorney General to ask for a new emphasis on prosecuting the companies which are creating demand for an illegal workforce by offering cash wages to illegal aliens. When law enforcement officials make these kinds of apprehensions in Missouri and in other states, one element in common is the large roll of cash in the pocket of the illegal worker.

Falsifying payroll is pertinent to more than the straightforward problem of illegal immigration; it also compounds the problem of tax evasion and a loss of support for federal and state programs -- like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid -- which are funded with payroll taxes. We have every justification for protecting those programs by giving law enforcement and prosecutors every opportunity to stop illegal aliens from entering the U.S. and from entering the U.S. workforce.

Furthermore, we must make sure that American employers have the means to identify illegal aliens who show up to a job site and to then refuse them work. Doing so can be difficult, because of fraudulent identification and other ways of "fooling" the system. Employers deserve a reliable way to clear the legality of their workforce.

The E-Verify system touted by the federal government is a start, but early assessments of the program say that it misses half of the unauthorized workers run through the system. It must be improved, and we must give American employers a reason to use it.

Finally, we need to remember the strength of our economy -- a talented, dedicated group of men and women willing to work tough jobs and pay their taxes with the sweat of their brow. The American workforce needs one more thing to maximize the effort of the men and women who take on long hours in order to put bread on the tables of their families; they deserve a fair shot at the jobs we create in our own country, in our own backyards."

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