Earlier this year, the California legislature introduced the California Agricultural Jobs and Industry Stabilization Act 2012 (CASA), which would allow illegal immigrants who have been working in the state since Dec. 31, 2008 to work and attain residency permits in California.
Democrat Assemblyman Manuel Perez, from Indio, created the bill in January.
In April, the bill passed in the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee with a 4-1 vote. In May, California’s Assembly Committee of Appropriations voted 5-1. The bill is scheduled to come before the state senate sometime this month.
As ambitious as this bill is, it lacks clarity in its purpose and many questions remain about how it will be executed and monitored. Similar initiatives, like the Bracero Program created by Franklin D. Roosevelt 1942 have proven challenging in the past.
Despite a federal law making it illegal to “knowingly hire or recruit unauthorized immigrants” – the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 – many American businesses continue to hire illegal immigrants.
States such as Arizona, Alabama, and Georgia have tried to combat the issue through state laws. For example, Arizona’s SB 1070 requires law enforcement to check the immigration status during a “lawful contact,” and makes it a misdemeanor for any undocumented person to be in Arizona without identification.
In June 2011, Georgia passed a law making it unlawful for illegal immigrants to work in Georgia. Several months later, the state lost “$74.9 million” in agricultural revenue. Alabama, who did the same, was short 11,000 workers for two seasons.
Still, the California bill lacks clarity, and while CASA is trying to take an approach to allow illegal immigrants to join the work force, we at The Pioneer feel the bill at its current state is missing content that would make it more effective as well as give it a better chance to pass through legislation.
With CASA, California is trying an opposite approach to illegal immigration.
In order for this act to surpass federal law, it must demonstrate there is a shortage of “state legal residents” to fill the service industry jobs.
As of June, however, California was ranked 49th with an unemployment rate of 10.7 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the bill states this initiative could alleviate that rate.
However, the bill does not address whether undocumented workers would be paid with the minimum wage standards that apply to U.S. citizens. It does not provide adequate information about what resources will be provided to or requested of the undocumented worker.
The bill seeks to require English proficiency exams. The immigrant worker would undergo a fingerprinting test and criminal history background checks. But how will the government provide these English classes? And furthermore who will pay for them?
If the bill does pass, it would require permits by the Employment Development Department where the undocumented person is required to be at least of 18 years of age, live in California and be employed in the agriculture or service industry for 24 months since Dec. 31, 2008.
Before it passes the senate, we hope our leaders will make every effort to include important details that will clarify fair treatment regulations and price stabilization of goods.
The bill has the potential to give unauthorized workers more rights along with maintaining the high standards in the agriculture and service industries.
We support the opportunity the bill presents for undocumented workers to potentially work safely, humanely and legally within the state. Yet, in order for the state to move forward, our leaders must move past rhetoric and write a bill that provides a clear path to immigration reform.
