Recession Hits Immigrants Hard

[WriteDown]

Source: WSJ

The number of foreign-born residents of the U.S. declined for the first time since at least 1970, as a recession and tight labor market dented America's image as the land of opportunity.

A decline in construction jobs lured fewer immigrants from their home countries, especially those from Mexico, according to the Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey.

In multiple ways -- falling homeownership, families moving in with others, couples putting off marriage -- the report illustrated that the recession has upended Americans' lives.

About 38 million foreign-born people lived in the U.S. in 2008, or 100,000 fewer than in the previous year, according to an analysis of Census data by William H. Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution think tank. The decline falls within the margin of error, but it still represents a significant turnaround. Between 2000 and 2006, the U.S. foreign-born population increased by about one million people a year; in 2007, the number dropped in half.

It is impossible to know how many immigrants are entering and leaving the U.S., because millions are here illegally. But the Census data, combined with a recent analysis by the Pew Hispanic Center, a research group, strongly suggest that fewer foreigners are flocking to the U.S. The industries so dependent on them during boom times are also scaling back....

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125356996157829123.html?mod=igoogle_wsj_gadgv1&

[WriteDown]

1. I should post this from the article.....

"Hispanics have long boasted a higher employment rate than American whites and blacks. But that has changed during the recession, as unemployment among Latin American immigrants has climbed more steeply than for other U.S. workers."

[JonQ]

2. Seems like now would be a good time

to start working on that whole open border thing.

The flood has temporarily abated, some. We have plenty of people looking for jobs (building fences, paroling borders and the like requires warm bodies) and cutting down on illegal employment would decrease unemployment among our legal citizens by forcing companies to hire workers to replace deported illegals but at least at minimum wage.

Seems like a win-win, get on it washington.

[nc4bo]

3. *cough*. Not in MY neck o' the woods it ain't.

In North Carolina, the big bosses say all are welcomed to be treated like crap here.

Because of this: http://www.brac.gov/, new home and apartment construction around here is beyond belief! Recession? Not in new home construction, not here. They can't build the dang things fast enough. What was beautiful, flat farmland last year has turned into mushroom fields of HUGE brand new homes.

In a 30 mile radius, at least 90% of the construction laborers are immigrants. Whether they are legal or illegal no one seems to want to ask or bother to investigate.

Not long ago, Fort Bragg was found to have illegal, undocumented immigrants working on it so all bets are off on who's doing the work on the thousands of new home construction (and TARP highway construction too) sites going up.

[WriteDown]

4. That would be good news....

IF they were hiring LEGAL labor.

[nc4bo]

5. Yes it would but the "IF" is a very big one.

It's not the immigrants' fault, they need to feed their families and themselves but what if they weren't being paid a legal wage? What if they were made to live in sub-par housing and overcrowded trailers? What would happen to them if they should get injured or killed on the job?

Big boss don't ca(R)e.

[WriteDown]

6. I meant the development would be welcome news...

if they actually were using legal labor at legal wages and benefits. Its rare to see any legal labor anymore in the construction business.