The state of Florida is on the verge of a labor crisis as a result of an immigration law meant to crackdown on businesses hiring undocumented workers in the state.
Since going into effect July 1, construction projects across the state have stalled due to a lack of workers, increasing prices for projects that have been able to find laborers, and driving immigrants out of the state — whether they were documented or not — out of fear of persecution.
According to data released earlier this year by the Labor Department, foreign-born workers made up 18% of the U.S. workforce last year.
The department defines foreign-born workers as adults born outside of the U.S. where neither parent is a U.S. citizen and includes legally-admitted immigrants, refugees, temporary residents and undocumented immigrants.
Data shows foreign-born workers are more likely to be employed in service occupations, natural resources, construction and maintenance occupations as well as production, transportation and material moving occupations than native-born workers.
Immigrant labor also sustains the U.S. food supply, with foreign-born workers accounting for 69% of agricultural workers in California, 70% of seafood workers in Alaska, and 66% of meat processing workers in Nebraska.
Despite the reliance of the nation on immigrant labor and the negative impacts the state of Florida is already experiencing, the state of Texas has passed its own law striking down rights for immigrant workers.
The law, set to go into effect Sept. 1, takes “aim at progressive ordinances that improve worker protections, including regulations related to overtime pay, rest breaks, and water breaks—changes that will directly impact Texas’ immigrant workers,” URL Media partner Prism reports.
“HB 2127 will disproportionately harm migrant workers because it targets the industries they often work in, including construction and other outdoor jobs notorious for harsh working conditions and few worker protections,” Alexandra Martinez writes for Prism. “The law will also curtail any local efforts cities have made in the last decade to safeguard labor protections.”
In other states like New York, advocates are calling on the Biden administration to redesignate Temporary Protected Status for several countries, a move that they say would allow newly arrived immigrants to secure the necessary permits to work in the state.
In their letter to the administration, the advocates recognized the benefits allowing immigrants to more easily obtain legal work status and the outsized positive impact immigrant workers have had on their communities.
“From addressing the labor shortage to starting new businesses, migrants have revitalized the communities that have welcomed them, introducing their backgrounds and experiences while also meeting municipalities’ needs,” the letter reads.
At the end of the day, making it harder for immigrants to work in the U.S. will not only hurt their ability to live the life they want to lead, but it will also hurt the communities that will lose out on their creativity, their entrepreneurship, and the many other ways in which their unique lived experiences make their communities a better place for everyone to live.
