Could the US economy survive without illegal immigration?

Question

If you sent them all home, who will do their jobs? I see an awful lot of people on this site wanting the removal of all illegal immigrants. If this happened would it have a detremental effect on the US economy.

Remember this is a question, not a political view. I am not pushing a view either way.

If the US, like most European countries, has a ageing population and a ow birthrate, surely you need more immigration rather than less in order to support the economy?

Answer 1

I work in Human Resources. Last year I worked for a nationwide company with a tomato canning plant in central california. The average wage is 16.15 per hour. The lowest paid person makes 10.11 per hour and literally stands at a belt and watches tomatoes go by, picking off the bad ones. Pretty easy for a good wage. For fulltime employees we offered fully paid medical and dental. Over 80 % of the employees were immigrants (mixed legal and illegal), but spanish speaking mostly mexican immigrants. We posted jobs in the papers, and hired several non-immigrant workers. In a 3 month period after hiring over 50 people only 1 non-mexican remained (a chinese immigrant). Not a single white person remained in the job.

Sorry to dissappoint the people that are mad that these people are "using your free governement resources" but we need them. If you eat spaghettti sauce, raviolis, use canned tomato product at all, they were the only ones willing to the job.

And it had nothing to do with not having the wages or the benefits.

Answer 2

The truth is that illegals are taking good jobs, or what used to be good paying jobs, from Americans. Ask anyone who used to work in the construction, hotel or restaurant industries and they’ll tell you quite a different story than what is being portrayed. Are there some jobs that Americans in general are not as willing to do? Yes. Do these require twelve to eighteen million illegal immigrants, and millions of more legal immigrants, to fill? Of course not.

One could even make the argument that there is no such thing as low income jobs filled by illegal immigrants. They are really subsidized income jobs with the US taxpayer picking up the tab. The scope of the societal costs from such a poorly paid and sometimes exploited workforce is overwhelming. You, the taxpayer, pay tens of billions for entitlements to these tens of millions and their families. This includes food stamps, public housing, Medicaid, Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, Earned Income Tax Credit, public schooling, the WIC program, food stamps, and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families.

Removing illegal immigrants from the work force would only raise wages, relieve an overwhelming economic burden on the welfare, correctional, medical and educational systems, lower the unemployment rate, and force a few people to clean their own pools or mow their own grass until they could find an enterprising teenager to do it for them. To act as if our national economy could not survive without an additional three million ‘undocumented workers’ a year is simply ridiculous and a red herring argument at best. For those who make the arguments that open borders are ‘needed’ the question is really on their shoulders as to how many millions of illegal immigrants do they think we really need. I’ve yet to receive a straight answer to that question.
"Of 473 job categories studied by the Center for Immigration Studies for the year 2004, only four – plasters and stucco masons, dressmakers and sewers, agricultural graders and sorters, and miscellaneous personal appearance workers – had a majority of immigrant workers, and only 23 out of 473 job categories (less than 5 percent) had 33 percent or more. More to the point, every single kind of work done by illegal aliens in this country is also performed by Americans.

One of the reasons some jobs are increasingly being taken over by illegals is because they will accept jobs for lower pay. When a construction worker loses a $15 an hour job to an illegal worker who will do it for $8.50, that is not an example of a poor work ethic by Americans." Joeseph Farah World Net Daily

Answer 3

First of all, we must remember that the US is made up of immigrants, of all nations, although they were given legal status.
Second, can the US survive? How many of you white people will work in the rice fields in 102 degrees in Danbury Texas, the fields of california picking vegetables in 95 degrees, or working construction in any big city for minimum wage? If you will, send me your email address. I live in Texas and we need people to work the rice fields and pick the lemons, grapefruit, and oranges in the orchards in 105 degrees in Mcallen Texas.
Third, as to illegal immigrants taking good jobs from Americans. What good jobs are you talking about?? In the hotel business-cleaning rooms?? the construction business, pouring cement in the heat?? restaurant business- being a dishwasher????
Personally, I feel we should close the border to all immigrants and keep the people we have. I think we have enough people...

Answer 4

No, it would not be detrimental. A tremendous public support burden would be lifted from the US economy. Health insurance and hospitalization costs would drop; education would improve; the true value of legal labor would be established.

What would not survive is the Mexican economy, in which "money sent home" has recently surpassed the exportation of illegal drugs as the largest sector. Mexico is a criminal state run on Machiavellian principles at best, and local tyranny at worst.

Answer 5

the united states economy can not survive without the illegal immigrants. Most recently the oranges in Florida they still haven't finish picking all the oranges. The orange picking season usually end at the end of may but this year it was extended until July. Even though Florida lost thousand of orange trees last year due to the hurricane season. The prices of orange look like its going to go up this year.

Answer 6

Absolutely. For one thing there isn't a job that an American won't do. That's not even an issue. Also, illegals take millions and millions of dollars in services while paying little to nothing into the system. I believe that deporting all of them will actually benefit the economy.

Answer 7

I think our economy would take a hard kick the ... well you know. The immigrants are not taking the good jobs, they've always been there for any legal citizen to apply but some of our citizen have gotten lazy and very dependent of Welfare, Food stamps, Workmen comp. and Unemployment. So, there really shouldn't be any finger pointing because the it all starts HERE!!!!!

Answer 8

sure we could, and the people who are abusing the welfare system would have to go to work. wouldnt that be a shame? not only would we survive, but with the lower welfare money going out and the increase in social security from the increase in tax paying workers, we would be financially better off. unemployment would drop drastically and the social needs such as day care would go up. somehow, the ideas of pat buchanan doesnt look so outlandish now, do they?

Answer 9

A better question might be; "Can it survive "WITH" illegal immigration"? Illegals are driving wages down for American workers. Who's going to purchase all the goods low-wage illegals produce if Americans can't afford them because they're unemployed?

Answer 10

Yes