Tough immigration screening could affect their businesses-US farmers

United States, 14th October: Proposed tougher immigration screening by US E-Verify program could spell trouble for US farmers.

Many US farmers allege it could affect their businesses badly since they are dependent on unskilled migrants for doing odd US farming jobs.

US E-Verify could cause shortage of unskilled farm workers--Majority of farm workers in US farms are unskilled immigrants and its these immigrant workers, including both legal as well as undocumented immigrants, who have kept the US farms running.

Such an immigrant verification program could result in severe shortage of experienced immigrant workforce and it is quite unlikely that native or domestic US workers will be found to replace them, the farmers allege. Experienced immigrants doing menial US farming jobs cannot be replaced or duplicated by native US workers.

It’s a myth that anyone can do such odd jobs in US farms. That’s not all. such a system will also shoot up costs and cast a devastating spell on food production in the US.

US E-Verify system--The US E-Verify is an internet based and government-run system that verifies Social Security numbers and names of potential employees and sets aside the mismatches. It has been available as a voluntary system for US employers since the year 1996.

Around 3 percent of 6.5 million businesses are using this system in the US and an estimated 1,000 US businesses reportedly join this program every week. Proponents of the system want it to make it mandatory for all US employers. Nearly 20 US states already have this system mandatory for many if not all US employers.

Opponents of undocumented immigration welcome E-Verify—E-Verify system is being welcomed by opponents of undocumented immigration in the US. according to president of Federation for American Immigration Reform, Dan Stein, E-Verify is a vital safeguard for US workers who seem to be losing jobs as well as wages to undocumented immigrants.

Stein adds that the E-Verify system will enable US employers hire employees with certainty. The law has been favored by the US President Barack Obama, however, he also favors certain other accompanying reforms that would help provide a route to legal US status for undocumented immigrants.