Monday, September 14, 2015

This is why I oppose guest worker programs

Buzzfeed - The New American Slavery: Invited To The U.S., Foreign Workers Find A Nightmare -
The H-2 visa program invites foreign workers to do some of the most menial labor in America. Then it leaves them at the mercy of their employers. Thousands of these workers have been abused — deprived of their fair pay, imprisoned, starved, beaten, raped, and threatened with deportation if they dare complain. And the government says it can do little to help. A BuzzFeed News investigation.                  
I am aware that these are only allegations, except in the cases where there has been an actual legal disposition.  I am also aware that these allegation probably only apply to a small percentage of employers, in fact the article says so:
For some people, such as the hundreds of soccer coaches who youth sports camps bring in every year from the United Kingdom and elsewhere, an H-2 visa offers an opportunity to make some money while spending time in another country. Many companies treat their H-2 employees well, and many guest workers interviewed for this article said they are grateful for the program.
But the abuses, in my opinion far offset the good this program may provide, and that has been the case in every country that I have ever been in that has a guest worker program.  The employers know how much control they wield, and well - Power Corrupts.  

We are American's this sort of thing is supposed to be anathema to us (yes, I know I sound naive) and it's why I refuse to support any immigration plan that starts out with "guest workers" taking the place of illegals.  I will support temporary workers where the visas aren't specifically tied to a single employer and they have a very strict expiration date but not this type of thing.


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