Speech #960345465

I cannot understand why anyone would want to eliminate these basic proscriptions against unfair and brutal treatment of farm labor. My amendment has an additional and extremely important attribute. The Farm Labor Contractor Registration Act is the only Federal law prohibiting employment of undocumented and. therefore. illegal alien workers. The dimensions of this countrys problems with preventing or even regulating the flow of illegal aliens are now becoming apparent. Similarly. the adverse and possibly disastrous consequences of this massive movement of workers on wage standards and job opportunities for American workers is at last becoming public knowledge. Senator SIMPSON is a member of a Presidential Commission which recently investigated this issue and. I am told. some of the results of the Commissions work are now available. I do not at this time know the Commissions recommendations. but I believe that Senator SIMPSON would confirm that elimination of the sole statutory proscription against the knowing employment of illegal aliens would significantly exacerbate an already terrible situation. The employment of illegal aliens presents a particular problem for American farmworkers. Unscrupulous employers can exploit undocumented workers by paying them substandard wages under substandard working conditions. without fear that these undocumented workers will complain to authorities. Under these circumstances. there is an unfortunate incentive for some employers to seek to hire workers illegally in this country. And the lure of this illegal employment has resulted in a tide of illegal immigration. Only 2 years ago. Congress provided an additional 252 workers for the Department of Labor for the specific purpose of increasing enforcement activities with regard to undocumented workers. It would be extremely unfortunate if we were to eliminate the basic statutory prohibition against employing undocumented workrs at a time when we are finally beginr. ing to apply effective resources to combat this unlawful practice. Indeed. it makes no sense to play havoc with these statutory protections when the American work force is beset by unemployment and so vulnerable to the dangers of an unchecked migration of illegal workers. I wish to emphasize that my proposed amendment is a modification of the provision now in the resolution.