We have about a 2year history In California where that law was enforced and many experiences with it which I think point out the danger of. first. thinking that employer sanctions are the answer to the problem. and second. thinking there are not a great deal of negative side effects. I might just indulge the body for a moment to read some of the history that came out of hearings of the legislature following the period of time when California sought to enforce that law. Extensive testimony during the assembly hearings in 1972 revealed as a result of the law undocumented workers of senior employment status were replaced by other illegal aliens at lower ages. Others were forced to pay mordidas. taxes to their employers. Workers were forced to pay $200 to $500. the amount of a fine as a form of bond. Fortunately. in the House version. we have dealt with that with the adoption of the Garcia amendment although again we still have a conference committee. we do not know that is going to come back to us later. There is also evidence that some employers used the law as an opportunity to reduce wages in order to cover the cost of the risk involved. Finally. thousands of workers here legally. citizens of this country. primarily Hispanic surnamed. were fired without any attempt to separate documented and undocumented workers. There are lessons to be learned from this experience. We must recognize that in the individual work site there exists an imbalance of power in employment relationships.
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undocumented illegal aliens