Speech #1010136448

Mr. Speaker. the IRCA AntiDiscrimination Amendments Act of 1990 addresses the critical need for the Government to strengthen its efforts to combat Immigrationrelated discrimination against citizens and other legal job applicants. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 [IRCA] prohibits employers from hiring undocumented illegal immigrants and includes tough antidiscrimination provisions. As a result. it Is not only illegal for employers to hire and exploit illegal workers. but also for employers to discriminate in hiring because of an applicants race or accent or other unfounded suspicion that the person is an undocumented worker. Unfortunately. preliminary General Accounting Office reports. required by IRCA. as well as studies In New York and California. indicated that many employers are discimInating against legal job applicants because of their appearance or their manner of speech. It is likely that the next GAO report will come to even more disturbing conclusions about the extent of immigrationrelated discrimination.