Photo: Business Week mag.

Taking Matters Into Their Own Hands
Business Week
May 1, 2006

States such as Georgia are cracking down on illegal labor as reform stalls on the Hill
“…As the tit-for-tat protests mount, it’s likely to become harder for a divided Congress to reach a compromise. Both parties are under fierce pressure to clamp down on illegal immigration but also to allow some of the 12 million people already in the U.S. illegally to remain. Given the difficulty of squaring that circle, a stalemate is a distinct possibility, with no major legislation coming out of Washington before the November elections.

This could be good news for business if it averted a crackdown on hiring illegals. On the other hand, a congressional logjam could cause real pain if more states try to fill the breach. After all, getting tough on employers may be the easiest way out for politicians queasy about appearing to be soft on border enforcement. The last major immigration overhaul, in 1986, required employers to conduct “reasonable” checks of residency documents for new workers. But the law has been enforced only sporadically…”

Here for full article             Here for interview excerpts.