PCUN, CAUSA Oppose Bush Immigration Reform:
PCUN, Oregon’s farmworker union, and CAUSA, Oregon’s immigrant rights coalition, join hundreds of immigrant rights organizations across the country in expressing our disappointment in and opposition to President Bush’s immigration reform plan announced January 7th.

Rather than express active support of legislation such as AgJOBS and the DREAM Act, two pieces of legislation that support earned benefits and security safeguards for undocumented immigrants, President Bush failed to make any mention of this already-introduced legislation. He instead proposed the creation of a potentially huge new guest worker program that would essentially create a workforce with second-class status with no meaningful access to legal status or citizenship. The President also neglected to provide a timeline or plan as to when he hopes to draft legislation or introduce this plan to Congress.

The details of the proposal show the President’s disregard for the principle of earning legal status through work that he had previously promoted. As proposed, his plan would allow an undocumented immigrant to apply for a temporary work permit through his or her employer, and to apply for legal status. However, even if the worker renewed the three-year temporary permit, his or her temporary worker status would likely expire before his or her application for legal status was approved, due to the current backlog in immigration cases and the limited number of “green” (residence) cards issued each year. The worker would then be forced to either leave the United States or return to being undocumented, thus making the option of applying for legal status meaningless. Although the President said he supported increasing the number of green cards issued per year, he did not mention any specific number.

This proposal is clearly beneficial to employers, who could hire temporary workers as long as there were no U.S. citizens interested in the job, while the immigrant worker would be in the position of working for three to six years and then facing deportation when his or her work permit expired. It is also highly reminiscent of the “bracero” program of the 1940’s, which similarly sought to reward temporary workers for returning to their country of origin; the President’s proposal suggests allowing undocumented workers to receive Social Security pensions from the money they paid into the system if they return to their country of origin.

It is obvious that this election year proposal has been timed to appeal to Latino voters, yet the Latino community has already had years of lip service from Bush, first when he was Governor in Texas, then in the Presidential campaign of 2000, for the past three years as President, and now at the opening of his re-election campaign. Rather than further political posturing, however, what we want is active support now for equitable immigration reform.

We deserve unambiguous action, yet this proposal leaves numerous ambiguities and doubts as to how it would be implemented and whom it would ultimately benefit. A truly comprehensive plan for immigration reform must provide a path to legalization and address the reality of the 8 to 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States today, many of whom are settled here and are not in a position to or do not desire to return to their countries of origin. The President’s proposal is simply a glorified guest worker program; it does nothing to further our goals for immigration reform.

PCUN and CAUSA strongly support the DREAM Act and the AgJOBS bill, neither of which have been voted on in Congress as of yet. The DREAM Act would provide a path to legal residency and eventually citizenship for undocumented college students, while the AgJOBS bill would do so for an estimated 500,000 farmworkers. These two bills, both of which have strong bipartisan support, represented an excellent opportunity for the Bush administration to step in and support immigration reform by promoting their passage, yet the President instead took a hands-off approach, saying only that he would sign the bills if they reached his desk. In fact, his top aides are apparently now saying privately that Bush opposes AgJOBS and DREAM. If this is true, it’s further underscores Bush’s initiative as a political ploy.

PCUN and CAUSA have been involved on a national level promoting the passage of AgJOBS and DREAM, and in developing principles and goals for immigration reform. PCUN and CAUSA also participated in the organizing of the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride, and members of both organizations traveled across the country from Portland to Washington, DC, along with buses from eleven other cities, to promote immigration reform.

In the face of President Bush’s insufficient, ineffective immigration reform proposal, we stand by the principles of the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride and will use them to evaluate any and all immigration reform legislation that is proposed:

1. Reward work by granting legal status to hardworking, taxpaying, law-abiding immigrant workers already established in the United States;
2. Renew our democracy by clearing a path to citizenship and full political participation for our newest Americans;
3. Restore labor protections so that all workers, including immigrant workers, have the right to fair treatment on the job;
4. Reunite families in a timely fashion by streamlining our outdated immigration policies; and
5. Respect the civil rights and civil liberties of all so that immigrants are treated equally under the law, the federal government remains subject to checks and balances, and civil rights laws are meaningfully enforced.

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Proposal for Farmworker Legalization Introduced to Congress:
A new legalization program for farmworkers, which was announced on the same day that the Immigrant Workers’ Freedom Ride bus departed Portland, has been introduced to Congress and, with bipartisan support on Capitol Hill, and support from both labor and agribusiness, hopes are high that it will become law before Congress adjourns in mid-October.

The proposal, S. 1645, principally sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA), and Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID) is the result of years of negotiations between the United Farm Workers (UFW) and the agricultural industry. A virtually identical program died in the Senate in December of 2000 when then majority leader Trent Lott (R-MS) and then Senator Phil Gramm (R-TX) blocked it. PCUN and the UFW stand together in support of this proposal. Despite its bipartisan support, including 7 Republican co-sponsors, however, S. 1645 will most likely receive strong criticism in the House from the most anti-immigration Representatives, but farmworker advocates expect that President Bush will support the proposal.

The goal behind this proposal is to reward the work done by undocumented farm workers in the United States. If passed, it would allow farmworkers employed in agriculture of 100 or more days in a 12 consecutive month period during the 18-month period ending on August 31, 2003 to apply for work authorization and temporary residency. The farmworker could also apply for protected status for his or her spouse and minor children residing in the United States. During this time, the worker would be authorized to change jobs or work in non-agricultural jobs.

Once temporary resident status is granted, the farmworker must be employed in agriculture for at least 360 days during the six year period ending on August 31, 2009, including at least 240 work days during the first three years and at least 75 work days during each of three 12-month periods in the six years following the adjustment to temporary resident status. When the farmworker has completed these requirements, he or she, as well as spouse and children, can adjust to permanent resident status.

This proposal would legalize an estimated 500,000 undocumented farmworkers, and is the first time since 1988 that farmworkers have had such an opportunity. PCUN is preparing to inform and mobilize the farmworker community about S. 1645. At present, we are answering questions and distributing flyers to let farmworkers know about S. 1645 and advise them that, since it is currently a proposal, not a law, there is no action they can take towards adjusting their status, but that we will keep them informed of all developments. While workers are being encouraged to keep track of pay stubs and proof of employment, and to stay informed, they are also being warned not to be deceived by anyone who offers them immigration services related to this legislation. We are also preparing for the possibility of holding community forums about this legislation if it becomes law, and, with our experience in taking the cases of farmworkers in the 1988 legalization, aiding eligible Oregon farmworkers to become legal residents.

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