STATEMENT BY ASIAN LAW ALLIANCE AT THE FAST AGAINST THE FIRINGS, CALLING FOR REPEAL OF EMPLOYER SANCTIONS
I am Richard Konda, Executive Director of the Asian Law Alliance – located here in San Jose.
The Senate will be debating the immigration reform bill this week. This bill has been characterized as (quote) “common sense” (unquote) immigration reform.
We call on Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE to exercise commonsense judgment now and stop their enforcement that has resulted in hundreds of workers being fired. It makes no sense for these workers to lose their jobs now – with immigration reform on the horizon.
When the immigration reform and control act was enacted in 1986, employers became “deputized” to enforce immigration law – The I-9 form has been used by employers to verify eligibility to work – but the I-9 form has instead become a tool against workers with valid workplace complaints or who are in the midst of labor organizing.
Many unscrupulous employers have used immigration status as a tool against labor organizing campaigns
We call on the Senate and House to repeal employers sanctions that were part of IRCA, abolish the I-9 form and end any and all “E” verify programs. Employers should not be junior immigration inspectors.
We call on Janet Napolitano to halt ICE enforcement actions in the workplace.
We call on the U.S. congress to swiftly enact meaningful immigration reform that is humane and broad in scope.