[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 108 (Monday, July 21, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H7206]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     MEETING FUTURE LABOR SHORTAGES WITH TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Flake) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FLAKE. Madam Speaker, for the past few weeks, I have come to the 
floor of the House of Representatives to address an issue that I 
believe has to be addressed with a comprehensive legislative solution. 
The issue is illegal migration and our current immigration policies.
   Madam Speaker, this is certainly a very complex issue. 
Unfortunately, it involves a historical policy of turning a blind eye 
to the reality of the demand for workers for certain jobs in this 
country. Our migration policy has also not done a very good job of 
recognizing the way that people organize and lead their lives.
   We must recognize that the U.S. economy and standard of living are 
better than that of Mexico. Mexicans migrate to the United States not 
simply because wages are higher, but because Americans are willing to 
hire them. The demand for these workers will not diminish for the 
foreseeable future. In a recent report published by Dan Griswold of the 
Cato Institute, we know that the Labor Department has reported that the 
largest growth in absolute numbers of jobs will be in those categories 
that require ``short-term on-the-job training'' of 1 month or less.
   In fact, of the top 30 categories with the largest expected job 
growth between 2000 and 2010, more than half fall into that least-
skilled category. These are all occupations where low-skilled 
immigrants can be expected to help meet the rising demand for workers. 
Across the U.S. economy the Labor Department estimates that the total 
number of jobs requiring only short-term training will increase from 51 
million in 2000 to 61 million in 2010. That is a net increase of 7.7 
million jobs. Meanwhile, the supply of American workers suitable for 
such work continues to fall because of an aging workforce and rising 
education levels.
   The median age of U.S. workers continues to increase as baby boomers 
approach retirement age. From 1990 to 2010, the median age for the 
American worker is expected to rise from 37 years to 41 years. Further, 
younger and older American workers alike are now more educated. The 
share of adult native-born men without a high school diploma has 
plunged from 54 percent in 1960 to just 9 percent in 1998. During the 
same period, the share of workers with college degrees has gone up from 
11 percent to 30 percent.
   Certainly we recognize the fastest growing occupations in the next 
decade in percentage terms will require high degrees of skill and 
education. But as the economy continues to pick up steam, we have to 
recognize the realities of labor market demands. The demand for lower-
skilled workers is growing while the American workforce is aging and 
increasingly well-educated.
   Madam Speaker, I would argue that it is no coincidence that the 
number of low-skilled jobs in this country is expected to grow by more 
than 700,000 a year. That is precisely the number of new illegal 
immigrants that the Federal Government now estimates are entering the 
U.S. job market every year. If this is not an affirmation of this power 
of the market, and simple supply and demand, I do not know what is. We 
have to consider that for an illegal worker, the prospect of 
unemployment in the United States is far more expensive than a similar 
situation in his or her home country. If jobs are not available, the 
treacherous journey across the border is simply not worth the risk.

                              {time}  2045

  To conclude, permitting immigrants to enter the country as part of a 
temporary worker program will eliminate a huge segment of the illegal 
traffic coming across and within our borders. At the same time, such a 
strategy will recognize that our economy continues to expand, and, as 
such, the expansion will require new workers.

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