Fed Officials Voice Concern That Immigration Crackdowns Will Lead to Workforce Shortage

On the campaign trail, President Trump missed no opportunity to share his goal to stem the flow of illegal immigration to the United States. According to USA Today, since the president signed an executive order in January to enhance immigration enforcement, arrests of undocumented immigrants have increased 38 percent compared to the same period in 2016.

Although supporters of the recent immigration crackdowns argue that they open up job opportunities for U.S. citizens, opponents point out that illegal immigrants make up a major portion of the U.S. workforce. In fact, according to a 2016 report from Pew Research, undocumented immigrants accounted for about 5 percent of the civilian workforce in 2014.

In June, Federal Reserve officials voiced their concern that a major increase in deportations could lead to a shortage of low-skilled labor. According to a report from Bloomberg, companies around the United States have had to raise worker wages to maintain sufficient labor levels. A Fed official in San Francisco pointed out that some farmers have had to discard portions of their harvest as a result of the labor shortage.

The future economic impacts of the recent immigration crackdowns are still a matter of speculation. But at least for the foreseeable future, it appears that U.S. immigration authorities will continue to arrest undocumented immigrants at unprecedented levels.

If you are worried that new immigration policies could affect your family, turn to Kuck Immigration Partners. Kuck Immigration Partners has successfully handled tens of thousands of immigration matters over the last 27 years.. Call 404-816-8611 to schedule a consultation.

Reuters: Hispanic Spending Down in Wake of Increased Arrests of Undocumented Immigrants

According to Reuters, discretionary spending in Hispanic-dominated areas has been notably lower over recent months. Retailers believe that the clampdown on immigration is a primary cause of the downturn.

The report from Reuters revealed that legal U.S. citizens of Hispanic origin are reluctant to go out due to fear of being harassed by immigration officials—especially in border towns.

Economists are worried that continued reduction in Hispanic discretionary spending could have a major impact on overall economic growth. The Hispanic community spent about $1.4 trillion in 2016, according to data cited by the University of Georgia.

According to Reuters, the reduction in spending has already affected footwear and apparel retailers. Those two sectors were under pressure before the immigration crackdowns due to a shift toward online retail shopping.

Bloomberg: Price of New Homes Has Spiked Due to Hispanic Labor Shortage

According to a recent report from Bloomberg, home builders in Atlanta and around the country have been forced to increase the prices of new homes due to a labor shortage. In particular, construction companies have reported a shortage of framers, a position that traditionally employs a high concentration of Hispanic immigrants. Some companies have been forced to pay framers nearly double their previous wage to mitigate the impact of the labor shortage.

Besides the 145-percent increase in arrests of non-criminal undocumented workers that has gutted much of the industry's labor pool, there's also concern that President Trump's tough stance on trade could cause the price of parts and materials to increase, which would further add to the expense of new homes.

If you are worried about how new immigration policies will affect you or your family, contact Kuck Immigration Partners. No matter what your immigration concerns are, Charles Kuck will evaluate your situation, answer your questions, and provide comprehensive legal guidance.

Call 404-816-8611 today to schedule a consultation with an immigration attorney in Atlanta. You can learn more about U.S. immigration laws by visiting the USAttorneys website.

If You Are An Immigrant (even a US Citizen), Here Are 9 Things You Should Know

Are you a Naturalized U.S. Citizen, Lawful Permanent Resident, Visa Holder, or an Undocumented Immigrant? We recommend you take the following steps to protect yourself in our current version of America. The last couple of weeks have reminded immigrants, even naturalized U.S. citizens, that they were not born in the United States. Our office has received countless phone calls, emails, and social media messages from people worrying about what their family’s future in the United States holds. Most people want to know what they can do now to protect themselves from what promises to be a wave of anti-immigration activity by the federal government. Trump's Executive Order on Interior Enforcement has some provisions that should make most Americans shiver. We recommend the following actions for each of the following groups: Naturalized U.S. citizens. In particular if you have a foreign accent, and you are traveling within 100 miles of any US Border (including the oceans...

Seven Reasons Why the Georgia Legislature Should Repeal HB-87

Recently the Alabama Attorney General called on the Alabama State Legislature to repeal parts of Alabama's horrid anti-immigration law ( HB 56), because of the "unintended" consequences of the bill (frankly, what happened was not unintended). Because of the similarity between the two laws, Georgia's Speaker of the House, David Ralston was asked whether Georgia Legislature would repeal part or all of HB 87, Georgia own anti-immigration law. HB 87 has caused almost a half a billion dollars in damage to the Georgia economy (along with untold suffering in Georgia's immigrant communities) without any noted or reported positive effect. Speaker Ralston plainly stated that the Georgia Legislature would NOT do anything to repeal HB 87 . While it understandable why a politician would not admit that a pet bill he shepherded and pushed through the state legislature was simply bad law, it is also clear that Speaker Ralston is facing a challenge on his RIGHT in th...

Why is USCIS Taking So Long to Renew DACA Work Permits?

If the calls to our office are any indicator, there are thousands of DACA recipients whose work permit applications were filed at least three months prior to expiration, who are still waiting for their renewed work permits. Without renewed permits, these individuals lose the right to work legally, the right to drive, and may once again accrue unlawful presence. The DHS published a notice in October 2014 advising DACA recipients that they could file their request for extension up to 150 days (5 months) prior to expiration. As with all things government, very few of the DACA recipients, who tend not to frequent government websites, knew about the memo and many did not file so far before expiration perhaps thinking that extending a work permit was a like extending a drivers license, its is done in a few minutes. As an experienced immigration lawyer will tell you, the USCIS does nothing quickly, and certainly does not worry that a person may lose their job or their drive...

Musings on Immigration

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