"Our review of economic research finds immigrants not only help fuel the Nation's economic growth, but also have an overall positive effect on the income of native-born workers."
-Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Edward P. Lazear
Illegal Immigrants come to the United States for a better life, but how do they affect the citizens of the United States and the economy? It is a common misconception that illegal immigrants "live for free" in the United States. In general, they do not pay income tax and utilize other government services which does cause a drain on government spending. However, Illegal immigrants do pay sales tax and add to the number of consumers in the World Market. Illegal immigrants lower the wages for native-born low skilled workers in the United States. As a result, Americans benefit by paying lower prices for things like resturant meals, agricultural products, and construction.
Illegal immigration does have big impacts, both negatively and positively, on our economy. However, these impacts often offset each other, and overall there is said to be a small positive effect. Illegal immigration affects many Americans on different levels. The amount of education and qualifications of the US citizen determine the impact that the immigrant has on their lives. Low-skilled workers and high school drop-outs are most affected by illegal immigrants because they are the people the immigrants are competing with for jobs. The average American's wealth is increased by less than 1% each year.
Immigration does impact our economy, however, the use of automation in manufacturing and the growth in global trade have a bigger impact on wages, prices, and the health of the US economy. Americans would not see a significant boost in the economy if illegal immigrants were deported.
4 comments:
Erin, I love the end of your post where you compare the impact of automation in manufacturing and global trade to the impact of immigration, it really helps to put things in perspective without using numbers which you have nothing to compare too! Something interesting to find out more about is that you talk about some of the negatives that immigrants deal with including lower wages. Even though these have some positive influence for us such as lower cost for goods, are the negatives that immigrants deal with still better than what the majority would have to deal with back home?
I am in a class right now that deals with immigration and you are pretty much spot on with your description of immigration. The people that are most affected are low skilled workers becuase immigrants can "substitute" for them. The people in America who benefit are those who "complement" the skills of immigrants. However, there are many shortcomings that you briefly touch such as the fact that many immigrants are motivated by the fact that we have such a forgiving welfare state. This is a very important aspect. You make very good comments about this issue, they are accurate and interesting.
angilman,
What information do you have on how immigrants use our government services? How do you feel about immigrants status in our country and what is your position on the issue?
what to do, what to think?,
Yes, on the surface it does seem like the negatives that immigrants deal with are better than the circumstances of their previous employment. However, a further analysis and investigation of details will give a more in-depth look into these situations. I will try to research the conditions immigrants encounter compared to the former employment options and post about it at a later time.
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