Immigration Policy and Organized Labor: A Never-Ceasing Issue

Abstract

[Excerpt] Over its long history, few issues have caused the caused the American labor movement more agony than has the issue of immigration. It is ironic this is the case since most adult immigrants directly join the labor force as do eventually most of their immediate family members. But precisely because immigration affects the size, skill composition and geographical distribution of the nation's labor force, it also influences local, regional and national labor market conditions. Hence, organized labor can never ignore the public policies that determine immigration trends.