Openings in the wall: transnational migrants, labor unions, and U.S. immigration policy

Abstract

The United States resisted restrictionist immigration legislation in the late twentieth century, providing an anomaly for those who would expect restrictionism in times of economic recession. According to some expectations, labor unions would be part of a coalition that in such times would restrict migration to reduce job competition. This reasoning draws on a state-centric approach and assumes that effective barriers to entrance exist. If one alternatively assumes that states cannot fully regulate the socioeconomic forces driving migration flows, then one may expect labor unions to abandon their supposed preference for restrictionism and instead organize immigrant workers. In that case, unions would prefer migration law that accommodates the transnational migrants' interests. The data provide some support for this argument. The perspective of complex interdependence, which emphasizes transnational relations and the blurring of foreign and domestic politics, can enhance understanding of immigration policymaking.

Immigration and the Transformation of American Unionism

“…Moreover, some employers followed a strategy of selective verification as a tool for foiling union organizing drives (Chishti, 2000:71–76). Thus, several unions most involved in organizing low wage immigrant workers – including the ILGWU, the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union (ACTWU), the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (HERE) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) – moved from supporting employer sanctions to passing resolutions calling for repeal as early as 1992 (Haus, 1995:299–304).…”

The political market for immigration restrictions: Model and test

“…5 Money (1997) finds that public support for tighter immigration controls is especially strong in localities where immigrants concentrate, particularly when those areas experience rapid increases in immigration, rising unemployment and generous immigrant access to social services. 6 Haus (1995) suggests that the interest groups shaping immigration policy might also include a transnational element, which creates pressure for more open policies. She argues that such transnational interests explain why we see less restrictive policies today than we did in the 1920s.…”

Chipping Away at the Fortress: Unions, Immigration and the Transnational Labour Market

“…This is particularly true with reference to "illegal" immigration, which has seen a marked tightening Nonetheless, immigration is also an issue of contention within the "left" and its traditional supporters, the labour movement, which sees it as a potential threat to wages, working conditions and the organizational unity of workers in the receiving country. Workers pursue their interests in capitalist societies through collective action organized primarily in trade unions, so there are good reasons to expect that organized labour would be quite active with respect to immigration (Corrente, 1986;Haus, 1995;Quinlan, 1979;Quinlan and Lever-Tracy, 1990;Schmitter, 1983;Simmons and Keohane, 1992). Trade unions have a direct stake in the foreign labour issue.…”