Immigration
Jan. 14th, 2026 10:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chris_gerribAs promised yesterday, thoughts on immigration.
First, most people seem to think that becoming a US citizen or permanent resident is only marginally harder than getting a driver’s license. This is wrong. Legal residency is difficult, expensive and time-consuming.
Second, here’s some economic reality. There are a number of jobs in America (busboy, drywall taper, landscape crew member) that involve hard work for low pay. We have two choices:
1) Make it easier for non-US citizens to do that work legally. This does not necessarily mean citizenship. Especially for those with seasonal jobs, they’d gladly go back to their home country if they could while still getting back in the US next season.
2) Increase the wages we pay for these immigrant jobs. We need to recognize that the cost for this will literally come out of everybody’s wallet. Food and housing costs will go up.
I vote for Option 1 above. Making it easier to get work visas and allowing people an easier path to citizenship would be beneficial to everybody.
First, most people seem to think that becoming a US citizen or permanent resident is only marginally harder than getting a driver’s license. This is wrong. Legal residency is difficult, expensive and time-consuming.
Second, here’s some economic reality. There are a number of jobs in America (busboy, drywall taper, landscape crew member) that involve hard work for low pay. We have two choices:
1) Make it easier for non-US citizens to do that work legally. This does not necessarily mean citizenship. Especially for those with seasonal jobs, they’d gladly go back to their home country if they could while still getting back in the US next season.
2) Increase the wages we pay for these immigrant jobs. We need to recognize that the cost for this will literally come out of everybody’s wallet. Food and housing costs will go up.
I vote for Option 1 above. Making it easier to get work visas and allowing people an easier path to citizenship would be beneficial to everybody.
Thoughts
Date: 2026-01-15 03:58 am (UTC)But there's another area besides jobs that Americans just won't or can't do. That is fields where the demand greatly outstrips the supply of workers. There are always some, but it shifts over time as predictions of growth don't always pan out. Take the top 10 of those. Make the training free, and advertise it everywhere that unemployed people go, like unemployment agencies or food banks. For immigrants, make those fields a faster track to citizenship.