Steven A. Camarota is the director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies.

There are an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the country and we also admit over a million permanent legal immigrants each year, leading to enormous implications for the U.S. labor market. Bureau of Labor Statistics data show that there are some 58 million working-age (16 to 65) native-born Americans not working — unemployed or out of the labor market entirely. This is roughly 16 million more than in 2000. Equally troubling, wages have stagnated or declined for most American workers. This is especially true for the least educated, who are most likely to compete with immigrants (legal and illegal).

1.5 million fewer native-born Americans are working now than in 2007,yet 2 million more immigrants are working.

Anyone who has any doubt about how bad things are can see for themselves at the bureau's website, which shows that, as of November, there were 1.5 million fewer native-born Americans working than in November 2007, while 2 million more immigrants (legal and illegal) were working. Thus, all net employment gains since November 2007 have gone to immigrants.

The decline in work has particularly affected those under age 29, and the less-educated, who are the most likely to be in competition with immigrants. A study by the economist George J. Borjas and others found that immigration reduces the employment of less-educated black men. Another study came to the same conclusion. A recent analysis by Federal Reserve economist Christopher Smith (2012) found that immigration reduces the employment of U.S. teenagers.

Despite this, many members of Congress and President Obama support giving work permits to illegal immigrants and increasing legal immigration even further. Once given work authorization, illegal immigrants can compete for better-paying jobs now unavailable to them because they require background checks and valid Social Security numbers — as security guards, interstate truckers, and public sector employees. This despite a record number of adults not working and stagnant wages. Economists debate how much immigration impacts natives, but agree that the data show no labor shortage.

Despite this, last year the Senate passed S.744, which would have given virtually all illegal immigrants work authorization, created a new guest worker program, and expanded family-based immigration. The Congressional Research Service estimated that bill would have roughly doubled the level of future legal immigration to 2 million a year for at least the first decade.

"We are a nation of immigrants,” we are often told by the most affluent and educated segments of our society, who face the least competition from immigrants, so we shouldn't restrict immigration or enforce our laws. But this ignores the very real harm to poorer Americans affected by current high levels of immigration.



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