Higher Minimum Wage for Non-Citizens?

Cal Thomas | Syndicated columnist | Updated: Jul 26, 2006

Higher Minimum Wage for Non-Citizens?

July 14, 2006

In Washington there are good ideas, bad ideas and really stupid ideas. You decide what label to put on this one.

The Senate immigration bill now under consideration would require – require – that foreign laborers here as part of any guest worker program be paid well-above the minimum wage an American worker receives at the same work site, for identical work.

This bill is supported by Majority Leader Bill Frist and Majority Whip Mitch McConnell but it is opposed by the rest of their GOP leadership.

What can they be thinking by requiring companies to pay aliens more than American citizens? Is this some cruel joke? Is it a clever way to make companies less likely to hire foreign workers because they would have to pay them more? If so, what is the point of having a guest worker program and what will the aliens do when they are not hired? Answer to that question is they will go on welfare, costing taxpayers even more.

This takes a lot of nerve for republicans to do something like this. Thankfully cooler heads will prevail in the House and the bill is unlikely to become law. But this is worse than stupid.


Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C.

 

Higher Minimum Wage for Non-Citizens?