After the House Judiciary Committee passed the H.R. 2885, the Legal Workforce Act, SEIU’s International Secretary-Treasurer Eliseo Medina issued the following statement:

“Lamar Smith (R-TX) and anti-immigrant Republicans should not be quick to claim victory with yesterday’s passage of their job-killing E-Verify bill in the House Judiciary Committee. The mark-up process highlighted the bill’s critical flaws.

“Making E-Verify mandatory for all businesses in every sector, no matter how small, would depress our struggling economy and eliminate decent jobs by shutting down the agriculture industry, burdening small businesses, and shifting U.S. and immigrant workers into the underground economy at the expense of law-abiding employers. These hard facts were made painfully clear by yesterday’s debate.

“True to form, Republicans showed that their lack of concern for U.S. workers and their relentless commitment to cater to their right-wing base by voting down numerous Democratic amendments that would have improved the bill. For example, they rejected proposals to protect against discrimination against lawful workers, and shot down plans that would provide some recourse for workers harmed by misuse or egregious errors in the system.

“The good news is that there was evidence yesterday that the flaws in the bill are starting to slow its progress through the House as workers, farmers, small business owners, and all people concerned about privacy learn more about it.

“We don’t need any more self-inflicted wounds. SEIU urges Congress to drop this divisive, jobs killing, anti-immigrant, enforcement-only approach to immigrants and workers, and return focus instead to proposals that are proven to increase jobs and grow our economy such comprehensive immigration reform that has been put on the back burner by the Republican majority.”

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