Minutemen Project

This is a proposed fence by the Minutemen, for the Minutemen project, which will take place on the border of Arizona and Mexico.

Declaration of Immigration

Even in industries with high concentrations of illegal workers -- such as construction, restaurants and some parts of agriculture -- the impact isn't as great as many people think. If there weren't illegal immigrants working in construction in places like Chicago and Miami, then demand for legal workers would go up, which would mean wages would rise. But very quickly, legal workers from other parts of the country would move to those cities, and wages would go back down. The net impact on wages would be relatively modest.

There are places in the United States where illegal immigration has big effects (both positive and negative). But economists generally believe that when averaged over the whole economy, the effect is a small net positive.

Harvard's George Borjas says the average American's wealth is increased by less than 1 percent because of illegal immigration.

The economic impact of illegal immigration is far smaller than other trends in the economy, such as the increasing use of automation in manufacturing or the growth in global trade. Those two factors have a much bigger impact on wages, prices and the health of the U.S. economy.

The inescapable facts are that illegals come because the jobs are here, and the jobs are available because there aren't enough native-born workers to fill them. As a case in point, consider visas that the U.S. grants for seasonal work in industries such as hospitality and construction if employers can't fill positions with citizens despite advertising the openings. In 2005, the government made 66,000 of these visas available; they were snapped up in three months.

New York Daily News on Monday, May 22

Declaration of Immigration

More than a third of illegal immigrants live in just three cities: New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. But even in these places, economists believe there is minimal impact on wages. That's because many Americans from other parts of the country choose not to move to areas with large numbers of immigrants, because they want to avoid competing for jobs.

Nearly 12 million illegal immigrants are estimated to be living in the United States. The vast majority work in low-skill, low-wage jobs. More than half work in construction, manufacturing or leisure and hospitality.

The reduction in earnings occurs regardless of whether the immigrants are legal or illegal, permanent or temporary. It is the presence of additional workers that reduces wages, not their legal status.

Source: Jorge Borgas, Kennedy School of Government at Harvard