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Long Island Farm Bureau Executive Director Joseph Gergela on how the administration’s crackdown on employers of illegal immigrants will impact busin...
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Administration rapidly escalating its crackdown on illegal immigrant employee errors according to a new report.
Recently more than 1000 companies have been getting noticed that their payroll records are coming under review by immigration officials outright audits.
But show -- Georgia as -- gala is executive director of the Long Island farm bureau and says this will deal with severe blow.
To already battered businesses across the US -- now in claimants.
Maker -- welcome thank you so much for being here.
Thank you -- I'm glad to be -- -- the numbers certainly don't look like the Obama administration is kicking into high gear when it comes to auditing companies.
And deporting illegal immigrants or immigrants who do not have any documentation.
What does this mean for American businesses.
Well he business that I represent here on Long Island is agriculture.
It's a very significant industry in New York State.
After Wall Street it's one of our State's leading industries.
We're very concerned about ramifications of the one of the things we've been asking the congress for for years is a legal guest worker program so that we have access to -- -- My guys are very concerned that they would in fact lose labor.
And I don't know how we get the crops are the field but it's beyond the agriculture.
It's with -- building trades are the restaurant industry hospitality polarism.
There's going to be a lot of economic pain throughout the country.
You know that the Bush Administration was -- on this to -- and we remember the chicken plant raids where they were just deporting people right and left.
They would argue and and the Obama administration argues as well well then those jobs will be filled by Americans who who either are our full out legal citizens or they were born here.
What do you say to that is that a realistic.
Belief that those jobs that we're -- -- our screen in it and in migrant workers etc.
for agriculture would be filled by Americans.
Well the reality is is that people domestic workers don't want to work on forms it's very hard work long hours.
And government you know most people want -- be in a better part of our economy -- better station in life.
We are fortunate that we are able to how big a of course the production.
How hard it is to form we have to having reliable.
Legal safe.
Labor supply for the industry.
Look at us on our screen a 157.
Criminal arrests of employee errors people who cannot document their workers.
Obviously we we need a system here we need something where we can document everybody just for for the safety of the nation but what's your solution.
If if this continues and the crackdown is very intense at the moment.
Could you lose a third of your workers -- what are you looking at right now as far as numbers are concerned.
Well nationally.
I believe that the number is 50% of all workers are undocumented.
Now I don't know that's -- -- percent accurate.
However that would mean that there especially during right now are worn off -- of -- -- -- if we more pro labor supply how to we get the crops on the hill.
And that that's of great great consequence not only.
To the farmers but to the public because we produce their food -- people need.
But -- our country.
Joseph if you have the president's ear right now what would you say to -- about this.
That we need to work with the congress together with the administration.
So that we can -- reasonable -- And that they're weak and having system that works for the security side of things.
But at the same token we must have -- labor force.
Not only for agriculture -- for other sectors of our economy.
-- -- thank you very much for for bringing us your perspective it's a touchy subject but at you know a target by people to fill those jobs it's true executive director of the Long Island farm bureau thank you so much.
