H.B. 327 will give blue-collar Ohioans a fair shake
Ohio lawmakers recently introduced a bill that would require the state’s largest businesses to verify that their recent hires are either U.S. citizens or foreign nationals who are legally eligible to work in the United States. If employers violate this requirement, they’ll be slapped with stiff fines.
If H.B. 327 passes, blue-collar Ohioans will see better jobs and higher wages — because big businesses won’t be able to rely on cheap, illegal immigrant labor. While the bill would ideally apply to all businesses, not just big ones, it’s a great start.
A federal service known as E-Verify provides the underpinnings of H.B. 327. Operational since 1996, E-Verify is a free online platform that allows employers to check the immigration status of their potential employees against federal databases. It relies on data the employer is already required to collect — and it’s quick and easy to use. More than 98% of employees are cleared instantly or within 24 hours.
This user-friendly track record means that E-Verify has scored significantly higher than other federal programs on customer service trackers. More than a million employers around the country are already enrolled. It’s growing in popularity too — on average, 1,500 businesses enroll each week.
Here in Ohio, roughly 18,100 businesses participate in E-Verify. But that number could be a lot higher. Ohio isn’t one of the 18 states that currently require at least some employers to utilize the system.
E-Verify deters illegal immigrants from settling in states where it is in use. The Federal Reserve
Bank of Dallas found that passing E-Verify mandates depressed the number of likely unauthorized workers in several states. After implementing a universal E-Verify mandate, Mississippi reduced its likely illegal employee population by a whopping 83%, compared with projections for a labor market without E-Verify.
That’s good for American workers. Researchers found that E-Verify particularly helps American-born Hispanic men — in other words, the legal workers most likely to be competing with and losing out to cheaper illegal labor. It’s simple supply-and-demand.
E-Verify mandates reduce employer demand for below-market, exploitable illegal labor and increase the demand for workers with proper authorization.
Right now, 63% of working-age illegal immigrants in Ohio are employed, according to data from the Migration Policy Institute. They fill roughly 52,000 jobs that could otherwise go to legal Ohio residents, who’d likely enjoy better wages and job protections to boot.
Of course, H.B. 327 will only benefit Ohioans if it’s passed — and, even more importantly, enforced. The law proposes a system of stiff fines and anonymous tip line reporting. With those consequences in mind, employers will think twice before skirting the law to undercut their competition by relying on illegal laborers.
It isn’t a perfect bill. H.B. 327 applies only to firms with 75 or more employees, government contractors, and private nonresidential contractors. By excluding residential contractors and agricultural operations, the legislation will exempt industries that disproportionately hire illegal labor.
Nevertheless, H.B. 327 will move the needle in the right direction.