Florida, and nation, need immigration to fill worker shortage and fuel our economy
The Department of Labor recently reported that in August, U.S. businesses had over 7 million unfilled positions. According to the Florida Chamber of Commerce, there are about 240,000 open jobs in our state, and fewer than 60,000 people receiving unemployment benefits. These statistics highlight a worker shortage crisis that over time will negatively impact our state and national economies, our ability to generate wealth, and even our national security.
The problem is so severe that if you gather 20 CEOs in a room and ask about their biggest challenge, 18 of the 20 are likely to say it is finding good employees.
How did we get to the place where businesses cannot find the employees they need?
The U.S. economy is enjoying a nearly 10-year run of economic growth that has generated many new jobs. Meanwhile, retiring baby boomers are vacating existing jobs at the rate of 10,000 per day. This combination of economic growth and retiring baby boomers has resulted in a very low unemployment rate, with more jobs available than people qualified to fill them.
Every industry in the country is struggling to solve this worker shortage, which in time will likely be alleviated as technology allows companies to further automate. However, that technological relief is still several years away. In the meantime, we have a serious problem that needs attention.
Many potential solutions are being bantered around by both government and industry. Most have to do with training which, while helpful, does not solve the underlying problem of not enough workers for economic growth. One solution that is not getting enough serious discussion is immigration.
Over the past couple hundred years, all around the world, we have learned that economies experience tremendous growth when workers are transitioning from rural to industrial communities or when new workers arrive through immigration. The U.S. is a notable example of both, and historically, times of significant immigration have driven substantial economic growth.
Immigrants have provided the U.S. fuel that resulted in economic growth envied by the world. Without immigrants, our country would not have had the workers or consumers to drive the economic results that we have enjoyed.
Immigration is an emotional topic for a lot of reasons. No one wants to lose their job to a newcomer and, of course, no one wants to admit terrorists or criminals into our country. However, if we allow these fears to capture us, and we overly restrict the net contributors who want to come to the U.S., we run the risk of negatively impacting our economic future and missing the many benefits of immigration.
In addition to fueling the growth of existing businesses, immigrants help the U.S. in other ways:
According to the Small Business Administration, immigrants are significantly more likely to start new businesses than current citizens. Furthermore, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute, businesses started by immigrants create millions of jobs.
Immigrants are often scientists and engineers that help keep U.S. companies globally innovative, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Immigrants become consumers for many products produced by U.S. companies
We clearly want responsible immigration policies that keep out terrorists and criminals.
However, by shifting our national paradigm to view immigrants not as threats but, as they have historically been, net contributors to our country, we can solve a serious current problem that will benefit Florida and position the U.S. for many more decades of global economic leadership.