December 4, 2000. Just four years ago, Congress enacted, and the president signed, the toughest anti-immigrant legislation in decades. The players are operating from different motives. Labor sees organizing potential in workplaces now dominated by immigrant workers.
Business is interested in a stable work force in a time of labor shortages.
And politicians have recognized the voting strength of immigrant and ethnic communities. Earlier this year, the AFL-CIO proposed ending sanctions against employers who hire undocumented alien workers and urged a general amnesty for the five million or more undocumented immigrants believed to be living in the United States. The demand for a repeal of employer sanctions was a remarkable turnabout. The AFL-CIO had been a staunch defender of the program since it was enacted in 1986. The outcome of the Holiday Inn Express case illustrates just how ineffectual the current sanctions system really is.