‘Why All the Fuss?’

Reading Lawrence Kudlow’s column on immigration, “Why All the Fuss?” I am surprised again not to find what I believe to be a central pillar of any meaningful comprehensive immigration reform [Opinion, May 19, 2006].

The reason that there is a high demand, or a demand at all for that matter, for illegal labor is because of the high cost of the regulations associated with the legal workers. Like any industry, once it becomes too highly regulated a black market will develop to avoid such hurdles.

A question never answered nor even addressed is whether a so-called “temporary worker” will stand in the same shoes as a fully legal American worker. Will minimum wage and other labor requirements apply?

Will they have access to American courts to sue for sexual harassment and diversity complaints? Will our entire jurisprudence of civil rights legislation apply to them? Affirmative action? All of these elements have an associated expense from the humane costs of safety standards to the absurd of guarding against frivolous lawsuits.

If a “temporary worker” carried the cost of legislative and judicial regulations, then there would be no discount or advantage to hiring them over a full blown legal American. In fact, the price would probably be higher because of the due diligence that would be required to ensure that the “temporary worker” is legal and the risk that he or she is not.

Therefore, as we analyze our immigration laws in an attempt to have meaningful reform, we must also analyze our labor laws to determine whether we are striking the appropriate balance of costs and benefits. If we do not address the reasons why a black market labor force exists, then any immigration reform won’t be comprehensive and won’t stem the tide of illegal immigration.

AARON SHAFER
Manhattan

‘Former Deputy Mayor’s Illness’

Isn’t it nice that former Mayor Giuliani and members of his City Hall staff are coming out pushing for the Workers’ Compensation claim for a former deputy mayor, Rudy Washington? [“Feud Erupts Over Former Deputy Mayor’s Illness,” David Lombino, New York, May 18, 2006]

To listen to Joseph Lhota, Mr. Washington was the only person operating at the World Trade Center on the city payroll on September 11 who was “Putting the city’s welfare before his own …” or whose “body was completely covered in dirt and dust.”

However, a review of earlier re ports this week in The New York Sun and of video and still pictures of those days will show that there were hundreds, if not thousands, of cops, firemen, Emergency Medical Service workers, Emergency Medical Technicians, and other civil servants who were also “completely covered in dirt,” and who are suffering today much like Mr. Washington, and who are now being routinely denied the same benefits (as are their widows) that Mr. Washington is seeking.

If this is the way the city plans on compensating its dedicated workers for such a horrible disaster and its devastating results, it had also plan on fewer dedicated employees, “putting the city before their own welfare … ” if there is a “next time.”

JAMES FAY
Closter, N.J.