February 25, 2016
THE ONE COMFORTING THING...:
Donald Trump Has Turned Away Hundreds of American Workers to Hire Cheap Foreign Labor Instead (Eric Levitz, 2/25/16, NY Mag)
Since 2010, nearly 300 United States residents have applied for jobs at Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, but only 17 were hired. Meanwhile, Trump pursued more than 500 visas for foreign workers at the resort, the New York Times reports.Trump's fondness for guest workers was brought to national attention by Reuters last summer, when the news service reported that the Donald had sought visas for over 1,000 foreign laborers since 2000. [...]In truth, there are plenty of reasons for employers to prefer guest workers over Americans, even if the former boast no superior qualifications. While foreign employees must receive an area's "prevailing wage," as determined by the Labor Department, they have no power to leave their jobs without forfeiting their right to reside in the country. This leaves guest workers with no leverage to request raises and discourages many from reporting mistreatment or abuses on the job.Trump's claim that he has only turned away American workers due to insufficient qualifications is undermined by his own rhetoric at a Republican debate in November."Wages are too high," Trump said, when asked if he would support raising the minimum wage. "We're not going to be able to compete against the world."Trump's preference for guest workers is likely driven by the need to compete in the hospitality industry's "free-market." According to the Times, many other clubs in the Palm Beach area also rely on foreign employees.
...is that no one can really take his anti-immigration and anti-trade rhetoric seriously. Of course, the downside is you can't take his anti-abortion rhetoric seriously either. Or anything else he says, for that matter....
Posted by Orrin Judd at February 25, 2016 4:12 PM