What Do Immigrants Do?
Initially my research into this topic yielded a great deal of information about immigrants and the labor force. One of the most important thing immigrants do in the United States is sustain and maintain the labor force. Their motivation to come to the United States during their prime working years is what allows them to grow the workforce.
Although they are often blamed for taking jobs from US born citizens, immigrants are many times willing to work in jobs which are “are typically low-paying and seen as undesirable by U.S.-born workers.”[1](Singer, 2012) Jobs like low-skill construction, health and personal aides, food services, childcare, and laborers require lower skills and are heavily represented by immigrants. As well as covering the low skilled labour market, “with the baby boomers beginning their swift ascent to “seniordom” (like it or not), continuing immigration means more workers to fill in the gaps left by retirement.” [2](Singer, 2012) “As a result, the labor force will increasingly depend upon immigrants and their children to replace current workers and fill new jobs.”[3](Singer, A. 2012)
With Christmas and New Year right around the corner, we can’t help but put our focus on endings and new beginnings. As we head into 2018 this website will be focusing on empowering immigrants to put an end to their old worries which have held them back. Beyond helping them to alleviate and push past their fears, this site intends to provide information and resources to inspire those who have felt marginalized in the past to move forward with the necessary steps it takes to pursue the immigration benefits they are rightfully entitled to.
The level of courage and creativity it takes someone to decide to leave their native home and forge a new path in a new country needs to be celebrated rather than treated with scrutiny and skepticism. Often time it is “the [latter born] son or daughter who had no prospects in their home country, who got on that boat with very few resources and a ton of uncertainty. It also seems like our DNA of innovation, optimism and entrepreneurship might come from the fact that most of our ancestors were the risk takers in their families.”[4](Plemmons, 2016)
This courageous spirit has assisted not only in building the labor force but it has also helped to drive entrepreneurship. “The Most Entrepreneurial Group in America Wasn’t Born in America. Despite accounting for only about 13 percent of the population, immigrants now start more than a quarter of new businesses in this country… more than 20 percent of the 2014 Inc. 500 CEOs are immigrants. Immigrant-owned businesses pay an estimated $126 billion in wages per year, employing 1 in 10 Americans who work for private companies. ” (Plemmons, 2016)
While there is no arguing that immigrants bring extreme value to the economic situation of their newly adopted homes, it would be ignorant to imagine that work is all they do. On top of their hard work in strengthening the labour force, immigrants participate in many of the same daily activities that their native born counterparts. Child rearing, weekend home improvement and spending time cooking or with in-laws are not activities unique to natives but are in fact ubiquitous.
In an effort to celebrate the many facets of immigrant life, in 2018 this site will choose to focus not only on the latest news about issues pressing to the immigrant community. In the New Year this site hopes to shine a spotlight on all different aspects of immigrant life. Areas including the effects of immigration on healthcare, up and coming cuisines as well as small business to name a few will be on the list of topics covered and uncovered by this site. 2017 has seen a rise in anti-immigrant sentiment not seen in this country before. Marching into a new year, theimmigrantexperience.org hopes to foster building a culture of gratitude, courage and creativity through the telling of the important and inspiring stories of struggle and fruition that is the daily life of the immigrant.
[1] Singer, Audrey (March 15th, 2012) What Do Immigrants Do In America? http://bit.ly/2BpNzpo
[2] Singer, Audrey (March 15th, 2012) What Do Immigrants Do In America? http://bit.ly/2BpNzpo
[3] Singer, Audrey (March 15th, 2012) Immigrant Worker in the US Labor Force http://brook.gs/2jaY6wB
[4] Plemmons, Kerry (December 16th, 2016) Juxtapositions on Immigration – Gratitude and Inspiration vs. Entitlement http://bit.ly/2ALktzE
