IMMIGRATION STATUS,
THREATS TO DEPORT AND
EMPLOYMENT LITIGATION
The EEOC’s Approach
William R. Tamayo, Regional
Attorney, San Francisco
Global Economy, Global Migration
• International markets, outsourcing
• World Bank: 200 million migrants
• U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees:
150 million refugees
- 200 million migrants send home $300
billion in remittances (more than all
foreign-aid combined)
U.S. Economy
• Major shift to service industry, light
manufacturing
• 300 million population
• 12 million undocumented people; 7 million
undocumented workers
• Immigrants are disproportionately younger
than the white, U.S. citizen population
Immigration 101
• U.S. citizens (by birth, naturalized)
• Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR’s,
“green card” holders”
• Nonimmigrants (legally here, limited
authorized time, may or may not be work
authorized, e.g. tourists, students, skilled
workers (H-1) or agriculture (H-2)
Immigration 101 (cont.)
• Refugees, asylees: well-founded fear of
persecution (status granted)
• Undocumented:
-
overstays, violations of nonimmigrant
status, worked without authorization, etc.
-
entered without inspection
-
violations of lawful permanent status
and ordered deported
The Undocumented
• 7 million undocumented workers primarily
in agriculture, service, light manufacturing
and construction
• Nonwhite, non-citizen, non-English
speaking, can’t vote, low wages, not
organized, may live in fear of deportation
• If deported: extreme poverty and/or
persecution
The Undocumented
• Blamed for everything: unemployment,
disease, crime, terrorism, “decrease of
American culture”, etc.
• Therefore: very vulnerable, very
exploitable, scared to assert rights…and
their employers know that
• Perverse incentive to hire them, yet
demand documents when they complain
Coverage
• EEOC and Castrejon v. Tortilleria La
Mejor: despite the passage of IRCA in
1986, undocumented workers are covered
by Title VII; Title VII makes no exception
based on immigration status for workers in
the U.S. a