The Case for Immigration Policy

The U.S. benefits from immigration but policy reforms needed to maximize gains

Although immigration is a source of significant strength for the U.S. economy, the current immigration policy regime squanders too many of its potential benefits by depriving immigrants of their full rights as workers.  For example, immigration overall has led to better wages and work opportunities for U.S.-born workers.  Yet, it's also evident that when workers are denied full and equal labor and employment rights, as some immigrants are when their immigration status is used against them—it makes their lives more precarious and can harm the people with whom they work side-by-side in the same industries.