WASHINGTON, March 9 (UPI) -- The U.S. stimulus bill geared toward creating construction jobs for U.S. citizens will likely end up providing work for illegal immigrants, studies predict.
The Center for Immigration Studies and the Heritage Foundation have each estimated about 300,000 construction jobs will go to illegal immigrants, especially "without specific mechanisms to ensure that workers are U.S. citizens or legal immigrants," said Robert Rector, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, USA Today reported Monday.
Some blame Congress for not attaching a provision to the stimulus bill that would require employers to verify a worker's status, the newspaper said.
"They could have deterred this, but they chose not to," said Steven Camarota, director of research for the Center for Immigration Studies.
Jorge-Mario Cabrera, director of education for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, said the conservative groups were using "fear tactics."
"I think that we really should be focusing on economic progress for all," he said.
The Obama administration has delayed implementing a Bush-era executive order that requires contractors working federal projects to use a verification system.
The Chamber of Commerce and the Associated Builders and Contractors are suing to block the requirement, the newspaper said.
