Economy experts FOX 17 News spoke to predict immigrant worker immigrant worker deportation would hurt the economy, including locally.
Carlos believes he is not taking anybody’s job. He said he is taking the job most people don’t want to do for example he said he dangled from the top of a building during construction to make it the high rise you see today in Downtown, Nashville.
Carlos works nearly 60 hours a week, five days a week doing construction.
“It’s a job that everyone can do but many times they don’t want to,” he said.
Not wanting to show his face or use his last name because he does not want trouble.
He is undocumented, coming from Mexico.
“For a better life, to help my family,” he said.
But that better life might be short lived. Trump’s deportation plan could send him back.
“I think while people are behaving in a good way you shouldn’t deport them,”
According to the American Immigration Council, construction, agriculture, and hospitality would be the most affected.
Professor of Management for Lipscomb University Andy Borchers said it would be a blow to the economy.
“If that supply of immigrant workers is disrupted through deportations or the fear of deportations, it’s going to make it more expensive for employers and that will have an inflationary impact,” he said.
Attorney, former trade official in the Bush and Clinton White House, and conservative commentator Steve Gill told me that those who come to America illegally are bad for the economy.
Gill believes that we can help employers struggling to fill jobs, especially harder to fill like Carlos’ by paying American citizens higher wages.
Although that can boost construction worker costs, Gill said there is another way.
“If we help push people who are here illegally out of the country to come in through the legal, legitimate way, we can then change that process if we need more workers,” he said.
Carlos told me he hopes one day he can be an American citizen.