Undocumented workers in the United States

The book ‘working in the shadows’ written by Gabriel Thomson is more of a documentary of the experiences that, undocumented workers whose greatest percentage comprises of immigrants goes through. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Undocumented workers in the United States specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Undocumented workers refer to the illegal immigrants seeking employment in the US. The idea to write this book as brought about by an article ‘Crackdown Upends Slaughterhouses Workforce’ written in 2007 by labor correspondent Steven Green house and published in the New York Times. It was a documentation of how difficult it was for Smithfield foods to secure a stable workforce in its slaughter house in North Carolina due to constant raids by immigration agents. This was quite a challenge to the immigrants working in the slaughter house forcing them to quit their jobs to avoid such constant harassment and for their safety. Gabriel Thomson then decided to take up the burden and work behind the shadows in order to get first hand information concerning the experiences of these undocumented workers. He personally took up his first job in a lettuce field which was rather challenging for him, first because the tasks were tough and secondly, the constant questions from his colleagues who never understood why a white man was working in such an odd job. It was a difficult moment for Thomson since the workload was tough and it was even more difficult to record his findings since it could only be possible during their short breaks and again, it was private. Undocumented immigrant workers have very challenging working life in the United States. They are among the most vulnerable and exploited workers in the nation, constantly going through labor law violations. For instance, they are frequent victims of unpaid wages, discrimination, undesirable working conditions and uncompensa ted work place injuries. They perform duties which ordinary Americans, due their pride and status won’t ever perform. Advertising Looking for essay on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Their jobs are quite dangerous, grueling, mind-numbing and very undesirable. Those who attempt to voice their opinions over the hardships they go through mainly face physical and immigration related threats and retaliations. There is an estimated 9.3 million undocumented workers in the United States, which is about 26% of all immigrants in the United States. This report is based upon a survey and other date samples collected by 2002. Among them, 57% are Mexicans, 23% originate from other Latin countries, 10% from Asia, 5% from Europe and Canada while the other 5% come from the rest of the world. The growth rate of undocumented workers has been quite high. They comprises of around 5% of the workforce in the US whereby aroun d 96% of men and 62% of women are working, which is far much higher than the natives. This is because contrary to the Americans who may either be disabled, retired or in school, most undocumented immigrants males are young and energetic and women are in child bearing age that are more likely to bear children than the natives. However, undocumented immigrants earn considerably less than working Americans. According to Thomson, there is no such a thing as immigrant job since during his year of survey, he realized that even Americans were well versed with these jobs but only the poor could do them since they had much in common with the immigrants. However, US born citizens were not allowed in some shady jobs like in the lettuce fields and the immigrants were assigned the most strenuous, dangerous and worst paid positions whereby they faced constant abuse from the management. Furthermore, they received poverty line wages, they are often victims of racism, they live under worst conditi ons, and are often harassed by the police. It is important for all workers including the undocumented immigrants to know that they are protected under the basic federal and state employment and labor laws. In actual sense, undocumented workers pay more in taxes than they receive in services. A study carried out by the government in 1975 ‘illegal aliens’, by the department of labor showed that 77% paid social security taxes while 75% paid federal income taxes. However, their employers chose not to report the money which ends up in their pockets. Unfortunately, they rarely get such services as welfare benefits, food stamps, unemployment compensation, and their children in public schools among others.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Undocumented workers in the United States specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The illegal status of undocumented workers in the United States has made it very difficult to ach ieve the American dream of climbing the social ladder, security of life and liberty as well as social security entitled to all American residents. They are often forced to take up odd jobs and unfavorable labor conditions thus making life quite challenging for them. There is so much in common between the working poor in America and the undocumented immigrant a worker according to the Ehrenreich’s and Thomson’s study. They are equally ignored in the stump speeches of politicians, thus they lack a sense of political solidarity, and their wages have denied them the opportunity to achieve the American dream, the work on odd jobs which Americans cannot do regardless of the pay among others. They live in very poor conditions, at times far away from their families and are often harassed by their employers and the police. In conclusion, life is quite challenging for undocumented workers in the United States since their status force them to take up any form of income to earn a living due o fears of facing the arm of the government which may even include deportation or imprisonment. Most Americans treat them this way since they take them as parasites who live off welfare and who cause unemployment by taking up jobs which would otherwise be serving the Americans. This essay on Undocumented workers in the United States was written and submitted by user Madilyn C. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Free Essays on Knight Death And The Devil

In Durer’s copperplate engraving, Knight, Death, and Devil, it appears that the Knight is emerging victorious, both morally and literally over his two adversaries Death and the Devil. The Knight could be interpreted as Erasmus’s unwavering Christian soldier who mocks Death and the Devil, believing that he is protected as he does God’s will here in mortality on this Earth that God as created. The ‘Christian soldier’ is a perfect embodiment and ideal of the many virtues toward which the church and culture of the middle ages gave so much import. One of these virtues is that of temperance, the Knight is traveling far from the city, alone and seemingly quite vulnerable to the temptations and desperation that may be cast at him from Death and the Devil causing him to fall from his position. However he remains steadfast in his look, armed with a sword and spear, and protected by full armor. He doesn’t even notice Death and the Devil waiting to take a dvantage of him and grasp him, pulling him down to his demise. He is the very image of temperance of a strong, faithful and unmoving servant of Christ. Durer chose to represent the horse in full profile, showing every muscle and aspect of the animal in perfect proportions. The horse is depicted in the picture perfect moment as if its regulated steps were chosen for a sculpture. The hound that accompanies the Knight could be said to represent faith. In the middle ages hounds often accompanied their masters and aided them in their quests, dogs by nature are extremely faithful and obedient to their owners, as a Christian soldier should be to his God. Death and the Devil choose to appear in the wilderness where the Knight is alone and more susceptible to their machinations. In this scene the Knight is surrounded by evil and destruction, the trademarks of his foe. A skull lies at the feet of the horse perhaps representing the failures of those who have gone before our protagonist, but agai... Free Essays on Knight Death And The Devil Free Essays on Knight Death And The Devil In Durer’s copperplate engraving, Knight, Death, and Devil, it appears that the Knight is emerging victorious, both morally and literally over his two adversaries Death and the Devil. The Knight could be interpreted as Erasmus’s unwavering Christian soldier who mocks Death and the Devil, believing that he is protected as he does God’s will here in mortality on this Earth that God as created. The ‘Christian soldier’ is a perfect embodiment and ideal of the many virtues toward which the church and culture of the middle ages gave so much import. One of these virtues is that of temperance, the Knight is traveling far from the city, alone and seemingly quite vulnerable to the temptations and desperation that may be cast at him from Death and the Devil causing him to fall from his position. However he remains steadfast in his look, armed with a sword and spear, and protected by full armor. He doesn’t even notice Death and the Devil waiting to take a dvantage of him and grasp him, pulling him down to his demise. He is the very image of temperance of a strong, faithful and unmoving servant of Christ. Durer chose to represent the horse in full profile, showing every muscle and aspect of the animal in perfect proportions. The horse is depicted in the picture perfect moment as if its regulated steps were chosen for a sculpture. The hound that accompanies the Knight could be said to represent faith. In the middle ages hounds often accompanied their masters and aided them in their quests, dogs by nature are extremely faithful and obedient to their owners, as a Christian soldier should be to his God. Death and the Devil choose to appear in the wilderness where the Knight is alone and more susceptible to their machinations. In this scene the Knight is surrounded by evil and destruction, the trademarks of his foe. A skull lies at the feet of the horse perhaps representing the failures of those who have gone before our protagonist, but agai...

Compare the powers of the legislative branch to the powers of the Essay

Compare the powers of the legislative branch to the powers of the executive banch. which has more power today and why - Essay Example Currently, the executive wilds more power to those of legislative based on varied sensitive tasks, which its members normally perform without over consulting. The executive, having the office of the president as the highest embraces a key role US’ constitution and the entire state as a whole. Recently, it has seen an increase in its power attributed to the rise of financial economy which has weakened expansive parts of the liberal state. This has directly or indirectly given the executive additional powers in comparison to the legislative. This can be seen when the Federal Reserve extended about $1.2 trillion allocation to major banks. This was done by the executive exclusively without being passed through the legislative process (Gill & Cutler, 2014). The executive has continued to gunner more power due to support by supranational organisations such as the IMF and WTO (Gill & Cutler, 2014). In the recent years, these organisations have been dealing directly with the executive branch. In the earlier years, these organisations were key players in making and implementation of rules and laws. However, over the years, their influence and power grew influencing the growth of the executive powers. The organisations no longer deal with legislative bodies. This is a major boost to the executive powers (Gill & Cutler, 2014). The executive and its relation to global corporate economy has contributed directly and indirectly to the addition of executive powers. The global corporate economy plays hand in hand with global matters such as terrorism. After the 9/11 event, the legislative branch gave power to the executive after passing of the patriot act (Gill & Cutler, 2014). This act gave federal branches under the executive more power in order to curb any future threats. These federal branches have the power to enact and perform various actions without the approval of the legislative branch of the constitution (Gill & Cutler, 2014). In

Salary Inequality in the Workplace - when do men still earn more Research Paper

Salary Inequality in the Workplace - when do men still earn more - Research Paper Example Despite the theories, there is no concrete evidence as to why salary inequality is still a problem, suggesting that the disparity is a social problem with a very hidden agenda to satisfy the needs of a patriarchic work environment. Why do Men Earn More? Allyn (2003) suggests that men earn more than their female counterparts due to the return on investment achieved through education. According to an empirical study, education is geared more to provide men with better understanding of computer systems. Thus, when men and women enter the workforce, men who receive complimentary benefits are assumed to have a better knowledge base associated with technology usage, giving them a salary advantage (Allyn 2003). Under this assumption, salary disparity between the different sexes is a product of the educational system and the provision of knowledge associated with technology. Is this a rational explanation for the aforementioned inequality? If so, one could easily blame the administration in today’s colleges and universities for not creating a diverse curriculum that provides men and women with the same quality learning outcomes. It is likely that many educators and administrators in the teaching environment would strongly argue against Allyn’s study results, suggesting that there are ample and equal opportunities for both female and male students in the schools’ attempts to provide identical learning systems. Many universities, today, make it part of their ethical policies to ensure uniform educational methods that provide equivalent instruction and coaching that facilitates scholarship for both sexes. Thus, if Allyn’s findings are accurate, there must be bias within the educational system that prevents women from attaining the knowledge in technology necessary to achieve equalized pay upon graduation. However, with no concrete research evidence, this is only speculation. Connell (1997) indicates that the salary disparity between men and wom en is quite simple: it is the product of a long-standing patriarchic society that was built by men and sustained by men, thus reducing opportunities for women to advance equally. Since the majority of executives in the business environment are male, there is the assumption that a patriarchic hegemony (domination) resides at the highest levels of the organization. Any attempts to undo the male-dominated workforce would therefore, under this theory, lead to backlash or even sabotage when women attempt to exert their own supremacy (Connell, 1997). Anyone in society with a thoughtful mind could surely support the notion that the workforce as it is known today was built on male governance. The vast majority of businesspersons in history were male, therefore creating authority and control systems in the business world borne of male-generated policy and procedure. It was quite rare in yesteryear for a woman to expand their education and knowledge in order to attain a position of prominence in the business organization. In this time period, it was commonplace for women to maintain a role as housewife and mother, sustaining the household as a reward for receipt of male earnings. This was the foremost role of women until the 1940s, but this mentality was altered in the 20th Century as

Strategic Cost Management (SCM) GPBL Trimester Essay Example for Free

Strategic Cost Management (SCM) GPBL Trimester Essay Strategic Variance Analysis of a Firm Growth,Price, Profitability, Productivity Elements affecting its Profits and consequent Cash Flow. Max. Word Count 3000 words This is a study on a Strategic Variance Analysis for the profitability as well as the Operating Cash flow. In this context you need to take some critical assumptions if you are unable to procure the relevant quantitative details. The quantitative details you will need are as follows: 1. Industry aggregates of the Units Produced and Sold 2. Chosen Firm level details of the Units Produced and Sold. 3. Input Output Ratio. This will need assumptions and perhaps be restricted only to the materials. You need to perform a reasonable amount of research to obtain these numbers. Quantitative details may be provided in Annual Reports of the firms constituting the industry you have considered. Check sources such as the Capitaline. Ministry of Commerce and Industry, RBI, Planning commission, some publications such as the statistical outline of India etc etc. You need to examine the following: a) Select an Industry, use an appropriate justification of having defined the industry by using the ITC code, HSN or SIC classification or any other that will have some universal acceptability. b) Choose a Firm you would want to analyze that constitutes the Industry you have chosen. c) If industry aggregates are not available define the industry by identifying the major industry players and then aggregate their quantitative details to make this a proxy for the Industry or the market you would want t o consider. d) Perform a Strategic Variance Analysis to demarcate the impact of Growth, Price and Productivity elements in explaining the impact on the changes in the profits of the firm you have chosen for the year with its subsequent year. Therefore if you are analyzing the Year 2011 compare this with 2012 for the firm and the industry. e) Perform a strategic variance analysis on the operating cash flow for the firm chosen. f) Conclude on strategy you believe the firm is adopting given the financial analysis you have done. Marking Parameters: 1. Choice of the Industry and the firm and its justification. -[10 Marks] 2. Demonstrated evidence of the research done in obtaining information for points (a), (b) and (c). [30 Marks] 3. Critical Analysis of Points (d) and (e).[50 Marks] 4. Conclusion[10 Marks]

Graduation Speech -- Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Writing this commencement speech for you tonight was hands-down one of the most stressful things I have ever done. For days, I toiled over what to speak about, worried that as you sat there anxious to graduate I would bore you, or say the wrong thing. I tried to write a witty and funny speech designed to entertain you, but a lack of ability ultimately forced me to give up. This speech is the culmination of hours of brainstorming, three rejected rough drafts, editing galore, and finally me just putting my heart and soul on paper. It, as practically all commencement speeches do, contains all the expected words of praise and well wishing. It does not say anything that has not been said in the past, or that will not be said in the future, save this: We, Billwood High School's Class of 2006 will never die. Our class is like a classic movie. Just as the force will always be with Luke, and just as Maverick and the Ice Man will always be our heroes, this class of 2006 will always exist. As an actual group of people, of course, we will go our separate ways. Even the members of the Breakfas...

Purpose of a Job Description Essay

The primary purpose of a job description is to identify the duties, essential functions and requirements of the position. Job descriptions also serve several other important functions. A good job description can assess work flow and eliminate duplication of effort and also help to assist in the evaluation of the employees’ job performance. It should be a statement of what duties and responsibilities the employee is expected to complete and a means for achieving them. Job descriptions can also be used as recruitment tools, compensation surveys and other benchmarks tools. Job descriptions are used for different purposes by the employee and the Human Resources Department. Human Resource managers, can use job descriptions for employee training and development and establishing and updating performance standards. In general, a job description includes the title, a description of the tasks performed, and information on working conditions. It can also include any other attributes that the employer requires for that position such as: education, knowledge, skills and personality suitability. (Verma, 2007) Many business challenges such as the introduction of new technology, or increased business competition, can be more easily met when employees are well prepared and trained to have the required skills. The company I work for, for example, informs all the employees with the latest updates within the company by sending a letter. With detailed job descriptions, you can compare the actual tasks of employees to what needs to be done within the organization. This helps you easily identify critical areas that need to be addressed, ensuring you have a global view of your organization’s strengths and weaknesses and, at the same time, a detailed view of each employee’s areas of strengths and areas for improvement or change. In the recruitment process, a job description gives potential employees comprehensive information about the job for which they are applying. An accurate and effective job description filters applicants who are being evaluated for the opening – helping generate a higher-quality pool of applicants. It also serves as a resource to the supervisor who is filling a position by helping determine the types of selection tools that should be used when hiring. The Sim-Industries HR department has been in place for 1, 5 years now and they still have not made time to develop job descriptions, because the management did not see this as a priority. The company was in its initial fase and all the employees were expected to be flexible during that period. For example, the finance manager worked in the finance department but was also involved in the human resource department and he was furthermore acting as the PA of the CEO. Currently we have two hundred employees and I believe that it is time to start setting up job descriptions. We need structure and the different kind of functions within the company should be defined. It must be clear what duties a colleague has and what he or she is responsible for within the organization. It will be a lot clearer for new employees to have a job description as they will then have a better understanding what the organization is expecting from them. As I can see now in the organization, many employees do not exactly know what their duties are and who is responsible for what. Therefore I think that we should consider the introduction of another type of management. With for example performance management, we will reach more personal involvement between employees and managers due the fact that the system is based on managing the strategy of the organization. The goals in the organization will be more specific when the managers constantly ask themselves: ‘How are we going to reach that? ’ and ‘Who is responsible for that? ’ When they start using the new system, the strategy will become clearer.