Political rhetoric around immigration can be polarizing. In this episode of the Work in Progress podcast, we take a step back and look at the economic impact of the immigrant workforce and the jobs they fill. Joining me in the discussion is Jane Oates, senior policy advisor for WorkingNation.

The U.S. is home to 47.8 million immigrants, about 14.3% of the population. The immigrant population is about 45% Latino from Spanish-speaking countries, 31% Southeast Asian, 12% from Europe and Canada, and the rest from other countries, based on U.S. Census data.

One in five U.S. workers is an immigrant.

From high-paying jobs in tech to low-wage jobs in agriculture and home health care, they are a vital part of our workforce and consumer shopping, contributing $1.6 trillion to the economy and paying more than $579 billion in local, state, and federal taxes, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. 

As Jane explains, for example, “the Latino labor market participation rate is 80%. The general average for the whole population is 62.5%. The Latino population in the United States represents a GDP that’s greater than the GDP of India or the U.K.,” says Jane. “So, losing any of that buying power is going to be really detrimental to the U.S.”

In the podcast, Jane and I discuss some of the misperceptions around immigrants and other foreign workers, and the work the are doing in the U.S. She explains how employers play a major role in bringing them to the country.

“Know that before you can apply for a visa – whether H1B, H2B, H2A, it doesn’t matter – an employer has to demonstrate that they have advertised locally for local talent. An employer has to promise you a job before you can get that visa,” she says.

There are caps on H-1B visas, these are for workers with bachelor’s degree and higher. There are also caps on H-2B visas, which are visas for non-agricultural temporary workers. “They’re doing construction. They’re doing special manufacturing. They may be people doing masonry.

“Then finally, the H-2A, which has no caps. That’s ag workers. Every employer will tell you that they cannot get people to pick fruit, to pack fruit. They can’t get them to mow lawns, pick apples. You can talk to employer after employer and they’ll say, ‘I tried to get local talent. I’d like to do that,'” she adds.

There is a lot more in the podcast on the economic impact of immigrants, including their role in starting new small businesses.

You can listen to the entire conversation here, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also find our podcasts on the Work in Progress YouTube channel.

Episode 352: Jane Oates, Senior Policy Advisor, WorkingNation
Host & Executive Producer: Ramona Schindelheim, Editor-in-Chief, WorkingNation
Producer: Larry Buhl
Theme Music: Composed by Lee Rosevere and licensed under CC by 4
Transcript: Download the transcript for this episode here
Work in Progress Podcast: Catch up on previous episodes here