A delegation of representatives from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the Colorado AFL-CIO, and the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) today urged US Representative Mike Coffman to oppose a bill to require all employers to use E-verify.
The bill, HR 2164, sponsored by Rep. Lamar Smith, will be voted on in the House Judiciary Committee tomorrow. The delegation met with an aide to Rep. Coffman and delivered a large-sized letter urging his opposition to HR 2164 and his support for comprehensive immigration reform.
“We let Rep. Coffman know that mandatory E-verify is a jobs killer,” said Carlos Contreras of SEIU. “It would result in 770,000 eligible workers losing their jobs. We can’t afford that in this economy.”
“I know from personal experience that E-Verify is badly flawed and wrongly rejects legally authorized workers,” added Contreras.
The delegation delivered a report documenting that mandatory E-Verify would cost small businesses $2.6 Billion to implement in the first year. “My family runs a small business, said Akaluck Nurack, a delegation participant. “I know how difficult a burden this would be for a small business.”
The AFL CIO representatives told Rep. Coffman’s aide that the national AFL CIO is opposed to HR 2164.
Rep. Coffman’s aide did not know how he would vote on the bill. Coffman has supported Arizona’s legal defense of SB 1070, a controversial immigration law. He opposed the DREAM Act.