The federal immigration raid at a slaughterhouse in East Tennessee last week has prompted legislation to be drafted by a state Senator that would result in much harsher financial and legal punishments for employers who exploit undocumented immigrants. Nashville Senator Jeff Yarbro said that someone should bear responsibility when orphans are created as a result of intervention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The legislation proposed by Yarbro would see employers facing Class E felony charges if they hire 50 or more immigrants that they have a “reason to know” lack the legal right to work in the United States. District attorneys would look into whether health, tax, wage theft, work safety and employment laws were violated in any workplace where immigrant workers have been detained or deported, and employers who are convicted of the charges could also be forced to reimburse citizens, the local government and the state for the cost of detaining and deporting undocumented immigrant workers, including education and care for their dependents and lost wages.
The legislation is an amendment to an already contentious bill to ban sanctuary cities outright in Tennessee. It would also require certain immigrants to be detained by local law enforcement. Supporters claim the bill will stop police from ignoring detainer requests made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Yarbro thinks the bill is unfair and said that if the goal is to be tougher when it comes to immigration, it should be the employers who exploit immigrant workers who are targeted rather than cities attempting to ensure public safety.
