The below letter was forwarded here by the editors at James Magazine Online. Many thanks to Ms. Jessica Vaughan at CIS!
January 29, 2024
Editors JMO
Greetings,
I am writing to respond to a recent article by D.A. King, on January 24. Ga. HDCI/Registered Apprenticeship Program Requires Reform | James Magazine Online (jamesmagazinega.com).
I was stunned to learn that Gov. Kemp’s new apprenticeship program allows participating employers to hire illegal aliens or foreign temporary visa workers. This is crazy. Any workforce development program should be entirely focused on upskilling Georgia workers (citizens and legal immigrants), not subsidizing employers to bypass them.
For one thing, it is illegal for employers to hire unauthorized workers, and employers who violate the law should not be supported with taxpayer funds. For another, there are only 120 subsidized apprenticeships available, and so every illegal immigrant or temporary visa worker who is chosen is displacing a Georgia worker from the opportunity. There are thousands of able-bodied Georgia workers who need to be drawn back into the workforce, but who have been sidelined for a variety of reasons — including the need for training.
Further, while temporary workers are here legally and authorized to work, they are already required to have at least a college degree or comparable experience in the specific job they are being sponsored for; if they do not meet the requirements of that job, they are supposed to go home, not receive taxpayer-subsidized training for a different job.
It should not be controversial to clarify the rules of the program so that only Georgia citizens and legal immigrants can participate in the program. Why would Georgia leaders resist calls to make this common sense modification?
Thank you for publishing Mr. King’s excellent report.
