Los Angeles Public Interest Law Journal

LOS ANGELES PUBLIC INTEREST LAW JOURNAL

1 L.A. PUB. INT. L.J. 65

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¡SÍ SE PUEDE! IMMIGRANT WORKERS AND THE TRANSFORMATION
OF THE LOS ANGELES LABOR AND WORKER CENTER MOVEMENTS*
Victor Narro

          Throughout American history, immigrants have been blamed for the economic woes of the country. In the labor context, immigrants are reviled for depressing wages and decreasing union density. However, a closer look suggests that causation actually runs in the opposite direction. In the 1970’s and 1980’s, radical employment restructuring led to massive deunionization. The decline of unions sharply reduced the quality of jobs in manufacturing and service industries, leading to an exodus of native workers and an influx of immigrants to fill vacancies in the lowest-paying occupations with the worst working conditions. Therefore, deunionization and the deterioration of wages and working conditions were the cause, rather than the consequence, of the dramatic migration trends of the 1980’s and 1990’s.


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