Law-abiding American citizens suffer big job losses while the number of illegal immigrants getting jobs is on the rise.
That is according to a recently released Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report.
On the surface, it shows May job numbers appearing rosy at first glance with the creation of 272,000 new jobs.
But that data alone hides the story of who is getting those jobs, and more importantly, who is losing them.
The immigrant American workforce, believed to be made up mostly of illegal immigrants, grew by 414,000, while the American-born workforce experienced a staggering loss of 663,000 jobs between April and May 2024.
"The failed border policies of Joe Biden and the Democrats put illegal immigrants first and America Last," said House Majority Whip Tom Emmer.
Geiger Capital said on X, formerly known as Twitter, “In just May, 414,000 immigrants (legal and illegal) gained a job. Meanwhile, 663,000 native-born Americans LOST their job. Since pre-Covid, native-born workers have LOST ~2 million jobs. All of the net job gains are immigrants.”
The number of illegal aliens crossing the southern border has increased substantially since 2021, while legal immigration has remained relatively constant.
Although there has been little to no growth in overall job opportunities for native-born American workers since 2018, there has been a notable rise in employment for immigrant workers.
Although there are certainly plenty of legal immigrants employed in the United States, the surge in illegal immigrants at the same time as a dramatic increase in employment does point to large numbers of illegal workers flooding the job market.
In April 2024, the U.S. Border Patrol recorded 128,900 encounters between ports of entry along the southwest border. An "encounter" is considered an apprehension or expulsion of an illegal immigrant. The highest monthly illegal immigrant encounters was 189,922 for February 2024.
Geiger Capital added, “Once again… immigrants (legal + illegal) are completely supporting the labor market. This is why the border has been kept open.”
“I specifically note “legal + illegal” immigrants because the Government does not separate the two groups in their data for foreign-born workers. However, based on the numbers, I would assume large percentages are illegal immigrants."
"There's an immigration piece of this, there are bodies available and there is work for them to do. Whether or not, they're here legally or not is a different story," says CNBC analyst Steve Leisman who admits jobs are going to illegal immigrants, not Americans in the Biden economy.
Unemployment numbers also rose to 4%, marking the first time in over two years that unemployment has been this high. Stocks also edged lower after the jobs report release.
Wall Street, on news of the report, seemed to abandon expectations that the Federal Reserve would lower interest rates this year. Wall Street Journal reports that “traders priced in a roughly 50% chance” the Fed would cut interest rates by September. The chances rates would be cut were estimated at 70% earlier in the day.
High interest rates mean that everyday Americans have less money to spend and the cost of living continues to rise. Mortgage rates, car loans, home equity lines, and business capital all become more expensive and harder to access. When combined with the current inflationary economy that leads to higher costs for everything else a family needs, Americans can expect difficult economic conditions for the foreseeable future.
Job seeker Shane Bombara spoke to the Associated Press (A.P.) about the challenges of paying bills and at the same time finding a job. He's looking for work after losing his job in April. He's discouraged by the fact that there are usually 200 applicants for every job he applies for.
“It’s kind of demoralizing when you just get these canned emails where it’s like, ‘OK, we’re not going to pursue you. And you see enough of those pile-up and you’re like, ‘OK, what’s wrong here?’” Bombara told the A.P.