Illegals Taking Fishing Jobs In Alaska Now?

[Ayatollahgondola]

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/05/20/364...dentified.html

Been following this story for a couple days now. 5 men in a small boat on the Alaska coast were found dead after heading from their clam digging grounds back to camp in a small overloaded boat. All generally latinos, and one of undetermined residency:

The men who died are 42-year-old Roberto Ramirez of a yet to be identified residence; 34-year-old Jose A. Sandoval of Bakersville, Calif.; 36-year-old Avelino Garcia of Oregon; 24-year-old Jose Revera of Los Angeles; and 31-year-old Ramon Valdiva of Oregon.

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/05/20/364...#ixzz1MzukT2qI

[Ayatollahgondola]

Update from a less biased media:

Dulcich described the dead contractors as "experienced, independent contractors," adding, "While not direct employees of our company, these men have worked with us year after year and we consider them close friends and part of our company’s family."

Commercial clam diggers must be licensed with the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission. There are only 30 people licensed to dig commercially and all but two of them are Alaskans. Last year only about 20 of the permit holders, all Alaskans, reported working the beaches during a season that runs from May into July

[Ayatollahgondola]

and again:

Some familiar with operations at Polly Creek this year said a number of foreign nationals appear to have been hired by the permit holders to help with the digging.

No comment on nationality

It remained unclear Saturday whether the dead men were foreign nationals or if they were working illegally in Alaska by not being properly licensed to commercially clam.

http://www.alaskadispatch.com/articl...oat-rough-seas

[ilbegone]

It's been going on for years.

Remember the story from the Mexican I worked with almost seven years ago who told me a story about working in the Alaska fishing industry some years before that while he was illegal?

Notice that the paper doesn't relate the nationality or legal status of those mentioned, just current hometown residency. The first names would infer that they are either foreign born or first generation, but that's not a given.

The second article mentioned the possibility of foreign nationals, but the word "Illegally" as used in the article refers to proper licensing and such to clam, it's not a reference to illegal residency.

However, I don't believe there would be too many people who grew up in Bakersfield who would go to Alaska for $11k a year, and it seems to me that the term "contractor" means they were employed in a fashion to evade labor laws.

E-verify would clear up the question of illegal residency.