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May 1, 2013

In 1867, American workers launched the first mass labor protest on May 1st to celebrate Illinois’s new eight-hour work day law. Today, nearly 150 years later, we carry on that May Day celebration of the rights of the working class by mobilizing for comprehensive immigration reform.

A pathway to citizenship for the country’s estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants is good news for ALL workers. How?

  • Reform would improve the wages of both immigrant and native workers. The real wages of less-skilled newly legalized workers would increase by roughly $4,405 each year, while higher-skilled workers would get a boost of $6,185. The same study found native workers’ wages would “increase modestly.”

  • Higher incomes would bolster consumer spending—enough to support 750,000 to 900,000 jobs in the United States. 

  • Increasing the number of legal immigrants would reduce the deficit. It’s a way to trim our national debt without raising taxes or cutting essential programs.

  • The Gang of Eight proposal, which includes a 13-year path to citizenship, would inject $832 billion into the economy over the next decade. A strong economy means a strong workforce.

  • Immigration fosters innovation.

Join us as we stand united in the fight for immigrant and workers' rights. Find a May Day event near you.