Undocumented Workers

Today, new technologies facilitate limitless communication and travel, while integrated markets create global economies. Yet, behind the veneer of seamless economic and cultural integration are millions of undocumented workers who labor in the shadows. These undocumented workers are migrants whose presence and labor are unsanctioned by host governments. The terminology used to describe immigrants who lack legal status is a point of major debate among academics, journalists, and politicians alike.

However, the general consensus among immigrant and human rights advocates is that the term illegal is derogatory and an incoherent way to describe this population. Researchers vary in their terminology, with some opting for “undocumented” or sans papiers, while others refer to this population as “unauthorized” or “irregular,” highlighting the fluid nature of legal status. According to the Migration Policy Institute, between roughly 15 and 20 percent of the world's migrants are unauthorized. The vast majority of these individuals, estimated at between and 30 and 40 million immigrants in 2005, are workers who have become integral to local labor forces.

The primary mode of entry for undocumented workers is through well-known migration routes and dangerous human smuggling channels that rely on lax or nonexistent immigration enforcement, employer demand for undocumented labor, [Page 902]and an elaborate industry involving fraudulent documents. Another significant source of undocumented labor includes migrants who overstay temporary legal visas for students, tourists, or temporary workers. Although the majority of undocumented workers cross national borders, undocumented workers also exist within countries, such as China, where the hukou system regulates rural to urban migration. This entry examines the migration and labor experiences of undocumented workers and the economic, political, and social effects they have on host societies. It focuses primarily on the United States, the largest recipient of undocumented workers in the world, but also includes evidence from other countries with sizable populations of undocumented workers.