TEMPORARY WORKER, PERMANENT ALIEN

287 Pages·2014·2.78 MB·English

by  Laurie Trautman

TEMPORARY WORKER, PERMANENT ALIEN: AN ANALYSIS OF GUEST
WORKER POLICIES IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

by

LAURIE DARIAN TRAUTMAN

A DISSERTATION

Presented to the Department of Geography
and the Graduate School of the University of Oregon
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

September 2014
DISSERTATION APPROVAL PAGE

Student: Laurie Darian Trautman

Title: Temporary Worker, Permanent Alien: An Analysis of Guest Worker Programs in
the United States and Canada

This dissertation has been accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in the Department of Geography by:

Lise K Nelson Chairperson
Alexander Murphy Core Member
Susan Hardwick Core Member
Daniel Tichenor Institutional Representative

and

J. Andrew Berglund Dean of the Graduate School

Original approval signatures are on file with the University of Oregon Graduate School.

Degree awarded September 2014

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© 2014 Laurie Darian Trautman

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DISSERTATION ABSTRACT

Laurie Darian Trautman

Doctor of Philosophy

Department of Geography

September 2014

Title: Temporary Worker, Permanent Alien: An Analysis of Guest Worker Programs in
the United States and Canada

Over the last several decades, economic globalization has presented many
‗advanced‘ economies with a dilemma between facilitating the flow of goods while
simultaneously regulating the flow of labor. This contradiction has manifested itself in
the immigration policies of Canada and the U.S., which have each pursued distinct
strategies for importing foreign workers to maintain global economic competition. Such
workers, whether legal ‗guest workers‘ or ‗illegal‘ immigrants, reside within the
boundaries of the state, yet remain permanent aliens. This dissertation explores how guest
worker policy specifically and immigration policy more broadly have been constructed
and debated in national political discourse from 1990 to 2010. In addition, research in
two rural case study communities reveals how labor markets and social geographies are
re-shaped by the interaction between workers of varying legal and ‗illegal‘ statuses. This
multi-scaled and comparative analysis of the understudied issue of guest worker
programs reveals how different forms of exclusion, constructed at national and local
scales, become deeply interwoven together to produce new labor market realities and
reinforce national identities predicated on protecting the composition of the nation while
actively promoting global economic competition.
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CURRICULUM VITAE

NAME OF AUTHOR: Laurie Darian Trautman

GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED:

University of Oregon, Eugene
Montana State University, Bozeman, MT
Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA

DEGREES AWARDED:

Doctor of Philosophy, Geography, 2014, University of Oregon
Master of Science, 2006, Montana State University
Bachelor of Arts, 2001, Western Washington University

AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST:

Immigration Policy

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Director, Friends of Sawtooth Avalanche Center, 2013-2014

Graduate Research and Teaching Assistant, University of Oregon, 2009-2014

Education Write, National Geographic, 2009-2010

Education and Outreach Coordinator, Big Sky Institute, 2006-2009

Teaching Assistant, Montana State University, 2003-2005

Water and Energy Conservation Coordinator, City of Blaine, 2001-2002

GRANTS, AWARDS, AND HONORS:

Graduate Teaching Fellowship, University of Oregon, 2009-2014

Graduate School Summer Research Award, University of Oregon, 2013

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Women in Graduate Sciences Parenting Award, University of Oregon, 2013

Enders Graduate Fellowship, Association for Canadian Studies in the United
States, 2013

Ryoichi-Sasakawa Young Leaders Fellowship Fund Research Abroad Award,
Tokyo Foundation, 2013

Women‘s Network Travel Grant, Association of Pacific Coast Geographers
(APCG), 2013 & 2005

President‘s Award for an Outstanding Paper by a PhD Student, APCG, 2012

Margaret Trussell Scholarship for Graduate Students, APCG, 2012

Ryoichi-Sasakawa Young Leaders Fellowship Fund International Research
Fellowship, Tokyo Foundation, 2012

Center on Diversity and Community Graduate Summer Research Award, Center
on Diversity and Community Graduate Summer Research Award, 2012

Cultural Geography Fieldwork Scholarship, APCG, 2005

Montana State University Student Enhancement & Enrichment Award, 2006 &
2005

PUBLICATIONS:

Nelson, Peter, Lise Nelson, and Laurie Trautman. 2014. Linked Migration and Labor
Market Flexibility in the Rural Amenity Destinations in the United States. Journal
of Rural Studies, 36: 121-136.

Haverluk, Terrence and Laurie Trautman. 2008. The Changing Geography of U.S.
Hispanics from 1990-2006: A Shift to the South and Midwest. Journal of
Geography 107 (3): 87-101.

Darian, Jean and Laurie Trautman. Developing Strategies for Household Water
Conservation through Social Marketing: An Investigation of Consumers' Beliefs,
Motivations, and Behavior. 2006. International Journal of Environmental,
Cultural, Economic & Social Sustainability 2 (2): 139-150.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter Page

I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 1
Historical Context .................................................................................................. 2
Research Value ...................................................................................................... 5

Dissertation Format ............................................................................................. 9
II. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ........................................................................... 11
Guest Worker Scholarship ..................................................................................... 14
Globalization and Citizenship ................................................................................ 18
Precarious Labor Regimes ..................................................................................... 24
Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 30
III. METHODS ............................................................................................................ 32
Research Questions ................................................................................................ 33
Phase 1: Policy Research ....................................................................................... 34
Phase 2: Case Study Fieldwork.............................................................................. 36
Research Challenges .............................................................................................. 41
Data Analysis ......................................................................................................... 43
IV. GUEST WORKER NARRATIVES AND THE CHANGING POLITICS OF
IMMIGRATION REFORM ........................................................................................ 45

Discourse Analysis of Government Debates ......................................................... 48
Historical Overview of Immigration Policies in the U.S. and Canada .................. 50
V. UNITED STATES POLICY ................................................................................... 58
The Bracero Program ............................................................................................. 59
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Chapter Page

Contemporary Guest Worker Programs ................................................................. 63

The Changing Nature of Immigration Policy & Guest Worker Debates in
Congress ................................................................................................................ 69

Select Commission on Immigration & Refugee Policy, 1978-1981 ............. 69
Immigration Reform & Control Act (IRCA), 1986 ...................................... 72
Debates of the 101st-106th Congress (1989-2000): Increasing
Militarization, Enforcement, and Decreasing Benefits ................................ 77

Commission on Immigration Reform, 1990-1997 ........................................ 84
Debates of the 107th-111th Congress (2001-2010): Terrorism, Failed
Efforts at Immigration Reform, and Rising Unemployment ........................ 87

Discourse Analysis & Congressional Narratives ................................................... 93
Narratives of Protection ................................................................................ 101
Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 108

VI. CANADIAN POLICY........................................................................................... 110
Immigration Policy & Temporary Foreign Worker Programs in Canada ............. 113
Program Characteristics ................................................................................... 117
Provincial Role....................................................................................................... 123
The Changing Nature of Immigration Policy & Temporary Foreign Worker
Debates in Parliament ............................................................................................ 125

The National Immigration Employment Authorization Program (NEIAP) . 125
Debates of the 34th-36th Parliament (1988-2000) ......................................... 128
Debates of the 37th-40th Parliament (2001-2011) ......................................... 133
Discourse Analysis & Parliamentary Narratives ................................................... 140
Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 151
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Chapter Page

VII. CONCLUSION TO POLICY ANALYSIS .......................................................... 155
VIII. GUEST WORKERS IN THE LOCAL CONTEXT: EXPLORING
LABOR MARKET AND SOCIAL DYNAMICS ....................................................... 161

Overview of Case Study Communities: Fernie, British Columbia & Sun Valley,
Idaho ............................................................................................................................ 163

IX. TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKERS IN FERNIE, BRITISH COLUMBIA .... 166
―Small Town Charm, Big Mountain Adventure‖ .................................................. 173
Labor Market Conditions ....................................................................................... 176

The Labor Force ..................................................................................................... 181

Native Born Canadians .............................................................................. 182
Working Holiday Visa ............................................................................... 183
Low-skilled Temporary Foreign Workers ................................................. 186
Social Geographies ............................................................................................... 188
Labor Market Dynamics ........................................................................................ 195
Divisions of Labor ..................................................................................... 197
Consistency and Stability ........................................................................... 199
Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 203
X. GUEST WORKERS & THE LATINO LABOR FORCE IN SUN VALLEY,
IDAHO ........................................................................................................................ 206

An ―American Shangri-La‖ .................................................................................. 209
Affluence Beyond Hollywood ............................................................................... 212

The Labor Market .................................................................................................. 214
The American Ski Bum ............................................................................. 216
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Chapter Page

Latino Immigrants .................................................................................... 217
H-2B Workers ............................................................................................ 219
J-1 Cultural Exchange Student Workers .................................................... 221
Changing Labor Market Dynamics ........................................................................ 222
Warm Bodies & Commitment ..................................................................... 224
Accessibility & Flexibility .......................................................................... 228
A New Generation of Latinos ...................................................................... 235
Social Geography of the Valley ............................................................................. 237
The Spatial Distribution of Labor ............................................................... 238
Scales of Belonging ..................................................................................... 241
Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 244
XI. CONCLUSION TO PLACE ANALYSIS ............................................................. 246
XII. REFLECTIONS ................................................................................................... 252
APPENDICES ............................................................................................................. 261
A. LIST OF ACRONYMS .................................................................................... 261
B. DIAGRAM OF NON-IMMIGRANT VISAS (NIVs)
IN THE UNITED STATES, 2012 ......................................................................... 262
C. DIAGRAM OF TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKER PROGRAMS IN
CANADA, 2012 .................................................................................................... 263

REFERENCES CITED ................................................................................................ 264

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