Asheville News

WWNC headline: ’57 job openings!’

Jason Sandford August 16, 2008

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

Here’s an interesting follow-up to the big news earlier in the week of the immigration raid at Mills Manufacturing, which netted 57 arrests of people, mostly Hispanic women, in the U.S. without the proper legal documents.

A lot of people argue that businesses hire so many illegal immigrants because those folks will work at jobs that Americans think they’re took good for. This WWNC 570 news radio story pokes a big hole in that argument:

57 Job Openings!

Mills Manufacturing is looking for skilled workers to fill positions left vacant after Tuesday’s immigration raid.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

The company’s CEO, John Oswald, says the number of applicants for those 57 jobs has been overwhelming. He says about 40 people fought through the scene on the day of the raid to fill out applications. Oswald says the company is looking to hire skilled workers or people who can learn a skill. Mills Manufacturing makes parachutes for the Department of Defense. Oswald says jobs there start at $9 an hour with the possibility for team bonuses.

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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1 Comment

marc August 16, 2008

I don’t know that that pokes a hole in anything. "Oswald says" he got 40 applicants for 57 jobs; there’s no independent verification. Why is receiving 30% fewer applicants than you have available jobs considered "overwhelming"? If so many legal applicants are out there, why didn’t they get hired before? Would Oswald be hiring legal workers now instead of "illegals" if he hadn’t gotten busted (yes, I know the company didn’t actually get busted, which is a big problem with the whole scenario) and had his hiring practices thrust into the light?

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