As a divided Congress debated the pros and cons of two separate immigration bills advanced first by the House of Representatives and then the Senate, Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa explained the union’s view regarding the main aspects of the immigration-reform proposals.

The House bill proposes strict border enforcement and making illegal immigrants, as well as those who help them, subject to felony charges. The Senate version would fund more border security, create a guestworker program and provide a path to citizenship for many of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants already living in the United States.

Taking issue with the notion that Americans are unwilling to perform certain jobs — a popular perception that justifies the Senate’s proposed guest-worker program — Hoffa said in a statement that he is “certain that U.S. workers would take any job that offered a livable wage and a competitive benefit package.”

Hoffa explained that a guest-worker program is a “shortsighted policy,” which in the past has “allowed employers to create an underclass of workers who depress wages and labor standards for all workers.” He added that guest workers “would only further the profits of multinational companies, while doing nothing for America’s working families.”

Seeking a compromise, the Senate included an earned legalization plan that “is a step in the right direction,” but “not a real solution,” said Hoffa. “By leaving out millions of undocumented workers from the earned-legalization process, the Senate is still allowing an underground second-class worker economy to exist.”

As for the tougher House bill that would criminalize millions of immigrants and anyone who assists them, from priests to doctors to union organizers, Hoffa urged those in Congress who are participating in conference negotiations to “avoid the nonsensical” measure.

As lawmakers prepared to negotiate a compromise, President Bush declared, “We’re making progress toward a comprehensive bill,” while visiting a border patrol training facility in New Mexico, reported the Associated Press. Hoffa was also optimistic, saying, “I believe that it is possible for the conferees to pass a conference report with responsible border security measures, no guest-worker program, and earned legalization so that finally we can fix our broken immigration system.”