Editorial - businesses suing competitors, calling illegal workers unfair

Hypocrites and Idealists

Engaging the legal profession to take part in a business battle for the sake of consumer product safety and fair competition may be an idealistic goal but nevertheless a difficult endeavour to achieve According to the companies who are initiating the lawsuits against competitors hiring illegal workers , these business competitors are hurting their businesses . Makes us wonder whether these companies are suing for reasons of upholding the law , to serve their self and business interests or for political reasons as well

These companies who are suing competitors for

hiring illegal workers , to say the least are hypocrites . Their efforts to stop illegal immigration were only made when their interests were already at stake . Had it not been for the danger of losing to competitors who are employing illegal workers , these companies may have not done so at all

Global Horizons for example , the first to initiate a suit aimed at illegal immigration based on the state 's unfair competition laws claims that Munger Brothers through the Ayala Agricultural Services had hired illegal immigrant workers to work as blueberry pickers , thus breaking their contract and hurting their business in the process . Ayala Agricultural Services on the other hand claims that it had not done so Thus , it is very clear that Global Horizons had not done so for the law 's interests but to serve their own

It is very difficult to prove under California statutes that a competitor directly ' harmed the plaintiff 's business . It will take concrete evidence that a plaintiff has been unduly and directly hurt by a defendant 's use of illegal workers . As what Niels Frenzen , a law professor at the University of Southern California claims , it 's hard to tie economic loss of one business to another 's practices . This therefore makes these companies both idealists and hypocrites idealists because they hope to have the law in their favour while serving their selfish interests ...