Immigrants in The United States

Immigrants in the United States comprise a significant part of the population estimated at around 13% of the American population. The number of immigrants has been exponentially increasing by the year as more people believe in better life and job opportunities in the US. The trends involving immigration have been taking a particular path over time; that is the number of women migrating to the US had been increasing compared to that of men. This change was brought about by the immigration policies that favored the immigration of family units rather than individuals. Among people who obtain green cards annually, women are the majority explaining their drastic population increase (Garcia and Franchim). This increase in the number of women as proved a challenge regarding the struggle for jobs. Immigrant women are relatively more vulnerable to adversities after immigration to America as compared to men who effortlessly integrate to the new environment.
Language barrier is the most common challenge faced by immigrant women, for example, the Latinos. This trait is the most outstanding because communication is the core aspect of any society and with poor communication, many things can go wrong. Most women migrate from their home countries to seek for better lives and jobs, but they lack the qualifications for good and well-paying jobs. This is because they arrive when their literacy levels are low making it difficult for them to understand their native languages let alone English (Hondagneu, Pierrette & Ernestine, 550).

Men are relatively literate compared to the women and thus working for them becomes easier. Men are also advantageous when it comes to job division, for instance, jobs done by men do not require a lot of involvement with their managers, they are just directed, and that is enough. But jobs that are performed by women are more interactive for example babysitting, this, therefore, calls for proper English to enable smooth communication.
Cultural difference and adjustment is also a complex factor for the emigres, especially for mothers and families. When they reach the United States, the culture and the lifestyle of the native people are entirely new and strange to them and hence should learn how to conform to the new environment for the sake of prosperity. In the case of schooling, they find a more advanced education system where children are more involved in school; this helps the children to quickly adapt to their new environment (Romero, 72). The parents are the ones that face difficult transitions because of their deep cultural orientation that has been adequately nurtured since childhood and proves difficult to eradicate. But with the children absorbing the change positively the women who are the closest to their children have no other option apart from embracing the new culture and support their children in their acquired practices. This challenge therefore mostly affects new mothers to a place they don’t know, and adapting needs the help of fellow women who understand their situation.
Stable employment by household owners is sometimes difficult because of the privacy the families want, and therefore these families opt for part-time labor where the maids or nannies are paid by the hour. This kind or arrangement is not favorable for the immigrants because it does not guarantee them to work each and every day unlike for those who are permanently employed. The reasons that also impede permanent employment is because of the language barrier; the lack of proper communication discourages association with the emigres (Canales, 149). This is because the home owners require babysitters who are intelligent enough and can mingle and connect with the children in a language they are all conversant with. With the diminished wages in home care, many mothers are not at liberty to plan for their future this denies them hope for financial independence and stability. This can be achieved by ensuring that women acquaint themselves with the necessary skills and expertise for them to possess the power to decide their wages and time to perform their jobs.
The issues faced by women are solvable with proper attention pointed in their direction by the concerned bodies. The government has the power to regulate the wages of the home care jobs which are majorly done by women; this can be actualized by setting a fixed minimum wage and by also standardizing their working conditions (Canales, 149). This is because some mothers have to work tirelessly to raise money for their families at the expense of the love and care of their households and children. More time spent with the children will lead to complete the molding of the children to develop with commendable morals, and this, therefore, ensures an upright society in the future
In conclusion, the immigrants themselves can also be role models to new emigres and direct and nature them and also try to recommend them to employers. This can be done by coming up with organizations to maintain the networks and to exploit the power present in the unity of the people. The women can also take an initiative to study English together and motivate each other because with the broken language barrier the scope of choice of work is opened up and they can be their own bosses in the workplace. With these efforts, the immigrant families will thrive as a whole, despite the fact that the new environment.is competitive.
Works Cited
Canales, Alejandro I. “Mexican labour migration to the United States in the age of globalisation.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 29.4 (2003): 741-761.
Garcia, Ann and Samanta Franchim. “10 Facts You Need To Know About Immigrant Women (2013 Update) – Center For American Progress”. Americanprogress.org. N.p., 2016. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
Hondagneu-Sotelo, Pierrette, and Ernestine Avila. “I’m Here, but I’m There” the Meanings of Latina Transnational Motherhood.” Gender & Society 11.5 (1997): 548-571.
Romero, Mary. Maid in the USA. Psychology Press, 2002.