Decentering the Firm: The Limited Liability Company and Low Wage Immigrant Women Workers

Abstract:     
Congress is now considering radical changes to the immigration system. This article looks at the immigration issue as a labor and employment law question, and proposes a possible solution based on this approach.

I suggest that forming Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) will benefit low-wage immigrant women workers by transforming them into business owners. By using existing legal structures to their benefit, low-wage women workers can curtail at least a portion of the exploitation that they currently experience. Instead of being hired to perform a job, having the intermediary take a cut, and then pay them some amount out of that, with an LLC structure, the LLC receives the income, and the intermediary receives a set salary. By becoming members of the LLC, workers can also purchase group benefits, such as health insurance, and better control over their working environments.

Keywords: Immigration, Employment, Labor, LLC, Limited Liability Company

JEL Classifications: K31

Accepted Paper Series