The Ethics of Doing Business with Illegal Immigrants

Abstract

This paper reviews the ethically relevant consequences of immigration as established by economists’ studies. We then evaluate what various philosophical frameworks recommend as an ethical immigration policy. Existing U.S. immigration policy is found to be far from ethical regardless of which philosophical framework is relied upon. We then argue that in the face of unethical immigration policy, that it is ethical for businesses to subvert the law and engage in business with illegal immigrants.

JEL Classification: F22, Z19, A12, A13