Investor Briefing on Immigration and the Economy
The following briefing on the economic value of immigration and the potential investor risks stemming from the Trump Administration’s immigration enforcement policies has been developed by the Service Employees International Union’s Capital Stewardship Program. The Capital Stewardship Program works with SEIU members that participate in public and private sector pension plans with combined assets of over $1 trillion and provides pertinent information to trustees and other fiduciaries who serve at those plans. The Service Employees International Union represents over two million members across North America in a variety of industries. This document is in response to increasing requests from fiduciaries for information regarding whether the new immigration policies could have an impact on portfolios or plan participants. SEIU is not qualified or registered to provide investment advice, nor does this briefing offer any investment advice.
What Institutional Investors Can Do
- Investors can reach out to companies, investment managers and investment consultants where they are invested or manage assets on their behalf and ask them to disclose the impacts of the current immigration detention and deportation practices on their business and investments.
- Investors, more specifically public pension funds, can conduct an analysis to determine whether there is an adverse actuarial impact to their pension funds from the loss of local, county and state revenues, loss of plan participants, lack of employer contributions or decrease in consumer spending attributable to Trump’s immigration policies.
- Investors can engage their federal, state and local elected officials to highlight any potential impact the immigration dragnet has on their portfolio.
- Engage with trade associations, chambers of commerce and business groups to lobby for an immediate halt to the current immigration policy and enforcement crackdown.
- Investors can require investment managers and investment consultants to disclose which current and prospective investments fund private contractors involved in the detention and deportation transport of immigrants.