Panel approves bill to punish companies

INDIANAPOLIS – A Senate panel advanced a proposal that could revoke business licenses for companies that knowingly hire illegal immigrants, but bill opponents warned the measure could have unintended consequences.\nThe Senate Pensions and Labor Committee voted 10-1 Wednesday for the proposal, which would only affect workers hired after Sept. 30, 2009. The bill would set up a three-tier punishment system for employers who knowingly hired illegal workers after that date. With three violations in 10 years, a company could lose its business license.\nCommittee members heard nearly four hours of testimony about the bill last week and listened to two more hours on Wednesday, with many speaking against the measure.\nGeorge Raymond, vice president of human resources and labor relations at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, told the committee that the bill could hurt legal workers. If a mining company, for example, had three supervisors at three different mine sites hire illegal immigrants within a span of 10 years, the entire company could lose licenses needed to do business, leaving all its employees out of a job.\n“There is a potential for hundreds if not thousands of innocent people to be put out of work because of the misactions of a handful of people,” he said