Legislative employee found to be illegal immigrant

Mar 16, 9:25 PM EDT
By PAUL DAVENPORT
Associated Press Writer

PHOENIX (AP) -- One day after the Arizona House approved a bill targeting employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants, the legislative chamber announced Friday that it had fired an employee after it was determined that he was an illegal immigrant.

A part-time housekeeper was fired Thursday evening after he told a supervisor that he was an illegal immigrant, the House said in a statement released late Friday.

The employee had been asked to provide documentation when a verification check found that his name did not match Social Security records.

Employment of illegal immigrants is a hot-button political issue in Arizona because such hirings are blamed for encouraging people to sneak across the border. The Pew Hispanic Center has estimated that illegal immigrants account for one in 10 workers in Arizona.