Construction industry needs immigration reform says Marek

Immigration reform is essential to “level the playing field” for construction companies who pay living wages and abide by the law, said Stan Marek, CEO of [Marek Brothers Systems Inc.] (http://www.marekbros.com/Home.aspx) , a major corporate partner of Texas A&M University’s [Department of Construction Science] (http://cosc.arch.tamu.edu) , in a [story] (http://www.npr.org/2013/04/11/176777498/texas-contractors-say-playing-by-the-rules-doesnt-pay) on NPR about the construction industry in Texas.

"There's no way you can compete," Marek told NPR’s Wade Goodwyn, "when someone is paying less per hour, no workman's comp, no payroll taxes, [no] unemployment — we can't overcome that," he said.

He added that immigration reform would also lead to higher wages in the construction industry and career paths for those who don’t attend a university.

MBS, a founding member of the Department of Construction Science's Industry Advisory Council, recently made a large [donation] (http://one.arch.tamu.edu/news/2013/2/4/marek-francis-hall-donation/) to the renovation of [Francis Hall] (http://cosc.arch.tamu.edu/francis-hall/) , the department's future home, The company has also endowed department scholarships.

Marek, co-founder of [Texans For Sensible Immigration Policy] (http://txsip.com/) , was a featured speaker at [Dialogo on the Border] (https://one.arch.tamu.edu/news/2013/4/25/marek-npr/v) April 19-20 in Brownsville, a conference that explored urban issues affecting the Texas-Mexico border. The event is hosted in part by the Texas A&M College of Architecture’s diversity council.