People use the excuse "it's for the economy" in much the same way that people use the excuse "it's for the children", or "it's to fight terrorism". It's a lazy argument to shut up the opposition because how dare anyone do something to hurt the economy/children/help terrorists?

That being said, this law is insane, and it will be overturned or repealed. It's just a shame that people need to be discriminated against during this waiting period.