Let's dive into this...
Why not blame the owners of these companies hiring the Hispanic crews??? Seems like an easy fix to me. Why? Because, in the words of our HC, "obviously" hiring staff that will work for less saves me money as an employer - ESPECIALLY if those same workers are doing the job(s) faster and still complying w/ all of the regulations of construction.
Oh, I blame the contractors. Make no mistake about that. However, those employers are the only ones preventing the illegals from starving or taking government benefits.
The Kors and subs hire illegals because they show up on time, do the job and don't complain. I get it. Great. So the fact that 12 million Americans need to find another job or work for artificially low wages? Too bad for them, I guess.
Henry Ford paid his workers twice the going rate. Know why? He said he needed the employees to earn enough to afford his cars. The same is true for every aspect of American society. Wages for roofers and landscapers and flooring techs will increase, homes and remodels will cost more, tens of millions of Americans will get decent paying jobs and their contributions to the economy will benefit all of us.
Not to go off on a rant, but we can offset the price increases for construction due to wage increases by removing some of the thousands of regulations governing construction - from water breaks to lumber regulations to permit requirements and permit fees to restrictions on development to Medicare taxes. I have told an anecdote about one of my former clients, a developer, who bought 47 acres in a less-developed area of Southern California. He was initially approved to build around 150 homes and was looking to charge between $450,000 and $600,000 per residence. (This was a few years ago ...) The Building Dept. then told him he could build just 120 homes, then 105 homes, and he had to build a public park (something governments used to build), and then he had to build a major road (again something governments used to do).
By the time he was building the homes, the cost to put the homes in place went from $270,000 to $380,000 per residence to $600,000 each for nice homes, 3 and 4 BR, but not what a sales price of $750,000 each would support. At the time buyers were not going to pay $750,000 for nice tract homes. Guess what? He built just 65 homes, large lots, 6 BR, 5 B, charging $1.2 to $1.4 million each.
Because government.
Care to speak to the workers in the Trump Towers??? I have. Stayed at the TT in NYC and every maintenance man, bell hop, concierge, room attendant was from another country except for the two managers on the floor. They were Americans.
Sure. Have not been there for about 10 years but TT is a nice place. Hate the crowds, traffic is terrible, prices are awful but still, good place. Even has a little market downstairs to get snacks, drinks.
Again, Americans can and will do those jobs. The idea that if we tell illegals they can't work in our country millions of jobs go unfilled is just not realistic.
Say what you will, but the goal/objective in business is to make more money that you spend. Hell, my team of 27 across the globe only has 8 Americans---89% of my team is from India. Because it's cheaper and they are willing to work the hours that most won't without complaints or excuses...
You are conflating hiring foreign workers with hiring illegals. I get the point, but to be fair, I wager you could find 19 more American citizens to do the job well without complaint, but that would be a chore. Easier to hire 19 from India - I get it. But really not the same as allowing 20 million to walk into a nation.
That was in response to Stupe mocking my 23 year marriage and low lying fruit for me to mock a fragile **** throwing stones in his glass house.says the divorcee living in a Tampa trailer park!
