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Dude.... I work in America (the land of opportunities) and I get the least holidays per year compared to the rest of the world !!! We are not a lazy bunch as a whole (well... some of us are, I give you that !)
You should look at the work culture in Europe with the illegals pouring in from countries that end with '...ia' !!
Most of us don't have to risk travel to a foreign country because we do so with documents, not border jumping and living in the shadows. But to move along with the hypothetical situation:
Times are still good here, for now. People have had it comfortable for a while. If we found ourselves in the midst of some catastrophic event -- disaster, war, disease, famine, etc., people would be forced to move much like your day laborers did.
It's easy to write that Americans are lazy when comparing them to a small percentage of a certain population, but I won't argue that there are enough Americans who DO need to have a fire lit under them.
Did you get the laborer's SSN so that you can file a 1099 for 2010?
Or will a large percentage of the cash you paid going to be funneled tax free out of our country improving the economy of another? These men might work hard, but ultimately not for improving the US.
Do you report the money you pay your babysitter or the kid who cuts the grass?
Probabaly not, you may not be required to. If what you pay your babysitter, gardener, hired hand, etc. is under a certain amount you are not required by the IRS to pay employer taxes.
In my case I paid the folks I hired for the day far less than the IRS threshhold so I'm pretty sure I didn't break any laws or dodge any taxes.
If your employer told you that, and you had no alternative (ie unemployment) would you accept those terms?
If your employer would tell you that times are tough and the only way for you to keep the job is to take a pay cut or they would be forced to hire some one else for less..... would you quit the job and have no work or would you keep it get paid less but still have a job and a paycheck.
unemployment might be your option for now, but it does run out...
I would keep the job in this situation, would you?
I'd rather NOT hire any illegals and would appreciate if this country would ship them all back where they came from. If that happens I would be really curious to see who would be picking your fruits and vegetables from the field or getting your poultry ready for shelf in your supermarket.
Again, I'd rather see this government ship them all back, and have legal Americans do the job. -I guess this country hasn't found any replacements for the illegals ... otherwise they would do it by now.
Legal workers pay taxes. Illegal workers do not pay taxes, yet they use our services, so indirectly you are paying more. Furthermore, by continuing to hire them, it makes it so that I have to pay more to support them.
I am not arguing that many contractors are in fact lazy and unreliable. But a capitalist system should allow for you to select the contractor that does the better job. It does not allow for you to break the law... although it would be hard to find a legal contractor that is not cash based
If your employer would tell you that times are tough and the only way for you to keep the job is to take a pay cut or they would be forced to hire some one else for less..... would you quit the job and have no work or would you keep it get paid less but still have a job and a paycheck.
unemployment might be your option for now, but it does run out...
I would keep the job in this situation, would you?
I'd rather NOT hire any illegals and would appreciate if this country would ship them all back where they came from. If that happens I would be really curious to see who would be picking your fruits and vegetables from the field or getting your poultry ready for shelf in your supermarket.
Again, I'd rather see this government ship them all back, and have legal Americans do the job. -I guess this country hasn't found any replacements for the illegals ... otherwise they would do it by now.
The country has over 10% unemployment (if you count all the people who've fallen off the rolls). There are plenty of people to do the work, and they will do it if you pay them enough.
Comeback: but the prices of everything will skyrocket!!
But the increase in the number of people on the tax rolls will lower the cost of other things.
The broken record of "American's won't do the job" is a tired one. They'll do it if you pay them enough. Companies choose to break the law to get people to do it for less, that doesn't make it right, and it certainly doesn't make the tired mantra of "doing the jobs American's won't do" right. Start paying $20 an hour to pick lettuce and you'll have people lined up around the block.
The point of the OP that maybe Americans are not perceived to have that "pay our dues" attitude is one thing, but to take it into the greater context of illegal immigration is probably a stretch. As always these issues are not as simple as a discussion board makes them out to be. In a balanced world you order 6 yards of stone, having planned in advance with the landscaping company or handyman company of your choice to have it shoveled and moved on a certain date. That company has verified employees who have the legal right to work here, they come in, do the job, etc. I am a very liberal person, but think in order to re-balance the immigration issue we need to enforce laws appropriately and have people migrate properly. It is in their best interest in the end as well.
So what does that do then. It raises prices on these services. It means you may have to wait to have something done, rather than just decide on a Friday to have 6 yards delivered and expect on a whim to get it moved inside of 24 hours. Things become more expensive then americans might have to actually WAIT to do something. Budget for things and plan them out. Maybe we return to delaying a nicer fixture for the sink for a year, or mow lawns ourselves. Not the worst thing in the world. This is not an indictment of these laborers work ethic, but you can not boil down your recent day-long experience as commentary on illegal immigration and the work ethic of Americans.
The country has over 10% unemployment (if you count all the people who've fallen off the rolls). There are plenty of people to do the work, and they will do it if you pay them enough.
Comeback: but the prices of everything will skyrocket!!
But the increase in the number of people on the tax rolls will lower the cost of other things.
The broken record of "American's won't do the job" is a tired one. They'll do it if you pay them enough. Companies choose to break the law to get people to do it for less, that doesn't make it right, and it certainly doesn't make the tired mantra of "doing the jobs American's won't do" right. Start paying $20 an hour to pick lettuce and you'll have people lined up around the block.
No one should be paid $20/hour to pick lettuce. It's stoop labor and should be paid at the least possible price. No one who has little education, can't speak English and will not amount to a hill of pinto beans in their entire life should not expect more than day laborer wages.
Got to go now. The mexican shoe shiner is at my office door.
By your definiton maybe, but the Federal Government disagrees. The Supreme Court disagrees with you as well, as they made clear in Jenkins vs INS.
Look it up if you need further clarification.
Private citizens aren't required to determine the residency of people they hire for sporadic work around the house.
Think about it. If your babysitter has a Canadian accent and a fondness for hockey and maple syrup is it your duty to determine that she is in the country legally?
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