We have a construction project happening at our house. The lead laborer is a delightful man from Honduras. He told me that he came here illegally 7 years ago, walking across the border because there was no work at home. He said that he thinks he will have to go back to Honduras to get his papers in order, then will return legally. I hope he is successful. He's a very good man who loves the Lord.
However I've always had a problem with the illegals doing skilled work under the table. Not only do they skate on taxes (and therefore cost us even more since we have to pay for their welfare), but a lot of them don't have the correct licensing and/or training. How many houses have electrical, plumbing, or foundation issues after construction companies hired these people because they were cheap? They may be fast and do decent work, but nobody can prove it since there is no paper trail.
Case in point - I had an addition built on to my old house, with a full bathroom, an indoor hot tub room, and a bedroom for my daughter. The manager (without my knowledge) hired an illegal to put my shower in and plumb the pipe for the shower head. It looked great, but since the guy was so short the shower head was right at 5'. I'm 6' 3". I made the manager fix it since I'd like to actually be able to wash my hair too.
I will say they tend to be strong and work hard. Years ago I rented a Terramite (bulldozer-looking thing) to dig out big limestone boulders that were poling through the dirt and grass in my back yard. One of them was so big and heavy that when I picked it up with the scoop (and with all 4 legs down and stabilizing the terramite) it tipped the whole thing forward with me in it. I let it down easily and stopped to figure out what to do.
My wife saw 4 short but stocky Mexican landscapers (maybe 5' tall each) working on a field across the street and asked them if they wanted the limestone for free. They could break it up and use it for landscaping. They came over and the 4 of them picked it up by hand, carried it out front, and put it on their trailer. It was heavy enough it tipped my equipment and they carried it like they were moving a couch. Crazy...
We have a construction project happening at our house. The lead laborer is a delightful man from Honduras. He told me that he came here illegally 7 years ago, walking across the border because there was no work at home. He said that he thinks he will have to go back to Honduras to get his papers in order, then will return legally. I hope he is successful. He's a very good man who loves the Lord.
I get it, and hope he makes it ok.
However I've always had a problem with the illegals doing skilled work under the table. Not only do they skate on taxes (and therefore cost us even more since we have to pay for their welfare), but a lot of them don't have the correct licensing and/or training. How many houses have electrical, plumbing, or foundation issues after construction companies hired these people because they were cheap? They may be fast and do decent work, but nobody can prove it since there is no paper trail.
Case in point - I had an addition built on to my old house, with a full bathroom, an indoor hot tub room, and a bedroom for my daughter. The manager (without my knowledge) hired an illegal to put my shower in and plumb the pipe for the shower head. It looked great, but since the guy was so short the shower head was right at 5'. I'm 6' 3". I made the manager fix it since I'd like to actually be able to wash my hair too.
I will say they tend to be strong and work hard. Years ago I rented a Terramite (bulldozer-looking thing) to dig out big limestone boulders that were poling through the dirt and grass in my back yard. One of them was so big and heavy that when I picked it up with the scoop (and with all 4 legs down and stabilizing the terramite) it tipped the whole thing forward with me in it. I let it down easily and stopped to figure out what to do.
My wife saw 4 short but stocky Mexican landscapers (maybe 5' tall each) working on a field across the street and asked them if they wanted the limestone for free. They could break it up and use it for landscaping. They came over and the 4 of them picked it up by hand, carried it out front, and put it on their trailer. It was heavy enough it tipped my equipment and they carried it like they were moving a couch. Crazy...