Let me tell you what I do know. Mexican workers do not complain, they will do exactly as told. Here lies the problem, the one telling them what to do may not know what he is talking about. The job winds up getting done wrong and the worker gets the blame for not knowing better. Most companies do not want workers that will buck establishment over unsafe or wrong work practices. They can not stand it when you site regulations against unsafe work practice. $18 an hour is underpay for skilled petrochemical pipefitters and boilermakers.
I agree. I had no real idea what pipefitters were making, but the wages did sound low- I do know those guys are paid well, at least by those who do want the job done right.
I worked in construction years ago, before illegals flooded the business, thank goodness. The company my daughter works for is a real upstanding company and they do dangerous work on some sites, yet they have one of the best safety records nation wide. They are not afraid to pay good wages to get good help and they do not hire illegals. Of course when they advertise jobs they can get workers. That's what made me skeptical of this story.