I hate to tell y'all, but the contractors here prefer Mexicans because they are better workers, not because they are cheaper.
Aw, c'mon now. The money figures into it too and I'm sure much more than you're implying. Call me cynical. :~)
The Mexicans around here get $12 per hour for day labor (in cash). The white guys get about the same or less (taxable), if they show up.
I'm not bigoted, but I work in construction and I see what I see.
I was working as an electrician a few years back, and I joked that the boss only hired me because I had a valid drivers license. Later on I realized that was probably true because every other electrician in his employ had lost his due to a DWI. Several of them were fresh out of jail.
Some of these guys would just "disappear" for two weeks without any explanation, and the boss would never say anything.
Having a work ethic, it was amazing to me that they didn't get fired, but hey, I just worked there.
Frankly, I would hire Mexicans over white trash any time.