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According to the University of California, the cost is about 22 cents to grow and harvest a head of lettuce. Of that, about 15 cents goes for farm labor. If we doubled the wages of farm workers, the cost of a head of lettuce would increase by 15 cents - even less if labor-saving machines are justified.

For labor costs to force lettuce to $5 per head, farmers would have to pay field workers $280 an hour. At that rate, it would be the kind of work "every American would want to do." The problem with illegal immigration is not that labor costs too much; it is that growers compete in a commodity market. If one grower can outdo another by using illegal labor, then his profits will increase. Inevitably, all growers must do the same thing to survive. As recent studies show, illegal immigration is driving down the wages of millions of Americans, while at the same time increasing their taxes

A little something for the economically illiterate.

As Maxwell Smart might say, the old "five dollars for a head of lettuce" trick! I've still not heard a rational explanation of this pseudo-phenomenon. I even asked our friend econ_grad about it last weekend when (s)he posted on another thread that the cost of food would rise by a factor of five unless illegal aliens were used as labor. I didn't get a chance to respond at the time, as I spent the afternoon out in the world and away from the computer, and by the time I returned, the thread was locked because of some sort of flamewar took place. So I'm pinging econ_grad, as well as the two people on this thread who ask the same question that I did, and for clarity's sake, I'll quote econ_grad's response to me from that thread:

This is what they mean by little knowledge being dangerous. Wage is not the only labor cost. You have to factor in things like worker's comp, insurance, social security, etc. Not to mention that you constantly have to worry whether your local labor is unionizing, and then you have to deal with that. But, you probably have never run a business so you have no idea what the true costs of all these things, including headache, are.

Okay, well...first off, posting my opinion on an Internet forum is not "dangerous," at least compared to politicians who create bad policies, so to make that remark is rather...what was the word you used? Oh yeah: "patronizing." And yes, I realize fully well that wage is not the only labor cost - one of the benefits for employers who hire illegals is that they don't pay medical or dental benefits. This is why I was interested in reading a proper breakdown of the costs, especially given your claim of possessing a degree in economics and the expertise that claim implies. The response I got instead is a broad generalization of what goes into running a business, without any real specifics, that did nothing to further the discussion.

And for the record, I do in fact run a business. One-man operation. It is in the beginning stages, so I am still working another job to finance it. My only employees are a lawyer and an accountant. Anything else I need (stationery, for example), I contract out. I have no reason at this time to hire anyone else, but should that day come, I won't be hiring illegal aliens.

So once again, I ask: can you explain exactly how increasing labor to a legal minimum wage will result in the cost of food or other services rising at such a high level. Be specific, please. And save the patronizing remarks for someone else. I'm genuinely interested in a proper discussion, and will return your respectful responses in kind. Thank you.