Personally I think it's a bit more complex. Our tiny little family-owned business pays very well (way above minimum wage) for menial task jobs. We do NOT ever consider hiring illegals. But I have to tell you that we have one heck of a time finding anyone BUT immigrants to work, and this is no joke. For example, we have HIRED no less than FOUR caucasians for a simple job and they always quit after one day. The excuses are endless: 'I don't want to stand up', 'My car needs to be repaired', 'I'll have to see if I'm available tomorrow' and on and on. I'm baffled about how they all survive, because they sure aren't going to work every day.
They probably get more from WELFARE than working. When asked if they were looking for a job they say yeah I went to so and so, most of the job sytem workers are too busy to call and see if this is true. A friend of mine in California told me that almost 70% of the referals to jobs are neveer followed up as they claim they are snowed under.