It's not that hard or costly to build such a system. What's hard is getting some of your fellow AMERICANS to go along with it.
In order for such a system to work, you'd have to actively discourage the hiring of nannies, agricultural workers, waitresses or people from any other job that involves paying people under the table.
A labor force made of illegal immigrants is something that is that many corporations actually desire. It's a workforce that can't go on strike without fear of deportation, and that happily accepts lower wages for the same reason.
I work at a large, well known American multinational based in the US. Of the 6 person technical team that I'm part of, only two are actually American citizens. The others are on visa, with the exception of one person who has a green card.
And guess what? I happen to be one of those guys working in the US under a visa. I long ago realised that the basis for visas in the US is only for the benefit of businesses. If the US really wanted to clean its visa system, it could.
That it won't is purely due to economic reasons, not political ones.
Yep. I think it is a strong argument for the government being an "reflection of the people". Why do we demand accountability from our government when we don't require it from one another? The people themselves have to change.