“Except when an element of the work force is here illegally”
Well, that’s your issue, then: not that employers are “exploiting” workers, but that they’re taking advantage of illegality. Eating the fruit of lawbreaking, if you will.
“The dirty secret is that illegals cannot live on the low wages either which is why they overwhelm our social services and medical care.”
Well, I wouldn’t say that exactly. Free benes is certainly a big incentive, but it’s not a necessary requirement for survival. Not everyone has to live according to the American standard of success (or poverty, for that matter). They’re more than willing to put up with what we consider low wages. Low, heck, it’s obviously better than what they otherwise get at home. Plus, the reason it’s a stereotype that Mexicans ride eight to a car and live 20 to an apartment derives from the fact that they economize in order to support themselves and families back over the border.
Oh, there’s also the fact that they pay no payroll taxes. Or any taxes, really, besides sales taxes.
As to the first part of your reply I wasn’t the poster that said employers are exploiting illegal workers.
All illegals if they are here any time at all take advantage of social services and medical care- putting the burden of their low wages on taxpayers.
Let me give you an example of how it really works- lets say an illegal man is working construction and living with 8 other men in a house so he’s working hard and living cheap- sending money back to Mexico to his family. His family becomes dependent on the money he sends. The illegal man gets seriously ill or hurt, so he goes to the ER for medical care, he can’t live any cheaper than he is and doesn’t want to short the money he sends his family so he doesn’t pay or even attempt to pay the hospital for his care. Then a few weeks later he has too much beer after work and gets in a fist fight or gets a DWI, he qualifies for a court appointed lawyer so again he is being a burden. If he ends up in jail he is really a burden on the taxpayers. If he gets out of trouble at some point he decides he is lonely so he gets his family to the U.S. and then he really becomes a burden. Now he has a wife and children that need medical care, kids need educated- free school breakfast and lunch- any children born in the U.S. qualify for welfare programs and on and on it goes. How much of a burden each illegal becomes is only up to the illegal because bleeding hearts have made sure there is program after program available. The fact is if they are here any time at all they are all a burden to taxpayers at some point.