No, all THAT is a myth. I lived Arizona for a couple of years and Cali for 6 yrs and Florida here for 10 yearsand can say INS is all over companies that hire illegals, not to mention insurance companies and unions. Almost all trades now one must prove citizenship and be certified. DoT and DMV and Teamsters checks truckers, USDA and MPU checks meatpackers. Heavy equipment? Forgettaboutit, they have to be more certified than truckers. I'm in the construction trade and I can tell ya NO contractor that wants to stay in business long will allow illegals on the job. Same with small business. Sure there may be a few companies that hire a few illegals, but most the illegals I've seen are migrant workers who slave in the fields planting and gathering our food and clean our houses and care for our lawns.
I am going to have to disagree with you again.
Illegals are NOT confining themselves solely to menial jobs cleaning offices, picking fruit, and digging ditches.
They are opening construction businesses, auto repair shops, landscaping outfits, groceries, resturants, buying property both commercial and residential, etc.
I think you need to get beyond the image of illegal immigrants as a crowd of dusty brown pesants standing behind Ceasar Chavez in a 1963 Life Magazine photo.
BTW- I can match you personal anecdote for personal anecdote. I know folks who own their own contracting businesses that have to compete with those owned by Mexican illegals, Teamsters who've lost good paying jobs to Mexican illegals who'll drive for 1/4th thier wage, lots of folks who work with Perdue and Tyson foods who've seem the huge influx of illegals, lots of neighbors who have had the experience of finding out the Mexican illegal owned home repair contractors they've hired are not bonded or insured, etc...
To say the INS is "all over" companies hiring illegals is innacurate. They are not doing a good job on that, the laws are not being enforced, there is very little fear from most employers that they are going to suffer any penalty for hiring illegals.
