Quote:
Originally Posted by AzX5
While I agree with most of what you are saying, part of the reason that the "abhorrent wages" exist in the first place is because of the practice of hiring illegal aliens for those jobs. Construction work, for example, probably paid as much pay 30 years ago as it does today due to the influx of illegal aliens willing to do the job for lower and lower pay, which forced out many Americans for the less-skilled jobs.
In fact, 30 years ago I was picking strawberries and cucumbers in the fields with plenty of other Americans willing to do the job. I doubt the pay is much different today than it was back then, so yes only illegal aliens are willing to work those jobs today. Get rid of the illegal aliens, and I guarantee that wages will begin creeping up to acceptable levels for unemployed Americans.
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I think it also has a lot to do with the cost of doing business. What is the profit margin for a strawberry farmer? Could he afford to pay someone to pick his berries for $7.50 an hour? Or, better yet, could we as consumers afford to pay for a carton of strawberries picked by someone making $7.50 an hour? How much labor costs are built into the market price?
Similarly, instead of paying $100 to $150 per sq/ft for a home built by lower wage construction workers, would you be willing to pay $175 to $250 per sq/ft for the same home because of the increase in labor costs?