Is it ethical to hire cheap labor?
My friend wants to sell his house but he has a lot of work to do. Someone, suggested that he hire some of the immigrants who stand outside of the local Home Depot looking for work.
On one hand you're giving a job, meals and money to provide for their families.
On the other hand it's exploitative to make them work for less money than they deserve to be paid.
Also, some of these people are illegal immigrants who undermine our society by making money and not paying taxes. Is it even legal to hire illegal immigrants?
What is your take?
Answers:
The illegality aside, it is not unethical to hire people at any agreed upon price.
In a flexible labor market, such as we have, laborers will shift to jobs in which their work is best compensated, and those who need labor will attempt to find it for the lowest possible price.
This is not exploitation, it is a combining of pursuit of self-interest with labor supply and demand.
Who are you and I to attempt to determine what these workers "deserve to be paid"? How would we accomplish this, aside from tossing out some completely arbitrary number? The price of labor is for the market to decide. The market will provide the most accurate price based on the productivity and skills of the worker and the need of the employer.
Your friend would be no more greedy and exploitive than the worker who would charge $200/hour if he could. Both parties are in it to receive the best possible deal for themselves.
Again, this argument assumes the workers are legal. Illegal workers are a completely different situation.
It is not legal for a business to hire illegal immigrants. If your friend pays at least minimum wage, he is OK.
You should always pay people what they deserve to be paid, whether they're willing to do it for less or not.
It is not legal to hire illegal immigrants. Immigration issues are not easy, and they have many nuances.
If people are happy getting paid the legal minimum wage, there is no moral or ethical problem. There is, however, a legal issue when hiring illegal aliens. If the immigrants are legal with work visas or green cards, there is no problem.
As long as you are feeding someone, I think it is not bad, why dont you give them the money they deserve ?
Some say no because of the whole illegal immigrant thing. But people what the most value out of thier money. Why pay more for the same work when someone is willing to do it cheaper. Its business. And suprisingly not all the guys that stand in front of home depot are illegals. Some are actual legal residents that have problems getting a regular job due to lack of English.
Well, Nike, Adidas, Le Coq Sportif, Puma..etc hire cheap labour in China, then sell the goods in a developed country to make a kill and I don't see the governments complaining. You go right ahead..employ who you like and pay them well
You should hire people and pay them well. You should pay them as much as you'd expect to be paid. It's exploitative if you say to yourself, "They're immigrants so even if I pay them poorly they are getting a good deal..." Also, many of these illegal immigrants do pay taxes. They have false papers but taxes still come out of their checks. It is a terrible misconception when people think that illegals don't pay taxes. They do. Nobody is undermining our society-people are only trying to survive. You would do the same thing if your family was extremely poor. You would try to do whatever you could to improve your condition. Pay them what you'd expect to be paid. It's a matter of personal ethics.
As an off season tax pro, I can tell you that Migrant workers want nothing more than to be citizens of the US, as a result they come in with some of their paper work and ask for an ITIN (individual taxpayer Identification Number) to begin their tax paying duties. Since taxpaying is one of the many forms that proves you've been a resident in the US migrant workers do it just to get their citizenship. We all pay taxes and as a result migrant workers are not undermining our society.
I live in a state where many people hire day laborers who are, I would assume, illegal immigrants. I agree that for these particular people, you are doing them a favor by hiring them because they have few other employment options.
But I think that if you are doing that, the only ethical option is for you too also work toward a political solution whereby these people can be employed in such a way that they will qualify for the perks of being employed in the US, i.e., medical insurance provided by an employer or the government, the possibility of unemployment compensation and workers' compensation, social security, etc.
I you desire to be paid a reasonable wage for a job you do I would think that you would likewise pay someone what they are worth if you are the employer.
The ethics are answered when you ask yourself how you would like to be treated.
You might want to research how much taxes that go unclaimed each year by illegals that do not file tax returns.
Again if you came from another country how would you like to be treated? Sometimes ethics and law conflict.
It is definitely illegal to hire illegal immigrants for work. You have to be careful when you purchase cheap labor. On long island we have a lot of illegal day laborers looking for work. I have heard stories about undercover cops trying to purchase labor and arresting the workers. I have also heard about undercover posing as day laborers to arrest potential buyers. My father does a lot of work on our house. He has torn up the back yard so many times I cannot count. He hires day laborers for all of these jobs, and saves a lot of money opposed to buying a landscaping crew, or a construction team. They are hardworking, skilled landscapers (most of them), and very cheap. If you do buy a day laborer you will not be upset with the work that they do.
Think of it this way $75 a day for a worker who will do any kind of work around your house.
Get a unreasonably quote from a construction company and end up getting screwed in the end because a lot of times they take a while to build, and the price always goes up in the end.
It depends if you want to save some money, or do the "right thing"
It is not legal to hire illegal immigrants, but beware, it is also setting you up for a lawsuit if you ask for papers to prove they are here legally (at least I heard that on talk radio). I guess that if you were to decide to hire somone who needs work badly enough to stand outside Home Depot with a sign, you are providing food for innocent children if it is a family man. Also, if that person is agreeing to the wages you offer, that is up to them to accept the job or not. Myself, I would ask a family member to help me, a friend from church, friends, or look in the local paper for a handyman. Friends and family will help often if you provide a meal and fun after the work is done.
As for the illegal immigrant part, if I broke the law and asked you to help me after, wouldn't that make you an accessory. If I robbed a bank (and I haven't), would it be right for me to ask you to help me sort out the money that was stained from the die bomb. Would it be right for me to ask you to help me get it exchanged into society so I can use the money without getting caught. I made the decision to break the law, and it is going to affect my family even make them hungry. Are you going to help me if it means feeding my child.
There is a price to pay when you do something wrong. Most Mexicans are catholics. I understand the Bible says to obey the laws of the land. The laws of this land state they should come here legally.
It's all a matter of supply and demand. There is ofcourse no reason not to give a bonus for a job well done.
Being illegal is one thing. They still have to eat and sleep and buy clothes and other esentiles
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