Reply #8: It isn't always about the poor wages (although many times it is) [View All]

My first experience with an illegal immigrant situation happened in th 80's. A friend owned a ranch in Idaho and depended on Juan to come up from Mexico every year to work.

My friend actually paid him well and provided him with a nice studio cabin to live in. He provided him with all the food and other necessities he needed. Juan was okay with staying on the ranch practically 100% of the time.

Well, that year Juan was caught at the border and sent back to Mexico. He was never able to make it up to Idaho.

My friend couldn't find a local guy to do the work that summer, not because he didn't pay enough, but because Juan was capable of doing the work of three local people.

The local guys couldn't stand the isolation either and were always taking off, leaving the irrigation lines in place too long, killing off that strip of alfalfa. In once instance a guy allowed some cattle to get into the wet alfalfa field. A couple of cows died because of that negligence.

I don't know what the answer is, but I know that my friend was dependent on the hard-working, efficiency of Juan. The next year Juan did make it up. He worked for the usual four months, then returned to his family in Mexico.