Is it immoral to hire an illegal immigrant?

[markomalley]

But, you must consider that the illegal came here will full knowledge and consent of what would be happening here. If someone willing comes here and therefore implicitly consents to such treatment, is that taking advantage of them?

There are two issues at hand, the way I see it.

1. As Deb points out, exploitation is exploitation.
2. The other point is that this impacts workers who already are here legally, be they citizen or legally resident alien. If employers use an ammoral (not immoral, but amoral) “best price wins” scenario, the overall price of labor will be reduced for those who are willing to live in subhuman conditions and work for near slave labor. That means that all workers end up being hurt.

 

[pnewton]

But, you must consider that the illegal came here will full knowledge and consent of what would be happening here. If someone willing comes here and therefore implicitly consents to such treatment, is that taking advantage of them?

Yes. From Rerum Novarum:

"Let the working man and the employer make free agreements, and in particular let them agree freely as to the wages; nevertheless, there underlies a dictate of natural justice more imperious and ancient than any bargain between man and man, namely, that wages ought not to be insufficient to support a frugal and well-behaved wage-earner. If through necessity or fear of a worse evil the workman accept harder conditions because an employer or contractor will afford him no better, he is made the victim of force and injustice.

 

[chain]

The IRS 1099 requirement is a joke in practice. Fake SS cards are printed by the 100’s of thousands on inkjets.

 

[markomalley]

The IRS 1099 requirement is a joke in practice. Fake SS cards are printed by the 100’s of thousands on inkjets.

Yes they are.

But that still does not negate the moral requirement to treat an employee or a contractor the same whether they are citizens/resident aliens or if they are illegal aliens.

What encourages the growth in illegal immigration is the greed of those who hire them. If a decent price is paid for services provided, there would be little or no need to seek out those who are willing to work in the underground economy for a pittance. But having people here who are willing to be exploited (see the Rerum Novarum quote posted earlier by pnewton) in order to send money back home results in the degradation of the value of labor for everybody.

The point remains that 1) an illegal alien has the obligation, according to the CCC, to obey the country’s laws regarding eligibility for employment (as does the potential employer of that alien) and 2) if one hires an illegal alien because of the fact that the alien would work for far cheaper and with less paperwork than the citizen / resident alien, that one hiring the illegal alien is guilty of exploiting him or her.

 

[AHapka]

Yes. From Rerum Novarum:

"Let the working man and the employer make free agreements, and in particular let them agree freely as to the wages; nevertheless, there underlies a dictate of natural justice more imperious and ancient than any bargain between man and man, namely, that wages ought not to be insufficient to support a frugal and well-behaved wage-earner. If through necessity or fear of a worse evil the workman accept harder conditions because an employer or contractor will afford him no better, he is made the victim of force and injustice.

I’ll accept that. Then, it is.