Re: A Reader Asks "How Do You Avoid Hiring Contractors Who Hire Illegals"?

From: An American Contractor's Wife [Email her]

I very much disagree with the writer about concerning yourself with upsetting the contractor. Americans have become increasingly timid and meek. Why should you be nervous about demanding that your money only be spent on legal residents or people who are authorized to work in the US?

My husband is a contractor, and we have to deal with hordes of these people competing for our jobs, so I have zero sympathy for them. Nor do I care about their feelings.

Having said that I would go a step further and seek a contractor that only employs Americans. It's a lie that Americans don't want to work in this skilled trade—it's that they have hard time finding work because of the flood of Mexicans.

But they are out there and considering that it's your money you have every right to name the conditions under which it will be spent! And one more thing, the quality of work is better from Americans as well. Hispanics do not come from a place that has to meet strict standards and requirements for the structures they build.