Very nice points indeed. I appreciate the interaction and I think the fines that you propose would definitely make a difference. I'm sure the dollar ammounts could be off by a few cents but the point is to make them as much a deterrent as possible.

My only objection would be on the part of those who have hired an illegal who had convincing documentation to "prove" that they were legal. I would hate to see a well meaning employer suffer because of the actions of another.

As far as the anecdotal evidence is concerned with regard to construction workers, I have seen similar around here (central ky) but I have also seen what looks like the laziest damn generation of kids ever. So I dont know how many of them are too good for manual labor and how many were underbid by illegals.