It's long been accepted that roofing contractors increasingly
are dependent on immigrant labor to fulfill their work force needs.
But the problem many contractors—in all industries—are
facing is an insurgency of undocumented immigrants setting up shop
and underbidding legitimate businesses.
This is causing significant issues in states, such as
California, that are heavily populated with undocumented workers.
California businesses are starting to find it difficult to
compete—many of their customers don't care whether a
contractor pays his workers' compensation premiums, for example;
all they want is the cheapest price.
The problem is so bad in California the state's Labor and
Workforce Development Agency has set up a 61-person task force to
root out cash-only businesses and investigate workers' compensation
claims against...
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