Letter: ‘Cheap’ labor, huge injustice

Monday, Dec. 31, 2001 | 8:20 a.m.

Thanks for the Sun's Dec. 21 editorial on the Tyson worker-smuggling case.

You are absolutely correct! Just slapping a few food lords' hands with fines for blatant violation of immigration laws will not solve the problem of the despicable manipulation of desperate workers, who have already been exploited by the elites in their own country who push them into the arms of the exploiting elites in this country.

And as your editorial points out, willingness to violate the law in one venue is a sure sign that they will in another. If the working conditions and wages were brought up to beyond Third World standards, these jobs would be filled by Americans willing and able to work as hard for a decent wage.

Even beyond the obvious injustice to these workers are the hidden social costs of this "cheap" labor. Tyson's net income jumped 160 percent in the past year, while communities across the nation struggled to pick up the social services costs for underpaid workers. Schools are overcrowded, and hospitals, overwhelmed by poor patients, are going broke.

Far more than a few million illegal workers are being exploited by these food lords and their lap-dog politicos and officials. When all true costs are totaled, we are all getting doggie chow at filet mignon prices for this "cheap" food production.

BARBARA VICKROY Escondido, Calif.