Maybe we should look at why these people are vulnerable in the first place. I suspect we would be way more likely to succeed in empowering undocumented people

Maybe we should look at why these people are vulnerable in the first place. I suspect we would be way more likely to succeed in empowering undocumented people by removing barriers, rather than erecting new constraints against them and a way to earn a living. But then again, few probably care about the long-term future of illegal immigrants. A charity budget is a way easier number to show-off than a small-looking % increase in spending power through economic activity... Who cares if hundreds of thousands of people waste away their productive years in legal limbo, as long as they don't disgrace our country by working for less than the minimum wage we decided on.