The risks of employing the undocumented

[DavonEvans]

Do you live in the DR? A bit extreme to say those who move to the DR due to cheaper costs are "knowingly participating in the destabilization of a nation" I would say there is a bit more to that, but we all have our opinions.

I live here and raise kids here with a lovely Dominican woman.

It’s not extreme. Most of us are coming from the United States where endorsement of illegal immigration displaced people and undermined wages. In good faith I couldn’t imagine migrating to a nation and contributing to something I didn’t agree with back home.

Yes illegal immigration from Haitians is and will continue destabilizing the country.

Yes being a foreigner and hiring illegal immigrants is absurd and a lack of respect for the host country. There’s no ambiguity to this.

 

[bob saunders]

I have to strongly disagree with this blanket statement about Dominican society. While envy "envidia" can exist anywhere in the world, just like greed or jealousy, it's a mistake to generalize an entire nation's culture based on isolated experiences. Saying that "even your best friends will turn against you" paints a very unfair and negative picture of Dominicans as a whole, which simply isn't true.

It honestly makes me wonder about the kind of people or "friends" you're surrounding yourself with in the Dominican Republic. One’s personal circle doesn’t represent an entire society. There are countless Dominicans who are loyal, generous, and deeply supportive of their friends and community, just as there are anywhere else.

It's important to look at these experiences critically and avoid turning them into sweeping cultural judgments. Every society has its challenges, but reducing a rich, diverse culture to something as one-dimensional as envy does a disservice to the people who call it home.

lol, even my wife's own family have these common Dominican characteristics. I have heard enough chismoso to agree. Of course it isnt every Dominican, but it represents a huge portion of the population.

 

[drstock]

You don’t have to agree with the reality of why expats hire illegals. If it’s not for the cheaper costs then please tell me why?

Why does anyone do it?

Foreigners who go to another country and do this should be deported as well. It’s a disgraceful practice to knowingly participate in the destabilization of a nation you only moved to because of the cheaper costs.

When I moved here to the DR I bought a small apartment building. With the building came two Dominican employees - a watchman and a cleaner and a Haitian gardener/handyman. The Haitian was legal at the time and I helped him to try to get "Regularized" when the process was taking place. However, for some reason unknown he was unsuccessful with that. In the last few years it became increasingly difficult to get a work visa and when I sold the place I encouraged the new (Dominican) owner to take him on, which he did, despite him not having a visa by then. The reason the new owner took my recommendation was because the Haitian was a good, honest, hardworking employee who was popular with all my guests.

I didn't pay him any less than I would have paid a Dominican employee and in fact helped him financially from time to time, in addition to his wages.

I hope this answers your question above.

 

[CristoRey]

You don’t have to agree with the reality of why expats hire illegals. If it’s not for the cheaper costs then please tell me why?

Why does anyone do it?

Foreigners who go to another country and do this should be deported as well. It’s a disgraceful practice to knowingly participate in the destabilization of a nation you only moved to because of the cheaper costs.

This may apply to some but not all. DR could cost the same as America and I'd still be living here.
I moved down here because I have more in common (for better or worse) with Dominicans
than I do with Americans back home. 13+ years and counting. Life is good, VERY GOOD.

This problem of hiring illegals can be solved by providing workers with a work visa for the duration of the project.
Perhaps this will motivate the greedy trash running Haiti to start providing IDs to their citizens.
If worker fails to return when his/ her visa expires enforce severe penalties. Create a national data
base in order to identify these people and punish people who violate the law. It's not rocket science.

 

[chico bill]

You don’t have to agree with the reality of why expats hire illegals. If it’s not for the cheaper costs then please tell me why?

Why does anyone do it?

Foreigners who go to another country and do this should be deported as well. It’s a disgraceful practice to knowingly participate in the destabilization of a nation you only moved to because of the cheaper costs.

I occasionally hire Haitians to cut weeds on a steep slope below the house. I tried a Dominican one time, he showed up two days after I asked him to come, gave stupid excuse I didn't want to hear.
He did a crap job, asked for coffee, then water twice and used my whole can of insect repellant for wasps, had to borrow my machete and it took him 2 times longer than the Haitian. It's usually a 2 hour job.
Plus he never said thank you when I paid him.

 

[MariaRubia]

Who walks around with US$ 6,000 in cash anyway? I'd say the guy who had the money stolen was equally dodgy. Anyone with that money legitimately earnt would have it in the bank.

 

[JLSawmam]

I occasionally hire Haitians to cut weeds on a steep slope below the house. I tried a Dominican one time, he showed up two days after I asked him to come, gave stupid excuse I didn't want to hear.
He did a crap job, asked for coffee, then water twice and used my whole can of insect repellant for wasps, had to borrow my machete and it took him 2 times longer than the Haitian. It's usually a 2 hour job.
Plus he never said thank you when I paid him.

Did you thank him as you paid him? If not, why would you feel he, as an "employee" owes you as the "employer" a thank you for you paying him for what you hired him to do?
I understand that you weren't happy with the work and likely just handed him the money, so him saying thank you wasn't going to get him hired again the next time you needed the work done anyway

 

[Notengo]

I occasionally hire Haitians to cut weeds on a steep slope below the house. I tried a Dominican one time, he showed up two days after I asked him to come, gave stupid excuse I didn't want to hear.
He did a crap job, asked for coffee, then water twice and used my whole can of insect repellant for wasps, had to borrow my machete and it took him 2 times longer than the Haitian. It's usually a 2 hour job.
Plus he never said thank you when I paid him.

My experience is Haitians want to work to earn money, Dominicans want to earn money without too much work.
They never have all the tools, never come the right day, always want more food and money.
This crappy attitude makes me rather do work myself than hiring a Dominican. It’s also why the DR will always need others to do the hard work.

 

[DavonEvans]

I occasionally hire Haitians to cut weeds on a steep slope below the house. I tried a Dominican one time, he showed up two days after I asked him to come, gave stupid excuse I didn't want to hear.
He did a crap job, asked for coffee, then water twice and used my whole can of insect repellant for wasps, had to borrow my machete and it took him 2 times longer than the Haitian. It's usually a 2 hour job.
Plus he never said thank you when I paid him.

Here’s the reality. Most of you have contempt for Dominicans as people, whether consciously or subconsciously simply because they demand the same level of respect as humans. Of course you conflate work performance with desperation and exploit a more than likely human being in an irregular status facing deportation threats daily.

You don’t like the way Dominicans work, drive, loud music, etc one would beg the question why would you move to THEIR country? You could move right next door and hire all the Haitians you’d like.

Me personally I would never hire one off principle alone. I have had plenty Dominicans who have done unsatisfactory work and I merely explain to them what I didn’t and did like and depending on their response determined whether I’d hire them again. It’s that simple. But for the life of me I don’t understand foreigners moving to another country to hire other foreigners to do business.

Imagine being a foreigner moving to Germany and hiring Turks for jobs. I think we know how that would eventually end. Don’t think that’s not coming to the Dominican Republic soon

 

[bob saunders]

My experience is Haitians want to work to earn money, Dominicans want to earn money without too much work.
They never have all the tools, never come the right day, always want more food and money.
This crappy attitude makes me rather do work myself than hiring a Dominican. It’s also why the DR will always need others to do the hard work.

In the barrio next to my neighborhood we have several Dominican guys, one in his mid twenties, and another around 40 that we hire for various jobs when our gardener is occupied with other stuff. Both of them do fantastic work, ask for nothing and provide their own hand tools. They are used by many local business people for cleaning, weeding, garbage removal...etc. Yes, many Dominicans would prefer to drink whiskey and play dominos, but there are plenty of hard working Dominicans.

 

[DavonEvans]

This may apply to some but not all. DR could cost the same as America and I'd still be living here.
I moved down here because I have more in common (for better or worse) with Dominicans
than I do with Americans back home. 13+ years and counting. Life is good, VERY GOOD.

This problem of hiring illegals can be solved by providing workers with a work visa for the duration of the project.
Perhaps this will motivate the greedy trash running Haiti to start providing IDs to their citizens.
If worker fails to return when his/ her visa expires enforce severe penalties. Create a national data
base in order to identify these people and punish people who violate the law. It's not rocket science.

I think it applies to most which isn’t an inherently bad thing. Most foreigners came to DR for a slower and cheaper lifestyle. Nothing wrong with this.

Dominican Republic did something like this in the early 1900’s with black Caribbeans from St. Kitts and Bahamas. Anglicized black Caribbeans (cocolos) are mostly situated in the south east of the country San Pedro de Macorís and have English surnames like Horford, James etc. They are fully Dominicanized today.

The problem with your idea is that you’re talking about a nation where currently 1/3rd of its population doesn’t have a birth certificate.

About three million Haitians have no birth certificate

We are approximately three million Haitians from zero to x year who do not have a birth certificate on the national territory. A quarter of the population is not registered […]

haitiantimes.com

They estimate 3 million but it’s probably close to 5 million, and I’d imagine 2 million of them have assumed “Dominican” identities altogether equipped with Spanish surnames. There are some educators in here who have seen this close hand and most likely never questioned it when the kid was enrolling in the school.

Anyways that’s why your plan wouldn’t work. They wouldn’t return at the end of their contract to a nation that has no viable leadership, security, or basic civic infrastructure to perform the most menial of tasks like issuing a birth certificate

 

[SKY]

DR1 is an amazing place. People in this forum can actually run the whole Country from their keyboard. Amazing.......................

 

[CristoRey]

DR1 is an amazing place. People in this forum can actually run the whole Country from their keyboard. Amazing.......................

From the outside looking in, when it comes to this Haitian immigrantion mess...
it might be with considering 😅

 

[keepcoming]

Here’s the reality. Most of you have contempt for Dominicans as people, whether consciously or subconsciously simply because they demand the same level of respect as humans. Of course you conflate work performance with desperation and exploit a more than likely human being in an irregular status facing deportation threats daily.

You don’t like the way Dominicans work, drive, loud music, etc one would beg the question why would you move to THEIR country? You could move right next door and hire all the Haitians you’d like.

Me personally I would never hire one off principle alone. I have had plenty Dominicans who have done unsatisfactory work and I merely explain to them what I didn’t and did like and depending on their response determined whether I’d hire them again. It’s that simple. But for the life of me I don’t understand foreigners moving to another country to hire other foreigners to do business.

Imagine being a foreigner moving to Germany and hiring Turks for jobs. I think we know how that would eventually end. Don’t think that’s not coming to the Dominican Republic soon

You're reaching here. This is just your opinion, not reality. Saying most of us have contempt for Dominicans as people is totally inaccurate. Many of us are married to Dominicans, have a Dominican partner, family, etc. Yes, people complain, it is human nature. I guarantee you for every one thing they do not like, there are three things they do. If you live in the DR, then you know the issue is not so simple. It is very easy to give an opinion, but that is what it is, an opinion.

 

[SKY]

You're reaching here. This is just your opinion, not reality. Saying most of us have contempt for Dominicans as people is totally inaccurate. Many of us are married to Dominicans, have a Dominican partner, family, etc. Yes, people complain, it is human nature. I guarantee you for every one thing they do not like, there are three things they do. If you live in the DR, then you know the issue is not so simple. It is very easy to give an opinion, but that is what it is, an opinion.

Opinions are like A-Holes, everyone has one……………..

 

[chico bill]

Did you thank him as you paid him? If not, why would you feel he, as an "employee" owes you as the "employer" a thank you for you paying him for what you hired him to do?
I understand that you weren't happy with the work and likely just handed him the money, so him saying thank you wasn't going to get him hired again the next time you needed the work done anyway

NO only did I thank him, I loaned him $1,000 pesos a week later. Still waiting for the payback, 1 year later

 

[chico bill]

In the barrio next to my neighborhood we have several Dominican guys, one in his mid twenties, and another around 40 that we hire for various jobs when our gardener is occupied with other stuff. Both of them do fantastic work, ask for nothing and provide their own hand tools. They are used by many local business people for cleaning, weeding, garbage removal...etc. Yes, many Dominicans would prefer to drink whiskey and play dominos, but there are plenty of hard working Dominicans.

Take photos of them. I believe Bod you may have discovered unicorns. I do believe the mountain folk near where you live are more industrious than the coastal tourist-preying men.

I have been taken advantage by both Dominicans, Haitians and one time an American A-Hole in Costa Rica.
But the majority of rip off artists near me are Dominican, probably because the Haitians fear getting in trouble with police.

Just a week ago a skinny Dominican kid with glasses stole a washing machine and inverter from a nearby neighbor and another house was broken into the week before and I heard there was a video showing what appeared to be Dominicans ( lighter skin - could be from other parts of Latin America ?)

 

[chico bill]

Who walks around with US$ 6,000 in cash anyway? I'd say the guy who had the money stolen was equally dodgy. Anyone with that money legitimately earnt would have it in the bank.

I have done that in my past. $6,000 is a lot to leave laying around but it is not a fortune. Glad it was recovered, less the policemen's "Finder Fee"

 

[bob saunders]

My pet peeve with Dominicans doesn't apply to all Dominicans but it annoys the shit out of me. They block sidewalks, doors, intersections...etc as if there were no other people using the sidewalks, streets, and doors. They can even see you coming and they still block the sidewalk.

 

[DavonEvans]

You're reaching here. This is just your opinion, not reality. Saying most of us have contempt for Dominicans as people is totally inaccurate. Many of us are married to Dominicans, have a Dominican partner, family, etc. Yes, people complain, it is human nature. I guarantee you for every one thing they do not like, there are three things they do. If you live in the DR, then you know the issue is not so simple. It is very easy to give an opinion, but that is what it is, an opinion.

I’m not reaching at all. Everything is a “better deal” or “better quality” when it’s at a significant discount.

Mexicans are better construction workers than Americans until year 3 of that shoddy construction work starts to show cracks in the foundation. I’ve heard it all and the white noise sounds the same in every country.

Being married to someone of another ethnicity or race doesn’t mean you don’t harbor contempt for that group. I can’t believe in 2025 you actually went there as a way to shield yourself from the reality here. Again you moved to this country to be around a group you don’t particularly like outside of them serving you. Some of you are openly admitting to aiding illegals in their legalization process. I mean what would be the repercussions of doing so in America, or Canada?

If you were in charge of a country, how would you handle foreigners who decide to do this?

I’ve already stated I live here. And I don’t mean to be self righteous about this issue as every one has a choice to live however they like. The point is we are foreigners and our decision to move to another nation is a little more calculated and normally with more resources than the inverse of immigrants migrating to America, Canada, Europe etc. With that comes a certain level of responsibility to the Dominican Republic and its people.

That doesn’t meaning being a pushover or parting with your hard earned money for less than satisfactory service. That also doesn’t mean hiring illegals. There’s a balance