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The contractor. This isn't a hard question.
I don't think it's as simple a question as one might think. For example, in the United States there is a lot of precedent that with respect to some types of laws, the hotel is potentially responsible for compliance.
Anyway, assuming that compliance responsibility falls solely on the contractor, this seems like a straightforward workaround for immigration compliance. Instead of directly hiring illegals, use a dodgy contractor. If the dodgy contractor gets fined, they just close up shop and re-open under a new name somewhere else.
Combine this with the fact that the American economy is to a large extent dependent on the labor of illegal aliens, and it's easy to see how we can get into a situation where people get away breaking the rules.
To an extent I am speculating, but I am pretty sure that in the United States, things like going out to eat at a restaurant; hiring a crew to do yard work; or going on a week's vacation in Las Vegas would be very noticeably more expensive but for this kind of cheating.
The devil is in the enforcement, as ever.
If there's a huge problem with outsourcing illegal-intensive labor to Dodgy Contractor Inc, it's making things fairly simple: target all the dodgy staffing agencies. In theory like 99% of the work is already done to make it impossible to earn an income in this country without the government being aware of it. And that's what frustrates a lot of people about illegal immigration, even those who are pro-immigration: that the government doesn't use the information and powers that it has to enforce the laws that are on the books.
With fines or with criminal prosecution?
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You are just assuming things will happen in such a way as to make this whole thing complicated. Which, to be fair, it has happened in that way until basically now. But it doesn't have to. Like there is a workaround in your telling of events because the government creates one, which it doesn't have to. If you assume the government actually wants to accomplish its stated goals then this isn't really a conundrum. Just send the dodgy contractor to prison. Its not that hard.
I'm not saying it's impossible, but it's not necessarily easy. If you look at Dodgy Contractor, Inc.'s personnel files, I assure you that there will be some evidence that they made an effort to comply with the requirements. Ok, so if you go back and look at their photocopy of Jose's green card, it might become apparent that he actually used the green card of Jose's second cousin Juan. The nominal head of Dodgy Contractor, Inc. will tell the authorities that he relied on Maria to review the papers, and well, maybe she screwed up. At that point, how do you convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that this guy intentionally conspired to violate immigration laws? Especially since the nominal owner might not be the actual owner. So the assistant US attorney assigned to the case (and 50 others) recommends pushing for a plea deal of 6 months in prison. Dodgy Contractor, Inc. is shut down. The Hotel is SHOCKED to learn that they had illegals working for them. The next week, they hire Sketchy Contractor, Inc. and we Americans keep getting our trips to Las Vegas with hotels costing only $120 a night.
By the way, I'm not saying that it's impossible to enforce immigration laws. I'm just taking exception to the idea that it's simple and easy.
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