Meaningfully bringing down labor cost would require inevesting in public services, and you're right that it can't happen. It would mean providing things like universal healthcare, public transit, pensions, etc. That goes completely contrary to the dominant narrative in the states.

I think the approach they're gonna try to go with is to try and create a huge reserve army of labor by first creating mass unemployment. At that point people will be desperate enough to work jobs in terrible conditions just to feed themselves. They basically want to bring back Dickensian times.