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Myth 7: Day Laborers are Not Concerned About Community Complaints |
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In the UCLA day labor study, a question was asked about the importance of keeping the area where they seek work clean. Ninety nine percent said it was important because 1) fewer people will complain about them, 2) they will be more approachable by employers, and 3) because of self-pride. Indeed, day laborers are acutely aware that their presence on street corners and parking lots are not preferred by many. As a result, they along with CHIRLA, IDEPSCA, and the Day Labor Union of Los Angeles have begun organizing at different sites. This includes self-patrolling for “problem day laborers”, informal rules of etiquette, collaborations with storefront owners and other local merchants. Day laborers have also become involved in graffiti removal campaigns, neighborhood clean-up outings, and other projects that ease misunderstandings between workers, residents, and storeowners. |
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Myth 6: Residents and Store Front Owners Oppose Day laborers |
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The biggest concerns regarding day laborers come from community residents and store owners who complain about their presence in their neighborhood or store fronts. The complaints seem to focus on what impact workers converging on street corners and parking lots might have on their property values, aesthetics, and safety. These concerns are not going unheeded by advocates of immigrants, local municipalities, residents, and home building supplies. Indeed, the past decade has witnessed unique and highly innovative collaborations and programs between community based organizations such as CHIRLA, Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur de California (IDEPSCA – Institute of Popular Education of Southern California), and the City Council Offices of Jackie Goldberg, Rita Walters other city agencies, planning officials, community residents, and store front owners. Through their hard work, solutions are being developed that, 1) control to some degree day labor work and the proliferation of their sites, and 2) provide workers with a safe and democratic way to secure employment in our changing and flexible economy. |
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Myth 5: Unions Oppose Day Laborers |
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Concerns that day laborers are taking union jobs or jobs that other Angelinos might otherwise hold are unfounded. Recall that day labor work is open to anyone who wishes to seek employment in a public space. In addition, anyone can similarly seek employment in this and other temp work through the many different agencies that exist in Los Angeles and other cities throughout the United States. Through its organizing efforts on behalf of day laborers, the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) has and is currently establishing strong ties with the labor movement. Through their efforts, dialogue, collaboration, mutual understanding, and innovative programs are being created that break down barriers between different segments of our industrial work force and unions. LINKS: AFL-CIO Aligns With Day-Laborer Advocates (The Washington Post, Aug 10, 2006)
Alianza histórica de jornaleros y AFL-CIO (La Opinion, Los Angeles, CA, 9 de agosto de 2006)
Day laborers, AFL-CIO join in fight for workers' rights (San Francisco Chronicle - Aug 9, 2006) |
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Myth 4: Day Laborers are Only Recent Arrivals, Desperate for Work (why else would one stand on a street corner?), Homeless, or on a Temporary Respite or Layoff From “Real” Jobs. |
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Some day laborers fit this description quite well. However, a larger number do not. Findings from the UCLA study on day laborers show that they are quite diverse and undertake employment in this market for a variety of reasons and factors. For example, almost one-half (48 percent) of all day laborers in Southern California have been in this country over five years; 10 percent have been here for more than 20 years. Equally surprising are the figures on how long jornaleros have been working in the day labor market. Over one-quarter (26 percent) of those surveyed have worked in this market for six or more years. A full 90 percent of these workers pursues this line of employment full-time, year round. Study results also reveal that day laborers are not homeless (95 percent), come primarily from Mexico (77 percent), and are largely married (42 percent). We have also calculated that on average, day laborers have seven years of formal education and support families elsewhere to the tune of $2,630 per year. |
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