http://www.thedesertsun.com/apps/pbcs.d ... 7701190325

Council hopes to find better system for laborers
Rasha Aly
Cathedral City Sun
January 19, 2007

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CATHEDRAL CITY - At 6 a.m., they start arriving.
They need money, so they come out to Ramon Road, stand and wait.

Juan Carlos is one of them. He has two kids and a wife to feed, he said in Spanish.

In the chilly morning air this week at Landau Boulevard, Carlos is in a hooded sweatshirt, sitting on a wall by a U-Haul business, his legs dangling. It's a routine seven days a week. On average, he said earns about $80 a day.

However, some businesses along Ramon are not happy with the day laborers, and the City Council wants to do something.

"People are blocking entrances to businesses, making customers nervous," said Cathedral City Councilman Greg Pettis.

Seeing day laborers in Cathedral City is not unusual, said Mike Kocis, owner of Infinity Great Car Insurance on Ramon Road.

What's strange is the increase, he said. In the past few years, he's seen the number of day workers go from single digits to about 50.

Pettis said the increase has been especially noticeable in the past couple months. Reasons could be the economy or a slowdown in the housing industry.


"The odd jobs in construction, those aren't available anymore," he said.
And they need the jobs, said John Alexander, 21, another day laborer. It's his only option. He doesn't have the papers to get a regular job.

Once, when Kocis needed help with roof tiling, he said he called upon a few of the day laborers to help. He picked them up at 7 a.m., and didn't expect them to finish until early afternoon.

By 10 a.m., the work was complete. Kocis said he couldn't believe it.

He fixed them breakfast, paid them $75 and dropped them off. That same day, one was still out on Ramon Road waiting for more work.

"They've got families to support," Kocis said.

Pettis and Councilman Chuck Vasquez will have a meeting early next week with several city employees to discuss the situation.

As they talk, their meetings will probably grow to include local nonprofits such as the Salvation Army, Goodwill and Bridges of Hope, Pettis said.

The issue isn't how to stop these people from finding work," Pettis said.

"It's to find a way to make it a better system," he said.

The goal is keep access open for day laborers to find work, and for employers to find employees, Pettis said. At the same time, they also want to protect customers.

One Ramon Road business owner said she was not happy with the scene.

"They need to start running the border patrol again - like they used to do every month," said B.M. Beck. "The people that hired them used to get their hands slapped."

It is a misconception to think all day laborers are undocumented immigrants, Pettis said. Some of them have the necessary papers. Each person has their own individual circumstance.

However, those who are undocumented should be given the chance to work legally, Kocis said.

Since they're already here, the government should make them work legally, make them a part of the community, Kocis said.

"It's a shame they got to hide," he said.