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May 1 boycott could cost the county millions
Area could lose as much as $15 million in output, economist says
By Jake Armstrong
News-Sentinel Staff Writer
Last updated: Saturday, Apr 29, 2006 - 08:01:27 am PDT

A boycott planned for Monday could sap millions of dollars from San Joaquin County's economy as immigrants refrain from going to work and making purchases.

Some are also expecting students to leave classes, but local school officials say they aren't too worried.

Though it is not known just how many immigrants will join the boycott, which gained endorsement by the state senate Thursday, some employers are making preparations to minimize losses.

Dubbed the Great American Boycott, immigrants in a show of solidarity, plan to counter what they deem drastic immigration reform proposals by showing the country what it would be like without them.

In rough calculations, economist Sean Snaith estimates that the local economy could lose as much as $15 million in output through lost sales and production, which otherwise might total $60 million that day.

That estimate, however, supposes all Hispanics take part in the boycott and does not include immigrants of other nationalities who may participate in the action, said Snaith, director of the Business Forecasting Center at University of the Pacific. It is also dependent on spending being evenly distributed among all county residents.

While a number of employers in the state have fired workers who left the job to protest, others have taken steps to minimize losses for both themselves and their workers.

Local high school administrators aren't expecting much of an upset Monday because of several talks they had with student groups on campus earlier this month after students walked out of classes in protest.

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At Lodi High School, more than 100 Hispanic students gathered for a meeting to discuss productive methods of voicing dissent. At Tokay High School, Principal Erik Sandstrom discussed the proposed bills with students and answered questions about them.

Schools have an incentive to keep classrooms full as one student each earns the school district nearly $34 a day in government funding, said Lodi Unified School District Superintendent Bill Huyett. If hundreds of students boycotted, the loss could be significant.

Similarly, employees not reporting for work at Cottage Bakery could spell hundreds of thousands in lost revenue.

But instead of leveling unexcused absences against any of the plant's employees who don't show up, the bakery shifted a standard maintenance day from Sunday to Monday, President Terry Knutson said.

"Our feeling was why get into a confrontation with employees over unexcused absences," Knutson said. "They're not missing any work, we're not missing any production — it just makes sense."

Knutson said he had not heard if any of his 700 employees intended to skip work Monday in protest.

Roof Top Metal Products, Inc. is mulling whether or not to close down Monday if a large number of its 35 employees choose not to show up for work, said Operations Manager Cliff Bristow.

While office staff could still get work done, the loss of production and deliveries could be detrimental, he said.

"It's going to get backlogged for us," Bristow said.

Hispanic-owned businesses, too, are making preparations for a boycott.

Luis Olivares plans to close his L&M Tax Service office in Lodi that day. After all, his three employees have said they choose not to work on Monday.

A Mexican immigrant who gained U.S. citizenship while in the Navy, Olivares pointed out that the day of action is not just to serve the cause of Mexican immigrants, but for all immigrants.

"They're struggling in their own country or coming here to make a living," he said.

Contact reporter Jake Armstrong at jakea@lodinews.com.

First published: Saturday, April 29, 2006