Thread: Opportunities dry up after loss of R.C. day labor center

http://www.dailybulletin.com/news/ci_4026164

Article Launched: 7/08/2006 12:00 AM

Opportunities dry up after loss of R.C. day labor center

By Monica Rodriguez, Staff Writer
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin

RANCHO CUCAMONGA - For workers like Jose Fernando Pedraza, the closure of the day labor center has created hardship.
"I've only had one job since it closed,'' Pedraza said in Spanish on Thursday.

The center, which had been set up near the corner of Grove Avenue and Arrow Route, closed June 30.

This week, workers have waited along the east side of Grove, north of Arrow, for employers seeking short-term workers for jobs in trades such as landscaping, construction and general labor.

Without the center, workers said, getting jobs has become difficult.

Gilberto Ruiz, 68, of Ontario, does masonry work and for the past three years the center helped him find work.

"(June 30) was the last day that I worked,'' Ruiz said in Spanish. "It's as if the employers have disappeared.''

Through the center, workers found jobs in an organized fashion. They also felt safe because someone knew where and for whom they were going to work.

In addition, laborers knew they had a place to come to for advice if an employer tried to back out of agreed-upon wages.

Through the center, employers "were sure (the worker) was a good person,'' Ruiz said.

There is a great need for a center, workers said this week.

Jorge Cervera, 52, of Ontario, is a carpenter and mason who periodically would find jobs through the center.

"We'd like to find a way to have the center reopen,'' said Cervera, adding that it may require the support of the community at large to persuade local authorities to reopen the center.

"What we'd like is for the center to open again, if not in the same place then in another place,'' Ruiz said.

Ruiz said he and other workers have discussed contributing a monthly fee that could go toward funding a new center.

Cervera and others said day laborers are honest people trying to earn an honest wage. But the workers worry that criminals may try to mix among the workers and create problems for them.

Ruiz said he hopes local officials would consider taking steps that would result in the opening of a new center.

City Council members authorized the opening of the center in September 2003. The plan involved establishing the facility on land provided by a neighboring business and having a nonprofit Nonprofit TOUCH Ministries had run the center since December, but the person who was on the site daily was asked by the organization's board of directors to instead focus her efforts on the ministry. In addition, the owner of the property now has plans to build on it.

Rancho Cucamonga Mayor Bill Alexander said the city is going to make every effort to address the situation but it's going to take more than just the city to find a viable solution.

"We're going to keep trying to find an answer,'' he said.

It's not easy for most cities and nonprofit organizations to come up with funding for such an endeavor, he said.

Neighboring cities, charitable organizations, along with groups who use the labor could contribute, Alexander said.

"The people using (the workers) have all the advantages and none of the responsibility,'' Alexander said.

It's time to find a way for the employers to help address the situation, he said.

The city's regulations permit people to seek employment on the city's streets as long as they are not creating a traffic hazard, interrupting traffic flow or going onto private property, Alexander said.

Upland police have also been patrolling the area because Grove is the city limits between their city and Rancho Cucamonga.

Upland police Sgt. Alan Ansara said officers on patrol are aware the center has closed and will be monitoring the area as city regulations prohibit people soliciting work from the street.


Monica Rodriguez can be reached by e-mail at m_rodriguez@dailybulletin.com or by phone at (909) 483-9336.

"What we'd like is for the center to open again, if not in the same place then in another place,'' Ruiz said.

There's a country just south of us who would be so happy to find a center for you. You can pick vegies, fruits, and work in their oil fields. Good luck Ruiz.

The day laborers unable to get work will start moving away from Rancho Cucamonga. This is what should happen all the way across the United States.

"The people using (the workers) have all the advantages and none of the responsibility,''

Be still my beating heart ... someone took a peak at reality.