Thread: Faces of immigration: Man can't compete with illegal workers

"Faces of immigration: Man can't compete with illegal workers"

Published: Jan. 4, 2011
BY CINDY CARCAMO
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Negotiating his work fee in a small Huntington Beach home in the 1980s, Scott Powelson suspected he would one day be replaced by workers from south of the border.

"Well you know, I can get this guy to do this for way cheaper," the homeowner told him at the time.


Scott Powelson, 59, of Costa Mesa has been in the flooring business since the late 70's and used to make a comfortable living doing so. However, the industry began to change for him in the mid-90s after, he said, he could no longer compete with the low bids offered by contractors who hired illegal workers. He's six months behind on his rent and is thinking of moving to Arizona.
LEONARD ORTIZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
MORE PHOTOS »FACES OF IMMIGRATION

This profile is the first in a regular series of vignettes that feature local people describing how immigration—legal and illegal—has affected their lives.

The next profile features a local business woman who was once in the country illegally and is now a U.S. citizen who helps train people to start their own business.

Do you have a story you’d like to tell about how immigration has affected your life? If so, e-mail the writer at ccarcamo@ocregister.com.

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The woman told Powelson his competition spoke Spanish but very little English. While she couldn't quite comprehend everything the other man said, she understood the price.

Powelson, who had just given the homeowner his best bid to install ceramic tile, passed on the job. He would have had to take a 20 percent cut to match the price.

"I couldn't compete," the 59-year-old from Costa Mesa recalled on a recent weekday at a local diner where the food is cheap and plentiful.

"I realized flat out that I couldn't compete with these guys in ceramic tile, eventually they'd move into my field of expertise," he said. "I saw it coming way back... I started realizing that I'm bidding against these guys who come in from Mexico... illegally."

Powelson, who has labored in the hardwood flooring business for 30 years, said he is now feeling the full force of what he predicted decades ago.

Magnified by a crippling recession that's left home improvements as a second thought, he's resorted to taking odd jobs here and there. He's essentially unemployed, more than six months behind on rent and seriously considering a move out of state. Most of his time now is dedicated to political activism aimed at curbing illegal immigration.

While his situation is dire, he said, he doesn't blame the illegal workers who can afford to lower their fees, outbidding him on jobs. He doesn't point his finger at the contractor or subcontractors who hire them.

The root of his situation, he said, is the American people's addiction to cheap labor and products.

Powelson, a high school graduate, took some community college courses but didn't quite know what to do for most of his young adult life. He happened on installing flooring and enjoyed how the work could take him from cottages to mansions — meeting interesting people along the way.

He started making $150 a day and eventually earned up to $500 for a day's worth of work. He never married and lived pretty comfortably, working steadily in the 1970s and 1980s, he said.

The industry began to change in the mid-90s, Powelson said. That's when a lot of the contractors stopped doing the work themselves, he said. Instead, they hired workers, dropping them off at work sites with tools before taking off.

"They would blast through jobs so quickly, taking up the work," he said. "But as long as the economy was up, it really didn't hurt me. I would still get my share."

He'd get at least three jobs a week back then.

Soon, however, the economy soured and the work slowed.

When the economy tanked a couple years ago, Powelson said, it became economically impossible for him to compete against the six or seven other bids coming from contractors who hired foreign workers.

The bids would come down to $100 a day — lower than what he started out making decades ago. He was lucky to get a job a week. The last straw came when a shop owner Powelson knew well told him he may have work for him — fixing a botched flooring job one of Powelson's competitors did.

"I wouldn't do it," he said, saying that job added insult to injury.

Powelson said he's confronted contractors and shop owners he has relationships with and who now rely solely on people who are working in the country illegally.

"Hey, I have to," he said, repeating what the contractors told him. "If I want to keep making the money I'm making, I have to keep hiring these guys. Everyone else is doing it. It's the only way I can compete."

Powelson says the employers "are ruining the country." Still, he said he understands their position.

"They've gotten themselves into debt up to their eyeballs. The simple fact is that they can't live on what they can earn themselves," he said. "They need someone working for them making less than what they can charge for. He needs to be able to make enough to make that to cover his bills... They got hooked on using people at a lower rate."

Powelson said he realizes he was in a compromised position.

"Anyone can learn to do a floor. It's not rocket science," he said.

He said he tried to learn a new profession and became a heavy equipment operator for some time but the local union's way of doing things didn't agree with him. He eventually got out.

Powelson said switching professions now that he's older is difficult and something he's not willing to do, He said he's never been an ambitious man.

"I don't do a lot... much more than I have to do," he explained.

His only regret is not becoming politically active until later in life.

Powelson said he's on a crusade to stop the flow of illegal immigration, joining Huntington Beach-based California Coalition for Immigration Reform a few years back and now becoming active in other similar groups.

"I could go out and ignore all this and go out and make a lot of money," he said. "I could go work my butt off and pay my bills but... I'd postpone the inevitable."

He offers a solution to what he said is a problem that will eventually bring down the nation.

He urges people to hire Americans and buy American.

"We shouldn't be supporting slavery," he said.

Powelson used to go out of his way to buy American products, religiously searching for tennis shoes made here.

However, the hat on his head emblazoned with the American flag is made in China.

"Like everyone else, I can't afford it anymore," he explained. "I want to buy USA but it's hard."

This profile is the first in a regular series of vignettes that feature local people describing how immigration—legal and illegal—has affected their lives.

Coming next: a local business woman who was once in the country illegally and is now a US citizen who helps

http://www.ocregister.com/news/powelson ... html?wap=0

Whatever you do, DON'T MOVE TO ARIZONA SCOTT!!!!!!!!!!! Don't make the same mistake I made, the economy is horrific and this place also has been taken over by illegals! If you want to get away, go somewhere like Montana or the Dakotas!

...this guy mirrors what our friend is going thru. We had him install tile flooring in our whole house a few years back. He has to compete with these invaders here in SoCal. He said he has taken more jobs than he can count fixing the IA's terrible floor jobs. Last I checked he was still working, but barely hanging on. Most of his business comes from word of mouth.

Im sure this man's story has been repeated millions of times - the only thing that changes is the location, name and face.

Sure Scott would be welcome in Arizona and get pro active in our fight
against the illegal alien invasion.
A man does what he needs to do.
It is not easy for a man that is skilled, smart and has played by the rules
to admit defeat to the "lawless greedy system". That has put so many in the services and trades into the lower class. With No hope the future looks any
better.
There are tens of millions of "59 year old" Scott Powelsons.
Scott did the hard work and the American Dream disappeared at an age it
is not as easy to recover.
Demeaning that illegal immigration sucks the middle class American life into
futility and future doom.
I relate, and many of us do.
Hard to admit but unless we fall prey to government or union jobs.
The businesses that strangled us as the American worker and entrepreneurs.
Tax paying hard working men and woman now competing, Fighting!. For our Rights. For Respect and the Representation we have EARNED!
With the odds against us we succeeded until the illegal alien invasion that WE KNEW as American workers would one day screw this entire nation.
I never wanted to be the boss. Just to create, improve, and be rewarded with a
wage compensating my hard satisfying work.
Hey Reagen, hey Clinton, hey two Busch's, hey Obama.
All you Republicans and Democrats that allowed and stimulated the fall of Americas middle class and allowed this illegal alien invasion and outsourcing.
We are Broke but still Creative and Strong. And ready to GROW!.
And not by the numbers of ILLEGAL FREAK EN ALIENS.
Been there, done that. Thank you very LITTLE.

I am weary of the constant assault on the character of the American people. We are not "addicted" to cheap labor just as we are not "addicted" to the drugs coming south of the border. Sure some are addicted to drugs and it is human nature to seek the cheapest price and forget that you get what you pay for. See, even people in highest office feel totally OK assaulting the character of the American people with no recognition of the pressures on them that help to create bad decisions. Currently I think there are lots of hopeless jobless young people getting high whenever they can - cuz they can't even get an effing JOB!

This is so ridiculous. This is an example of a sike twist that makes it easier to eat one's own than take the risk of laying the blame on the corporate oligarchs and their puppets in politics - because if you are any good at it you won't live long and it's easier to eat one's own than blaming the illegals because then you will become totally marginalized and ostracized by the false allegations of prejudice - so he has to blame the average American citizen.

I expect people holding office like Hillary Clinton to have better insight, better guidance and more leadership for the US people instead of calling us bad and untrue names. Now the media machine is saying how much respect and admiration she has for so many years. Yeah right!

It is true that often the illegals undercut the price so much that we know they are getting the materials for damn near free. So either there is a hell of a lot of theft that we pay inflated prices to cover or our corporations are giving them a hand-out possibly stimulated by federal financial incentives.

TRAITORS!

I am weary of the constant assault on the character of the American people."

Yeah. everythings great. Just Great!
Sucks to be me.
Really?
I beleave in America but you need to go outside. Como Esta?
Who votes progressive? They must be poor, HIGH, or slave(illegal alien) or owners.
And able to assemble all the above to reach their socialist goals!
With the help of growing union and goverment workers "yippy" and we are just
whiners paying the BILL!
But why would I complain
"Your weary"?
With all due respect. Our actions are relevent. And until you stop denying the problem. There is no solution.
I can be PC and say if your safe and happy? Then our charactor is just dandy!
I am not and I say (man I miss Terry Anderson).
"STUPID PEOPLE OF AMERICA, IF YOU AINT MAD? YOU AINT PAYING ATTENTION "
I love my country but that does not mean I have to like the path we been on and headed.

I called every roofing co in the yellow pgs. this morning they all said they didn't have anything right now but keep trying back, the one place I called I know the owner is Hispanic and uses illegals, they were tearing off a roof I could hear them in the back ground! Yay! All being American has ever gotten me is screwed by my fellow American's (democraps/communists) They think their adding to they're voter base, when all they've done is lose the American vote! Before I found Alipac I was just a dumbass roofer, Damn I miss that guy sometimes!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHfUwBvi ... re=related

Well I would like to hope that blowing off steam here on this forum about the Queen Bee who sets the pace -is relevant. She has clued in to the whole world to blame everything on the American people, which they were doing anyway, but the Queen of Demoralization of the American people is now blaming them for their degradation? I won't accept her blame and I won't let anybody around me keep blaming the American people for everything. Even the illegals blame the American people for the problems in their country.

I'm damn angry. And yes I am weary - hasn't the phrase "Buy American!" (The job you save may be your own) been around more than 40 years now? Not sure what you are saying airdale. All I know is that the low wages means that people can't buy American even though they know they should. It's not a matter of character, it's a matter of survival.

I can pretty near promise anyone that uses illegal labor that the job will be poorly done with substandard materials. They will then pay extra, beyond what they would have paid an American worker, to correct the faulty work and replace the cheap materials.