Evolution of labor center

[EDITOR’S NOTE: A ruling is expected soon on a lawsuit filed by anti-illegal immigration activist Eileen Garcia and conservative law group Judicial Watch seeking to force Laguna Beach to close its Day Labor Site. Lawyers on both sides will head into the courtroom for oral arguments today. On the eve of the decision, the Coastline Pilot looks at the history of the site, how it came to be, and what could happen if it is forced to close.]

In the late 1980s, Michael Kinsman noticed a growing problem. From windows of the North Laguna office shared by him and his wife, future Councilwoman Cheryl Kinsman, Michael would watch daily as workers, mostly Latino, gathered in lots and on the streets to seek jobs from contractors looking for cheap day labor.

Workers would urinate and drink in public, Kinsman said. They would mob the cars of contractors or even people slowing to look for an address.

“It was a major problem down there,” Kinsman said.

Believing that many of the labor-seekers could be illegal immigrants without work papers, he called Immigration and Naturalization Service (now Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE) five or six times. He said there was never any response.

Kinsman’s concerns were shared by many residents in the area, and in 1993 many approached the Laguna Beach City Council seeking help.

In May of that year, the council passed an ordinance that banned soliciting work on Laguna’s streets. It also passed an ordinance that said all job seeking would be restricted to an unused dirt patch along Laguna Canyon Road. The Day Labor Site was born.

The site serves as a place for day laborers to gather and for contractors to pick up workers. They are hired on a job-by-job basis, sometimes by people working on personal projects, often by professional contractors to work on a job site.

Safety concerns

City Manager Ken Frank said the city established the site due to a public safety concern. The Day Labor Site provided a place where workers could gather without hindering traffic in North Laguna neighborhoods. Although the site was designated by the city, city staff didn’t organize or operate it.

But the city put in improvements to make it more palatable and hygienic for the job-seekers. The city put in a portable toilet and ran a water line to the site for a drinking fountain. They also planted some trees for shade. These were out of necessity, Frank said.

“You can’t just put people there all day and not expect to have some problems with sanitary issues and basic needs,” Frank said.

Because the city had no intention of developing the land and only designated it as a place for people to go, Frank said they didn’t need to go to the Coastal Commission for a coastal development permit.

“We just thought it was unused right-of-way,” Frank said. “All over town unused right-of-way is used for parking.”

The permit issue arose after questions about the legality of the site were raised by activist Eileen Garcia, who began protesting the center in 2005 with the Minuteman Project, an anti-illegal immigration group.

Coastal Commission officials couldn’t be reached for comment about whether permits would now be required for the site.

According to facts agreed upon by both sides in the legal dispute, David Peck, chairman of the of the Crosscultural Council, which operates the site day-to-day, “is aware that some of the day laborers who utilize the center to obtain employment may be undocumented aliens.”

Workers sought help

Despite the designated site, problems still existed when the workers competed for jobs and surrounded vehicles.

The workers themselves approached the city and asked if there was some way to better organize the Day Labor Center, Peck said. In response, Laguna Beach handed over control to the Crosscultural Council in 1999.

The Crosscultural Council is a Laguna-based nonprofit group that tries to promote harmony between local English and Spanish-speaking populations. “We had a mission statement to bridge the gap between English and Spanish speakers in the community,” Peck said.

The partnership accomplished both the safety goals of city and the cultural goals of the council, Peck said.

City grant funding

Laguna Beach has provided grant money to the Crosscultural Council from the city’s community assistance fund every year since 1999. The grants are usually $21,000 to $22,000 and was $40,000 in 2000. Beginning this year, it also pays $420 a month in rent to Caltrans, which owns the roadside parcel of land.

That provides part of the roughly $41,000 needed to operate the Day Labor Site. The Crosscultural Council raises the rest through donations.

The money covers both the staff and the services the council provides to workers including health check-ups, food distribution, and English instruction.

With the Crosscultural Council at the helm, the laborers have seen facility improvements, a staff, and a re-organized hiring process. A small temporary building was installed as an office in 2000 and a gate was added to keep workers from rushing contractors. Picnic tables were put in near the trees.

Workers arrive early

Irma Ronses, a graduate of La Playa, oversees the day to day operation of the site. She says workers arrive at 6 a.m. and sign in. Each worker fills out a form with their name, telephone number, and address. If they have it, a worker will be asked to show identification. If they don’t have ID, center staff will take a picture and keep it on file with the worker’s paperwork.

The center does not ask about the workers’ immigration status or if they have authorization to seek employment in the United States, Ronses said.

Workers are asked to give a $1 donation for the service, which is reimbursed if a person remains unhired at the end of the day.

Lottery system

Jobs are awarded by a lottery system to keep the hiring process fair and organized. Workers draw numbers and are put on a hiring list based on that order. Peck says that if the site were operated on a first-come first-served basis, workers would show up at midnight and “camp out” waiting their turn.

About a third of the laborers who seek work at the site will be hired out on an average day.

The work fluctuates with some days seeing very slow hires and other days booming. Workers travel from surrounding cities like Lake Forest, Laguna Niguel and even as far as Santa Ana to vie for jobs. The work sites they are hired for are equally far-flung.

While waiting for work, day laborers mill about, chatting or playing cards. The irregular jobs are what support many of their families.

“We’re trying to survive day by day,” said Manuel Hernandez, one of the workers who uses the center.

Workers who have used the site for many years say the level of organization helps. Mario Ladan, another day laborer, said the system keeps it fair for the workers. It also encourages people to use the site, because they feel safer without being rushed by the group.

The system protects both workers and contractors from being taken advantage of. The center acts as an intermediary between the groups. If a hiring party has a problem with a worker, the center will act on it.

By the same token, the center protects workers from getting stiffed by a contractor unwilling to pay.

“The workers got ripped off a lot more before,” Peck said.

Like the workers, contractors give all their contact information to the center. The contractors are asked to give a $5 donation for using the site and while most do, the donation is optional.

“Sometimes they say they can’t because they don’t have money, and that’s OK,” Ronses said.

Laborers are picked up for any number of jobs. They tell of doing everything from laying foundations to installing roofing.

“When I need money, I’ll do anything you want,” Ladan said.