May-Day News Ping!
Posted on 05/01/2006 4:17:43 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
Chinese food or a hamburger were easy to come by in the Mission District on Monday. Doughnuts or bagels? No problem. But in a neighborhood where every other storefront seems to house a tacqueria, you would have been hard-pressed to find a burrito.
With leaders of the national "Day Without Immigrants" calling for an economic boycott, many Hispanic-owned businesses closed for the day in the city's unofficial Latin quarter and throughout California, encouraging employees to participate in the massive protest marches.
"Today, no - no working and no buying," said Enrique Varguas, 28, who rescheduled a dozen or so landscaping appointments so he could participate in San Francisco's demonstration. "They will see how much money immigrants spend, and how much immigrants contribute to the economy of the country."
Though participation in the work stoppage was uneven and hard to gauge, its impact was hardly limited to Hispanic neighborhoods in a state that relies heavily on immigrant labor. Building contractors in many communities canceled jobs, appliance stores curtailed deliveries, parents scrambled to make alternative child care arrangements and farms had fewer people to pick produce.
At the state Capitol in Sacramento, the California Legislature canceled its floor sessions and the two onsite cafeterias remained latched because not enough employees showed up. Yet many large manufacturers, including the Farmer John meatpacking plant in Los Angeles and Gallo Wine's plants in Modesto, Fresno, Sonoma and other cities reported they were near fully staffed.
Jack Kyser, chief economist of the Los Angeles Economic development Corp., said the economic fallout of the one-day boycott could be as high as $200 million in Los Angeles County. The estimate, a fraction of the $1.2 billion in economic activity the county generates daily, consisted of business lost on Monday and took into consideration commerce that would be made up later in the week.
Throughout the state, employers seemed eager to accommodate employees if they could. Fencing contractor Justin Lena had to postpone five of the six jobs he had scheduled in the San Francisco suburbs until Saturday after 14 of his 16 employees said they would not be coming to work.
Lena filled in, shoveling gravel. But he wasn't upset, especially after his most veteran employee told him his friends and family would be angry with him if he breached the boycott.
"The Mexican guys I have who work for me, they are absolutely fantastic workers. I've had Asian, I've had black and I've had white. (Hispanics) are the most hardworking, dedicated, family oriented, focused people I've ever had work for me," said Lena, 26. "The backbone of my business is on their shoulders."
Carmen Murray, owner of Rodeo Carpet Mills in Commerce, Calif., said she was operating on a skeleton staff Monday as two-thirds of her 33-person work force took the day off to attend rallies. She said her workers asked weeks in advance and were allowed to use vacation time.
"We thought it was important for them and we wanted to support their feelings," Murray said.
In food-loving San Francisco, owner Laurie Thomas made a deal with workers at her Rose Pistola restaurant: she would keep the Italian eatery shut for lunch if the night crew promised to show up for dinner. A sign on the door informed patrons of the closure, but didn't give the reason.
"I don't feel compelled to make a big statement about it," Thomas said. "We need to do what's right to run the business and sometimes that includes compromise."
Farmworker advocates claimed the boycott put a significant dent in one of the state's signature industries. The United Farm Workers union said the boycott shut down grape, strawberry and citrus harvests throughout California for the day.
"This really demonstrates the power that we have when we're unified," UFW President Arturo Rodriguez said from a rally in Salinas.
But agricultural interests said farmers were prepared for the boycott and would probably not suffer. Many farms and packing plants let their workers take the time off while others rearranged schedules to make up for missed work on Monday, California Farm Bureau Federation spokesman Dave Kranz said.
Sean McNally, a spokesman for Grimmway Farms in Bakersfield, said the company was down to less than 30 percent of its normal work force, but didn't have to close any of its vegetable-growing operations.
"We made it clear there would be no repercussions if they wanted to take that day off. We wanted them to feel free to express themselves," McNally said.
While industries with heavily Hispanic staffs saw the biggest impact, the boycott also had a trickle-down effect. Bay Area 2nd Mom Inc., a Palo Alto-based caregiver referral service, saw a sharp increase in calls on Sunday and Monday from parents who needed a last-minute nanny or baby sitter, said Chief Executive Shalini Azariah.
"Today our phones are just ringing off the hook," Azariah said.
For some enterprises, that meant a boon in business. With so most other restaurants closed, Wan Kee, a Chinese restaurant in San Francisco's Mission District, did brisk lunchtime business.
"We have to eat, too," said Francisco Sanchez, 25, an ice cream vendor, tucking into a plate of rice and stir-friend scallops before he headed off to San Francisco's protest.
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Associated Press Writers Terence Chea, Gary Gentile, Olivia Munoz and Don Thompson contributed to this story.
But you gotta look at the bigger picture...the usual WalMart crowd was staying home and producing more anchor babies.
I'm uneducated...I'm a peasant...I may or may not be...But I can sleep at night knowing I didn't cheat some American out of a job...And then brag about it...
Yes, let's try for a week without illegals.
Then for a month and then for a year.
I think we just might survive without them forever.
Call the zoning board and ask how many people are allowed in a single family home. If possible give the square footage. That's what we're doing in Northern CA.
It was great here today - shopping and driving 101 North hasn't been this easy to navigate in a very long time!
Let us know what kind of shanty you live in? We already know you're a low life.
Yes... It will be a perilous undertaking, but I'm willing to face the danger!
I have heard that from so many people I can't believe anyone still think they are "saving" money by hiring cheap unskilled labor. You may pay more for licensed contractors, but they are well worth it. I would not feel safe allowing an unlicensed worker to be responsible for the electricity or plumbing or gas lines....it is a safety issue. You got exactly what you paid for.....cheap crappy work.
are you confessing to supporting illegals, or distinguishing between those here legally doing the right thing and those who aren't?
My anger on this issue is aimed at the people who spit in our faces with their mex flags, gringo, white get off our land, crapola.
Those employers should be investigated. I have ot seen any businesses closed here in Santa Monica, but I have not walked the entire city. ;^)
"For some enterprises, that meant a boon in business. With so most other restaurants closed, Wan Kee, a Chinese restaurant in San Francisco's Mission District, did brisk lunchtime business."
From the grammar in the above sentence, I think old Wan himself must have written this part.
Thank you.
At least you are not a sanctimonious jerk like the one I am sparring with now.
My wife went to Walmart on Sunday. Normally it is almost deserted with all the local LDS population at church. It was wall to wall Mexicans stocking up so they could put on a show today.
When the 2700 square foot house across the street from us sold, and turned into a rental, that was our cue to leave a neighborhood and a city that had been steadily deteriorating for the past ten years.
It broke our hearts, because it used to be a beautiful little city, but the crime, the congestion, the quality of life destroyed, left us with no other choice.
We're now in a tiny little town on the Oregon Coast. The weather this past winter was quite challenging, but it's quiet and peaceful here. We still get a lot more rain and a lot less warm sunshine than we did in California, but we're content. We were just getting too darned old to put up with all the craziness in California.
Hey, we all make mistakes. I laughed my butt off at the guy who has been building all over our neighborhood....he has been the bain of my existence for over 5 years with continued construction all around us. He hired some illegals & a neighbor tipped off the unions. He was picketed & then had to hire the union to tear down the shoddy work & re-do it. Cost him 10 times more than it would have if he had hired the union guys to start with....couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. hahahaha
I'm sure!
Thanks.
"It was wall to wall Mexicans stocking up so they could put on a show today."
Can't people who come here with nothing but the shirts on their backs learn to stockpile stuff like a True American? LOL! I could live comfortably without a trip to Wal-Mart for 30 days, easily. My Mom could hold out for 60-90 days based on her stash. ;)
More than enough proof to me that illegals don't want to "assimilate into our culture." And, yes, I'm being a smart @ss. :)
Why can't people do their own landscaping instead of hiring illegals? I do all of mine and I live on over 3/4 of an acre. Maybe if Americans went back to doing their own work outside and inside instead of hiring all these illegals, this County would be a lot better off. No illegal would have ever come close to taking care of my kids -- I was a stay-at-home Mom. Our home may not have been picture perfect because I did the work inside and out but my kids were sure a lot happier that I was home and our house had that lived in look.
Gardners and housekeepers are a waste of money IMHO for healthy individuals who could use the exercise! Wonder how many illegals are hired to do those jobs?
What a boor you are.
Oh, let me retract that. You're a jerk!....
oh, ... you're from Michigan. You have no concept of market forces.
Furthernore, you are ignorant.
A boor DOES NOT mean you're boring. It means you're a boor:
1. A person with rude, clumsy manners and little refinement.
2. A peasant.
See 133. You're still uneducated.
Let us know what kind of shanty you live in? We already know you're a low life.
It's pretty clear you and I would be on opposite sides of the street during this protest...I'd be on the American side...
You're still an ignorant bufoon!
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