Preserving And Promoting Day Laborer Rights

Some of the workers participating in the second week of Hardscape classes.

Some of us residents of the US are familiar with how some immigrants obtain work - through day labor centers. I used to see these workers around the residential treatment center after a resident had flooded a living area, and it's not uncommon that immigrant workers do gardening, lawn maintenance, and housekeeping in the common areas of the apartment complex where I live.

However, frequently enough, with day labor hiring facilities can come abuses, such as low pay, no benefits, long hours, verbal and physical abuse. So, when you see a day labor center that has much better practices, you really take note. That is true at the GRATON DAY LABOR CENTER in West Sonoma County, California. The center is run by workers and strives to maintain the dignity and rights of its workers. It seeks to negotiate a fair and transparent hiring process between workers and employers. Those who run Graton have fifteen years of experience in organizing workers, so are familiar with the type of work conditions that lead to a dignified and respectful work setting.



The center has also established a program, Women's Action and Solidarity Alliance (ALMAS), which focuses on female domestic workers. This program strives to build the power of the women they service through leadership programs and workforce development. This program comes at a time when there has been some focus on human trafficking, with some tendency of employers of domestic workers to engage in this exploitive and abusive enterprise. By having ALMAS, the women of the Sonoma Valley become more empowered and can organize against the forces that promote those violations of their rights.

By the way, if you are an employer seeking to hire these hard-working and skilled workers, Graton has a pay scale for its jobs that are posted on the web site. A striking thing about the wage scale is that it authorizes pay at a living rate, that allows its workers to afford housing and other necessities. Its lowest wage starts at $15 per hour, for those engaged in general labor, and lists the work tasks for which these workers can be engaged.

Some of the panelists at a discussion of Realities of Agricultural Farmworker Women.

Today, Graton Day Labor Center, along with the Committee for Social Justice in Mexico (CJSM), has invited the public to a talk with Father Alejandro Solalinde. Father Solalinde is director of a migrant hostel, situated on the route from Central and South America, to the US border. His organization provides humanitarian assistance to those making the journey. Father Solalinde has frequently spoken out against the abuses of criminally-engaged transporters and brokers, along with some Mexican authorities, who frequently abuse and exploit those who are migrating to the US border. He has been so vocal about these issues that his life has been threatened.

Joining together at a community celebration.

Thanks for information from the Graton Day Labor Center home page; this article on Graton Day Labor Center: http://www.gratondaylabor.org/almas; this post on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/611207175706443/; and the above link.

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