Day Laborers

Bright and early last Friday morning, Jeanette and I dropped by four day laborer corners to spread the word over the new Wage Theft Ordinance. Prepared with fliers we had previously made, summarizing wage theft and steps to take in order to make a claim with Small Business Development, we approached the workers, who first were skeptical and hesitant. But after conversationally talking with them, we were able to build some trust and confidence. By the end of the visit at the first Home Depot location, the workers were bunched together, interested in what we had to say and asking us further questions about making a complaint.

At the other corners, we had similar reactions and eventually ran out of our fliers (but not water!). It was very interesting to see what kind of information the workers reacted most to. For next time, we'll have to mend the flier to make it more applicable.

During one stop, we surprisingly ran into a worker who had already turned in a complaint form! Accompanying him were two friends/workers who told us that they were doing the same the following week. How great to see the ordinance already in use and how bizarre that we ran into one of its users!

Over all, I'm glad we got to spread some word about the ordinance to day laborers. And I feel that I definitely gained a better understanding of the average day of a day laborer, even if just a small amount.

Women's Coop

Yesterday, I attended a Wage Theft Task Force meeting in which more details on the Implementing Order were discussed. Afterwards, since the meeting was held at Chuch by the Sea in Bal Harbour, I got to see the kitchen in which the new women's coop would operate.

The Community Stewards Catering Cooperative is made up of women who have worked mainly as housekeepers and caregivers and who are dedicated to educate others, especially women, on issues related to worker justice and rights.

Back from Detroit

At the beginning of the forum, I attended a workshop put on by Domestic Workers United, which focused primarily on the New York State campaign for the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights. (It was passed last thursday - July 1st)

On the panel were workers and organizers who had been working with the campaign for about six years. Though not all of the proposed benefits were approved by the state, the passage of the Bill of Rights marks a significant victory for domestic workers, who are explicitly excluded from most labor laws and protections.

During the next few days, I participated in workshops on wage theft and immigration reform and heard of the work being done across the country - especially in New York and California.

Apart from the workshops, I saw a great deal of people representing domestic worker and worker justice groups at the forum.

During my first week back, I have been interviewing more workers on health and safety in the workplace in addition to putting together information on domestic workers to educate the public more on the issues that they face daily.