Hispanic Laborers - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Trakehner · #1 03-26-2008, 09:00 AM

5 years ago in this neighborhood most of the people who shoveled snow, cut lawns, raked, worked in the stables, repaired fences, etc. were black people. Now ALL of the people who do those jobs in this area are hispanic. 5 years ago all the newpaper delivery people were either white or black, now ALL the newspaper delivery people are hispanic.

People say that native born Americans don't want these jobs, but I find that hard to believe. I mean what happened within the last 5 years to make native born Americans decide they didn't want these jobs? If you talk to the hispanic workers they mainly come from Mexico but I met a couple from Honduras, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. My friends say all these laborers and newspaper guys are illegals which I find hard to believe. We have a heavy police presence and security in this neighborhood and I can't imagine an illegal risking a police stop at 6am lol, if they're illegal they can't get a license so they would be risking arrest if stopped.

I was just speaking to a girl from Maine yesterday and surprisingly ALL of the stablehands at her barn are hispanic, 10 years ago they didn't even have hispanics in her town. Anyway, what % of these Central American laborers do you think are illegals?

WVOtoGO · #2 03-26-2008, 09:13 AM

I’m sure glad we’re going out of town tomorrow, and I’ll be away from this forum.

This thread could get nasty fast, and I’d have a hard time staying out of the middle of it.

450slcguy · #3 03-26-2008, 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trakehner

Anyway, what % of these Central American laborers do you think are illegals?

80-90%.

865sp300e · #4 03-26-2008, 09:42 AM

another area where Hispanics have taken over is restaurants, you would be hard pressed to find any non-Hispanic staff in the kitchen. At least thats the way it is in the Northeast.

I have no issue with it, most are great chefs.

Jim B. · #5 03-26-2008, 09:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trakehner

.

I was just speaking to a girl from Maine yesterday and surprisingly ALL of the stablehands at her barn are hispanic, 10 years ago they didn't even have hispanics in her town. Anyway, what % of these Central American laborers do you think are illegals?

Probably 99% of them are illegal.

At the risk of being flamed by people like JohnDoe, Howitzer, Botnst and all those haterz I will tell you this anyway:

Listen: I sponsored my wife through this country, and she was from Peru.
She became a Legal Resident. Later decided to become a naturalised US citizen

Did it the legal way. It was a long, tortuous, process (K-1) Visa, huge amounts of doucmentation collected and compiled (The INS is innundated with applications that are fraudulent.), expensive, long waits, fees to pay, one time a lawyer to consult. It takes a long time, but it worked.

Now those people you see (they are everyplace in big cities all over the country), - minimal skills, barely able to speak English, utterly uneducated, decent, good people except for the fact that they knowingly came here illegally, from $hithole of a 3rd world country with no opportunity to get ahead.

Their home countries are GLAD to be rid of them, because they contribute nothing, and are a burden. What they get instead, is Millions and Millions of dollars remitted to their home country.

Places like Nicaragua get 60% or more of their ENTIRE GNP from $$$ remitted by illegals (and legals) that worked in the USA and sent $$$ home. They all did it. Even my wife and I sent $$$ every month to her family in Peru. It is just done, that is how it is. You see the places in every Latin barrio "ENVIE SU DINERO A MEXICO, EL SALVADOR, NICARAGUA. In San Francisco we used "Jet Peru"

Many Americans, and LEGAL immigrants HATE those people. It is because they Jumped The Line. (The legal way to get to the USA - through the INS line. I know how that works. I got someone through it, so I too despise people that jump the line.)

AMERICANS *HATE* LINE JUMPERS. Try it the next time you are in line for the movies, the bank, the supermarket, or in traffic and just see the reaction you get.

The illegals live in a parallel economy. They try to keep a low profile, with fake ID, no insurance, income tax, things like that, and worry about the police and INS (La Migra)

I have been amongst some of them, met them, shared meals with them, been to their apartments. They are just people trying to make a better life that's all. Very hospitable and good people for the most part, if they trust you.

I despise what they are doing, but then if circumstances of biology and geography had put me in their country, with no hope for better, I likely would be tempted to consider it, ((Jumping the Border) myself.

They call going to El Norte, "La Lucha" ("the fight")

G-Benz · #6 03-26-2008, 10:03 AM

...and THAT, my fellow forum members is the story. Case closed, no need for anyone else to interject or take any nasty stabs at anyone.

Good bead on the issue Jim...

kerry · #7 03-26-2008, 10:27 AM

My wife teaches at a high school with a predominantly Hispanic population. One of her students came in one day with a T-shirt which said, "Let My People Mow."

Jim B. · #8 03-26-2008, 10:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

My wife teaches at a high school with a predominantly Hispanic population. One of her students came in one day with a T-shirt which said, "Let My People Mow."

Yeah, that big thing that sounds like a VW engine they have on their backs.

They call those things "The Mexican Broom" around here.

Dee8go · #9 03-26-2008, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

My wife teaches at a high school with a predominantly Hispanic population. One of her students came in one day with a T-shirt which said, "Let My People Mow."

That's great, Kerry! I love that. You gotta like somebody who can make fun of themselves like that.

WVOtoGO · #10 03-26-2008, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G-Benz

...and THAT, my fellow forum members is the story. Case closed, no need for anyone else to interject or take any nasty stabs at anyone.

Good bead on the issue Jim...

Nice try....

DJ

SwampYankee · #11 03-26-2008, 10:24 AM

Back when I was in the paper delivery business ("retired" a year and a half ago), the vast majority of the carriers were Peruvian or Guatemalan. I hate to say it, but any time a route opened up there'd be a white guy on the job for 2-3 days then they just wouldn't show up. In fact, that's what happened with my route once I gave it up. They had a revolving door for awhile before getting someone reliable. It was so bad that they actually called me up in January to see if I was at all interested in picking it up again. 15 hours a week at $390/wk. wasn't a bad PT job (well, if not for the 7/365 thing. You get used to 4AM rise times.) but I declined as my financial situation had improved enough and I enjoyed cutting that tie.

When we had our 40K sq.ft. roof replaced here at work three or so years ago, outside of the owner and his job supervisor/interpreter there wasn't a non-hispanic on the crew. I was talking to the owner about general business matters and he brought up the point that he could not find an American that would do the job for more than a day. They'd hire a new guy, he'd work for a day and call in the next day with back problems or not show up at all. Every guy on his crew is Peruvian, Guatemalan or Mexican. They show up every day, on time, do their job, never complain about having to work overtime, go home and repeat.

Every farmer or landscape contractor that backs up to our loading dock will tell the same story.

andersbenz · #12 03-28-2008, 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SwampYankee

Back when I was in the paper delivery business ("retired" a year and a half ago), the vast majority of the carriers were Peruvian or Guatemalan. I hate to say it, but any time a route opened up there'd be a white guy on the job for 2-3 days then they just wouldn't show up. story.

Funny how the world changes. Thirty years ago newspapers were delivered by young teenagers on bicycles. I had 35 customers on my route and was also responsible for collecting the money every other Saturday. I did it for three years rain, snow or shine. I had to learn how to keep records (accounts receivables), deal with tardy payers and to make sure I had someone to back me up if I went on vacation. My customers always got their Norwalk Hour.

This job taught me and countless other boys (and later girls) valuable lessons as a 14 year old. Plus the daily 5 mile bike ride in hilly southern Connecticut kept me in pretty good shape.

Now back to the immigrant issue.

Trakehner · #13 03-28-2008, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andersbenz

Funny how the world changes. Thirty years ago newspapers were delivered by young teenagers on bicycles. I had 35 customers on my route and was also responsible for collecting the money every other Saturday. I did it for three years rain, snow or shine. I had to learn how to keep records (accounts receivables), deal with tardy payers and to make sure I had someone to back me up if I went on vacation. My customers always got their Norwalk Hour.

This job taught me and countless other boys (and later girls) valuable lessons as a 14 year old. Plus the daily 5 mile bike ride in hilly southern Connecticut kept me in pretty good shape.

Now back to the immigrant issue.

When did paperboys on bicycles disappear? Why did they disappear? You had 35 customers, I wonder how many customers these guys who zoom around in their cars have.

SwampYankee · #14 03-28-2008, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andersbenz

Funny how the world changes. Thirty years ago newspapers were delivered by young teenagers on bicycles. I had 35 customers on my route and was also responsible for collecting the money every other Saturday. I did it for three years rain, snow or shine. I had to learn how to keep records (accounts receivables), deal with tardy payers and to make sure I had someone to back me up if I went on vacation. My customers always got their Norwalk Hour.

This job taught me and countless other boys (and later girls) valuable lessons as a 14 year old. Plus the daily 5 mile bike ride in hilly southern Connecticut kept me in pretty good shape.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trakehner

When did paperboys on bicycles disappear? Why did they disappear? You had 35 customers, I wonder how many customers these guys who zoom around in their cars have.

Since I can go off-subject with the best of them...

When I first started with the Hartford Courant almost 11 years ago now, I was paid to pickup the bundles of papers in my truck and drop them off to 8-10 carriers (mostly kids) at their houses. Then deliver the Sunday inserts on Saturday (in my case I had to put a high-rise cap on and use the back seat of a crew cab-it was over a ton for the inserts) so that they could pre-assemble them. That really was stupid easy money, almost $1600/mo.

Then about 5 years ago (shortly after the Tribune bought them) due to cost cutting they went to a depot pickup where every carrier had to pick their papers up at a local depot (in my case Hartford) by 4-4:30 depending on the day thus eliminating my original job and the age of the paperboy and papergirl in CT. I picked up a nice route of 280 houses with about 170 being bag & toss in the driveway or the tubes at the driveways so I was able to bang out a lot in a hurry and still be done in time for breakfast and a break before getting to work at the real job at 7. It was still good money for a PT job that left your after work hours free for family stuff but nothing like it was when I started.

After I left they cut out good performance bonuses every 6 months (usually a few hundred bucks) and starting charging table rental fees to all of the carriers whether you use your tables or not. I got out just in time, although I have subbed for friends on a couple of occasions since then. Needless to say the quality and reliability of the carriers has suffered.

Dee8go · #15 03-26-2008, 10:47 AM

What are you doing, hanging out with those criminal elements, Jim?

This is really a tough issue. I guess it would have already been resolved if that were not the case.