"Who Will Work In the West?" ---- Are we forcing businesses to hire foreign labor?

[bobbolink]

Months ago, I was distressed to find that not only was the local McDonald's bringing in young kids from Brazil to work there, but they were then putting them in a cheap motel in a town up the highway, stacked several to a room, and forcing the other workers to go pick them up and deliver them to their shift, then take them back---without paying the transportation costs. All while the owner rakes in the profits.

A LOT of this problem is because there is NO low-income housing in the area. People can't afford to live here and work here. This has already happened in Vail, where for years now, the ski industry can't find enough people to fill their jobs.

What is it going to take for affluent people to understand that even if they can't care about others, it's in THEIR OWN BEST INTEREST to make sure workers have good housing they can afford right in their communities?

Please read the full article.... this should be an eye-opener, and will happen all over the U.S.!

http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_8401233
Who will work in West's towns?

"One day last summer, I gave directions to two young Asian women on bicycles who were looking for the grocery store. Further chatting revealed that they weren't tourists. In scattershot English, they told me that they were from Thailand and had come to Cody, Wyo., on temporary work visas to serve up hamburgers in Wendy's. As they smilingly pedaled away, I called after them: "Welcome to Cody!"

~~snip~~

In 1994, the Cody business community could count on a seemingly inexhaustible supply of cheap labor. Summertime Cody was full of lively and ambitious high school and college kids. The updated daily list at the state job service office showed about 20 jobs, even in summer. Today, it is about 80 in midwinter, and up to 200 in summer — 200 jobs that nobody wants. The service economy has expanded greatly in 14 years. In 1994, McDonald's was Cody's only fast-food restaurant; now there are a dozen. We have a chronically understaffed Wal-Mart Super Center. A Walgreens store will be under construction downtown this spring. But who will work there?

There are upsides to the employment crunch: It's harder to get fired, and the increasingly desperate business community has to keep raising wages and incentives. You won't find many local young people at Wendy's, though. These cellphone-toting, skateboarding high school and college kids are so prosperous — thanks to mom and dad — many don't need to work at all.

Fourteen years ago, a reasonable rental housing market provided homes for the service economy folks. No more. As trophy homes rise in the surrounding countryside, Cody itself is gentrifying, and $300 apartments now rent for twice that. Throw in $3 gas and inflation at the grocery store, and the rising wages don't come close to covering basic expenses.

~~snip~~

But here's what I see happening: Many of the people working multiple jobs — wherever they come from — will be forced to leave town. As for the business sector, it will "howl like gutshot panthers," as our colorful favorite son Alan Simpson might put it, while asking themselves: "Who will work?"

[hedgehog]

1. It's all right for kids to work in the summer, but school IS a full time

job if they are being asked to learn anything. If a person can't support a family in a service job, then something is wrong.

[bobbolink]

2. Indeed, something is VERY wrong! HOUSING!

And the hoity-toity people in these towns are going to be paying the price for their short-sighted exclusivity!

[hedgehog]

3. It's one thing to try and hide the garbage cans in a tidy shed, but

too many up-scale communitities try to hide the people that keep things running! I love my sister's retirement community - trucks are not allowed after certain hours!

[bobbolink]

5. "up-scale communitities try to hide the people that keep things running"

EXCELLENTLY worded!

:applause:

The ignorance is appalling, and will result in shooting their elite selves in their elite feet!

[annabanana]

9. (if it doesn't result in their workers shooting their elite selves in their

elite heads)

[bobbolink]

12. Now THERE'S an idea!

:think:

:rofl:

[Captain Angry]

4. These types of neighborhoods don't provide the basics.

Fire and Police are allowed to keep the neighborhood safe, but they can't afford to live in the town they protect.

Same with teachers.

[bobbolink]

28. And those are muddleclass workers! Think about those a step down....

who also can't afford to commute from another town.

:cry:

[The Straight Story]

6. kicking (nt)

[Warpy]

7. We'd be glad to do any job that pays a wage we can survive on

which is something a chicken processor found out in Georgia when his illegal workforce was rounded up a couple of years ago. He raised the hourly wage by a dollar and was inundated with legal applicants.

This constant whine of "Americans won't work" should be mentally translated into "Americans won't work for nothing!"

[caseycoon]

8. K&R This is a very real problem in many places

Housing for low income folks is disappearing. You almost have to have 2 parents, each working a full time & a part time job to support a family. Another problem is that more often these days businesses only hire people part time so they don't have to pay benefits. What can you do if you're an unskilled worker? get 3 or 4 jobs? :shrug: I don't know, but it doesn't look good.

[bobbolink]

10. It doesn't look good because we've let profit rule! Like health care,

I'm afraid that until it hits the muddleclass between their elite eyes, it will be ignored.

[undergroundpanther]

11. K'n'R!!

[HCE SuiGeneris]

13. K & R

A very real, pressing, concern. Thank you for the article.

[Joanne98]

14. They're taking the Wendy's jobs too?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmANxHJ6s9M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxJdEqaCcGc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7wsBNqM8AQ&feature=related

Ha Ha Ha America!!!!!!

[pamela]

15. Proud to give this a rec!

This is happening at a beach resort near me. College kids used to live there in droves in the summer and wait tables, wash dishes, etc. A lot of people, including myself, put themselves through college by living, and working, at the beach in the summer. These days, the only ones who can afford to live there are the ones who don't need to work in the first place. Their folks own condos there, which sit empty 9 months out of the year.

Meanwhile, the businesses have an agreement with the state for special dispensation on the immigration laws. They get special work visas and bring in young people from Sweden. The locals don't mind "those immigrants" because they are blond, white girls. The businesses are allowed to house these girls in apartments and condos in numbers that wouldn't normally be allowed. The kids that used to (happily!) take those jobs to pay their state college tuition, aren't allowed to rent places in the numbers they would need to be able to pay the rent.

Some weeks in the summer, this town has the second largest population in the state but in the winter it is a ghost town. There is nothing about this town that makes it inhabitable in the winter, there is just no one there. People close up their condos and apartments and businesses shut down. But here's the kicker. They have more homelessness in this town than in any of the neighboring towns, by far. And yet massive amounts of housing sets empty for months. It's insane.

[Joanne98]

16. That SUCKS!

[bobbolink]

20. "businesses have an agreement with the state for special dispensation "

Absolutely incredible!!

How can people just ignore this?

Does anyone actually THINK anymore?

THINK... it only hurts for a little while.

Thanks so much for what you've added to this discussion.. this is so incredible, and yet... doesn't seem to be "sexy" enough...

:(

:hug:

[Morereason]

24. It is happening all over. Check out the businesses in tourist towns. Funny they never needed to

import labor before, only when it became convenient.

The trend I have seen is instead of a single small business or franchise owner working along side the help, they now like to bring workers in, they buy several franchises and fill them with cheap labor, manage them as they scrape by and suck out the profits at the top.

With non local labor you don't have to feel as bad, since you don't have to feel as guilty for not paying your local help well. You can house temporary labor in sub standard "dorm" conditions as well. No worry about paying enough for them to actually live in the community.

I wish more of our younger generation would wake up. They have no idea how hard it is going to be to make a living when they get to be 40 if this keeps up.

[bobbolink]

31. "they buy several franchises and fill them with cheap labor,"

Yup, supposed to be the "work ethic", but it's all now the "PROFIT ETHIC".

How do we stop this shit???

[Kajsa]

17. It happened right here in OC, in Anaheim.

Workers at Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm and all the big hotels
around the convention center need affordable housing.

There was a tract available but the Disney Corp. fought it in court
as they wanted the tract for expansion of Disneyland.

As far as I know, Disney Corp. prevailed and now the tract will NOT be available
for affordable housing.

It's disgraceful!

Thanks for sharing this, Bobbie.

Edit to add link,

http://theliberaloc.com/2007/08/01/can-disney-agree-to-affordable-housing-in-anaheim/

I couldn't get anything more recent.

[bobbolink]

18. Thanks for adding that, with the link. You're right...it's disgraceful!

:hug:

[Kajsa]

19. -----

:hug:

[dajoki]

21. This is happening...

where I live also. Mexicans and Chineese people are working the lowest paying jobs (even for the low standards here) and living in groups of at least 15 to a house. From what I know they have no furniture, tv or any "conveniences". I have seen them riding bicycles and walking the highways to work (very dangerous).

There is no excuse for this because there are plenty of empty houses here just sitting and rotting. But I imagine its cheaper for the employer to keep them all together, and isn't that the way it always goes, whatever is best for the boss?

This sickens me to see this going on in this small town where I live and everybody knows everything about everybody. It is going on right under our Repub Mayor's nose, but he is also most likely "benefitting" by it, if you know what I mean.

K&R

[bobbolink]

26. Why do you think it's being accepted by "the rank and file"?

Because "as long as it isn't happening to me, who cares?"

It's scary what we're becoming as a nation, but it's much more scary that we allow it and aren't the least bothered by it!

Thanks for the report of your litte town!

:hug:

[dajoki]

29. Yeah, my little town...

is as crooked as the day is long, that is the problem here. Mayor, Council, Municipal Authority, they fight like crazy to get in those positions, for one reason, KICKBACKS!! I have always said that the politicians around here just love the status quo, keeps their jobs easy, just the way they like it.

We used to be a coal mining town, as I showed you with my "tonka toys", but it is dying and there is nothing left, no industry of any kind. The hometown stores have disappeared because of the Malls and Wal-Mart, many houses on EVERY block are boarded up, abandoned. Back in the 40's, 50's and 60's the place was thriving with a population of around 20,000, but since the 70's it has been a steady decline, today we have about 6,000 people left. Kids are leaving in droves and you can't blame them, there is absolutely nothing here for them.

I know that we are not the only ones hit like this, but the sad part is that there is NO attempt to do anything, it even seems like they want it this way. I'll give you an example of the kind of shit that goes on here, its so sad and so true that its funny. The Cops have very little to do except harrass the poor drunks coming out of the bars. They hide around the corner from bars in order to catch drunk drivers, OK, their keeping the roads safe, BUT here's the kicker, they are now arresting people for "walking drunk", NO KIDDING!! A quote from the Mayor: "what if one of the drunks stumbles into the street and gets hit by a car, we can't have dead drunks laying all over the streets", ABSOLUTELY 100% TRUE!! So you see what I mean by sad and funny at the same time? Oh, and the Mayor takes his once a year walk through town to, now get this, LOOK FOR WEEDS AND HIGH GRASS in people's yards so he can fine them!! Again, sad and funny!!

:cry: :rofl:

[question everything]

22. I wonder how many foreclosures occurred in Cody

and how the prices of these "trophy homes" have held up.

[bobbolink]

27. So far, the rich seem to be doing just fine.

And, they aren't yet bothered by their services going to foreign workers.

As more places become like Vail, and can't find workers to fill the jobs, we'll see how that plays out.

[SoCalDem]

23. aah Vail .. you reminded me of how it used to be..

summer of '66.. two of my friends worked at a place in Vail..FREE room & board (4 to a room in a dorm-like building at the resort) They worked 3 days..off 2..and 3 again so everyone had to work a weekend here and there and when they were off..they had the run of the place..and all the amenities were free.. True, they did not make much more than tips, but what a great summer they had.. they even had the use of a jeep..

one of the girls ended up meeting a guy and stayed there to go to college in Colorado

Kids USED to be able to make enough at a summer job, to pay for their next year of school or to buy a car OUTRIGHT...no financing.. or for spending money at college or just for a new wardrobe..

It was a carefree time.. I feel sad for the young people today :(

[bobbolink]

30. Yet, will students today be upset over this, and vote accordingly?

Or become activists?

Heh... probably be just content to have the latest cd and dvd, and that's all that matters.

:(

[Greyhound]

25. K & R

:kick: & R