Racial geographies and the challenges of day labor formalization: a case study from San Diego County

Crotty, Sean M.; Bosco, Fernando J.

doi:10.1080/08873630802433830

Cited by 13 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Joassart-Marcelli have a median hourly wage of $8.54, compared to $13.94 for all occupations. A similar pattern is observed for recent Mexican immigrant men, whose occupational niches are also characterized by low median hourly wages, except for construction, which is a highly polarized occupation where unionized employment coexists alongside informal or day laborer jobs (Crotty & Bosco, 2008;Valenzuela, 2003).…”

supporting

confidence: 68%

Gender, social network geographies, and low-wage employment among recent Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles

Joassart‐Marcelli

2014

Urban Geography

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This article explores gender differences in the characteristics, spatiality, and capacities of local social networks and their impacts on the employment of recent Mexican immigrants to Los Angeles. After describing the institutional landscape of the regional labor market that new entrants must navigate to find work, I turn to unique and detailed data from a randomized household survey of Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles County. I analyze the role of friends, family members, and neighbors in shaping occupational segregation and hourly earnings of those who migrated to the region during the preceding 5 years. Results suggest that local social networks operate differently for men and women and tend to reinforce differences in mobility and employment. This research contributes both empirically and theoretically to literature on immigrant economic integration by showing how uneven urban labor markets are constituted spatially through gendered networks that connect workers differently to homes, communities, and work places.

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supporting

confidence: 68%

Gender, social network geographies, and low-wage employment among recent Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles

Joassart‐Marcelli

2014

Urban Geography

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“…Only when members of the government, or their constituents, view the use of space as problematic does an informal hiring site challenge government authority. There are three general options available to governments for day‐labor management: formalization of space, annihilation of space, or the most common approach, leaving day‐labor activities formally unmanaged (Crotty and Bosco ). However, when faced with a day‐labor‐related crisis, leaving day‐labor formally unmanaged is no longer a viable option.…”

Section: Approaches To Day‐labor Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Their argument presupposes that all of the workers who use a center are illegal immigrants; this is, in fact, not the case. The demographic and legal status of labor populations in the U.S. varies regionally, between hiring sites in a given metropolitan area, and even depending on the time of day at a specific site (Crotty ; Crotty and Bosco ; Valenzuela et al ). Thanks to the popular understanding of day‐laborer as synonymous with illegal immigrant, this argument still holds political sway (Varsanyi ) .…”

Section: Workers Centers and City‐sponsored Shape‐up Sites: Formalizimentioning

confidence: 99%

Can the Informal Economy Be “Managed”?: Comparing Approaches and Effectiveness of Day‐Labor Management Policies in the San Diego Metropolitan Area

Crotty¹

2016

Growth and Change

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Day‐labor hiring sites are found in more than 120 municipalities across the U.S., there is limited research examining the specific drivers that generate direct interventions into the day‐labor market, nor is there any research examining the effectiveness of day‐labor management policies. In what follows, I draw on examples from the San Diego Metropolitan Area (SDMA) to address this gap in policy‐research. The findings demonstrate the pervasiveness of neoliberal ideology in day‐labor management, from policing strategies to social service provision. In each case examined, local governments only took direct action when they believed day‐labor activity threatened local commercial activity or when residents' fear of “illegal immigrant” day‐laborers made them question the state's ability to control space effectively. In each case, I also evaluate the effectiveness and cost of the management strategy. The results of this analysis clearly demonstrate that attempts to eliminate day‐labor activity are costly and expensive while efforts to formalize day‐labor cost less and have a higher success rate.

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“…As most day laborers are men, Purser (2009) has focused on the day laborer's perception of himself as agent of his own destiny, as well as on the gendered aspects of day labor. Crotty and Bosco (2008) analyzed through observation and semi-structured interviews the role of race in the social geography of day labor, and the relevance of perception to the usefulness of formalized day labor centers.…”

Section: Day Labormentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Day labor sites are considered by some to be a "promising" policy response to the problem of unregulated day labor markets (Valenzuela et al, 2006). However, how the workers perceive the experience of day labor obtained through formalized day labor centers, and whether benefits to such an arrangement exist have not been sufficiently studied (Crotty & Bosco, 2008). The perception by the laborers of the benefits provided by formal day labor centers may be an essential element in determining whether established centers are utilized (Purser, 2009).…”

Section: Day Labor Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Practical Insights from Interviews with Day Laborers

Cheung

Delavega

Castillo

et al. 2011

WECD

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The purpose of this exploratory, qualitative study was to identify key issues in the daily lives of day laborers and to ascertain the perceptions laborers had of day labor centers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 day laborers at two established day labor centers in Houston, Texas. Grounded theory and opencoding qualitative methods were used to identify key themes. Three main themes emerged from the interviews. The first theme was that the day laborers' lives were filled with both practical difficulties due to lack of resources and emotional pain due to the separation from their families. The second theme was that day laborers frequently encountered injustice, in the form of lower pay or unfair treatment on the job, due to their illegal status. The third theme was that day laborers found day labor centers to be safe places where not only jobs but also other resources could be accessed to help ease the difficulties of their daily lives. This study provides social workers and other service providers with an improved understanding of the perceptions and needs of day laborers. Implications: Insights from this study indicate that day laborers benefit from services provided by stable day labor centers. 77 78 M. Cheung et al.

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Racial geographies and the challenges of day labor formalization: a case study from San Diego County

Cited by 13 publications

References 9 publications

Gender, social network geographies, and low-wage employment among recent Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles

Gender, social network geographies, and low-wage employment among recent Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles

Can the Informal Economy Be “Managed”?: Comparing Approaches and Effectiveness of Day‐Labor Management Policies in the San Diego Metropolitan Area

Practical Insights from Interviews with Day Laborers

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