Note: A federal judge just blocked parts of Arizona’s SB 1070 this morning. You can read more about that here. SB 1070 was scheduled to go into effect as passed tomorrow.

Tomorrow the most anti-immigrant state law will go into effect in Arizona. While the federal government via the Department of Justice has filed a brief injunction to attempt to stop the law from going into effect, there’s no sign that Arizona will have a change of heart. Recently, Chris Rock was on The View and he was asked about Arizona and SB 1070.  Rock responded, “I feel bad for the Mexicans. I think they should just leave.. They don’t want you there. Blacks did in South Carolina.”

While there have been some reports of Latino immigrants leaving the Grand Canyon State, the majority have not. Recently, I asked some friends from Arizona if Latinos are leaving and they noted that while some families have left, many have stayed put. The reason? Economics. The economic situation is dire. Many immigrants have bought homes, are barely surviving, and simply don’t have the means to get up and go. While thousands have departed the state, tens of thousands simply cannot afford to. This reminds me of when former California GOP Governor Pete Wilson later recanted to a close friend why Latinos hated him so much, and Wilson was told, “you managed, via Proposition 187, to anger not just Latino immigrants but Latinos in general.”

A country stolen by trickery of the natives and bartered with senior Mexican military officials for 1/3 of Mexico, built and strengthened by immigrants (Mexicans, Irish, Italian, Polish, etc) has taken an isolationist view in regards to immigration. There is a belief in this country that immigrants rob from the United States. This couldn’t be further from the truth. What we need to remain a 21st century leader is to be open and transparent, much like we were in the 19th and 20th century. When our nation was more open and welcoming of immigrants, we created the economic engine that made our country the envy of the world. The US has been losing some ground in technology to countries abroad; do we, as Americans, really want to import every food we eat? Our strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, oranges and beef? How many volunteers have raised their hands to pick the crops on American fields? Stephen Colbert was the last guy who raised his hand making the final count 4. Yes, four Americans ready to replace immigrant farm workers. This is laughable, tragic and painful all at once. The agricultural industry, greatly subsidized by American taxpayers, relies on hardworking, determined, “no BS” workers.

President Obama and the Congress must act, not before November elections, not in 60 days, but now. Not just more Larry Pages, Sergey Brins, but all immigrants. We must legalize the workforce that for so long has been in the shadows and not realized its God given potential. We must, like Fred Wilson pointed out, increase the visas for science, technology, engineering, and medicine (STEM) grads, startup visas, and H1B visas to ensure American companies have a steady stream of high caliber workers. And most of all we must not let comprehensive immigration reform be a political football like we’ve seen with Americas War Veterans with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Some highlights of exorbitant salaries in this poor city include:

• City Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo is paid a whopping salary of $787,637. In 1993, he started in the City of Bell at $72,000 and has managed to ramp up his salary in the past decade. Rizzo’s current contract with the City of Bell guarantees 12% salary increases each July. And the city council has rewarded this fat cat with another week of vacation, bringing his annual vacation to five weeks.
• Bell Police Chief Randy Adams makes nearly a half million, earning $457,000 a year. This is about 50% more than the police chief of Los Angeles. The City of Bell has about 37,000 people, whereas the city of Los Angeles has a population of about 3.8 million people.
• And the city council members in Bell pay each of themselves a hefty $100,000 per year for what amounts to a part-time job. Cities of comparable size typically pay their council members $400 per month. This particular issue is being investigated by the district attorney, but the salaries of the other city officials (police chief and administrative chief, etc.) appear to not be in violation of any law.

To put things in perspective, the City of Bell has a total area of 2.4 square miles. According to the US Census Bureau, the estimated median household income in the City of Bell is $38,502. The City has a higher percentage of individuals and families living under the poverty level than the national average. And of the city population 25 years and older, only about 3 percent have a bachelor’s degree or higher.

I was able to communicate with a Ricardo Lara, a local candidate for Assembly in the 50th district which includes the City of Bell, and he offered this:

“I’m a strong believer in honest pay for an honest day’s work. While I understand the need to attract qualified staff, I urge the City of Bell to re-evaluate how they compensate top managers. Regardless of results, compensation that is three times the average of neighboring cities is not acceptable, especially when you consider the unemployment rate and the budget deficits we face in Southeast LA County and throughout the state.”

And today the LA Times has come out with an article following up on the original piece showing city outrage over the inflated salaries.

I was particularly struck by this statement in the follow up piece:

“It’s a blue-collar city. A lot of people are just trying to make ends meet,” said Bell resident Victor Munoz, who said he was laid off from his telecommunications job last year and was now taking pharmacy technician classes.

Munoz, 42, has lived in the area for decades and says the immigrant community is largely unaware of what happens at City Hall.

“They don’t know or they don’t understand it,” he said. “Because of the language barrier or their schooling, they don’t always comprehend what’s going on.”

I find this particularly troubling since the City Council in Bell appears to be all Latino. One would hope that officials in our communities would not line their pockets at the expense of the working class that they serve. This reminds me of the cacique mentality that Cockroach People so eloquently writes about in the Latino community in Chicago. What kind of message does this send to youngsters in Bell, California who might be interested in pursuing a career in public service? And what exactly do the citizens of Bell receive for luxury priced city officials? I can guarantee you that it isn’t luxury style city services.

“Three-quarters of all crop workers working in American agriculture were born outside the United States. According to government statistics, since the late 1990s, at least 50% of the crop workers have not been authorized to work legally in the United States.”

So the UFW is offering its service in assisting Americans who are unemployed by offering to train them to become farm workers and in the process replace the immigrant labor currently working the fields. Those who are interested in becoming a farm worker can fill out a form submitting their contact information so the UFW can follow up with them. With so many people out of work, one would hope that able bodied Americans would give it a try, but that doesn’t seem to be happening. The UFW President Arturo Rodriguez explained the campaign on the Cobert show yesterday. Check it out:

And also worth checking out simply for the creative factor is Nezua of the Unapologetic Mexican, explaining the insanity of the argument that immigrants are taking our jobs. Nezua was on the ball and produced this news clip last week:

And I will admit that none of the unemployed people I know are eager to work in the fields.

Also worth pondering is this commentary by Fareed Zakaria:

One might ask where and who are the Latino national leaders? Indeed at the local level, there are scores of activists, volunteers, politicians, clergy and other admirable folk seeking relief for the Latinos in their communities. Yet rarely if ever do we see Latino political or national civil society leaders on the Sunday TV network talk shows addressing the Hispanic agenda or plight while offering some ideas for consideration or treating these problems. Perhaps the traditional media finds the Latino story or journey uninteresting. Even more disconcerting, if one watches Spanish-language network talk shows like Jorge Ramos‘ Sunday morning hour, the compelling question is: where are the Latino leaders or even more specifically, how often does Ramos interview a Mexican-American (which is the overwhelming majority of Latinos in the country) to comment on the national or international issues at hand affecting the Latino community? It is widely and sadly known that Ramos and his colleagues are most hesitant to interview Mexican-Americans, especially those born here. Perhaps it is the Spanish language competence or is it worse than that: maybe Mexican-Americans are not viewed as telegenic (perhaps these TV personalities feel Mexican-Americans are too dark or not clever enough for their tastes). The spokespersons for Latin American countries and many of the recently arrived well-heeled immigrants do seem to fare better in getting on the Spanish language networks. Another discouraging fact is: where are the US Latino public intellectuals? If they exist, who are they? And why are they not heard or known? Do they publish? Are they pundits? It appears that at high holidays for the Community like the Cinco de Mayo, Hispanic Month and September 16, the only hero consistently quoted is Caesar Chavez, who was truly a saint in many ways yet his anti-illegal immigrant stand is not mentioned. As a labor leader at the time, it was normal for him to take this position since many undocumented immigrants were used as scabs to break up strikes. Yet the Community thirsts to hear and get to know a national political leader and read thoughtful insights from our own public intellectuals and social critics. Perhaps this might explain why the dominant white population has no interest or fear of Latinos in concrete terms: Latinos have no one who rallies them or lack a truly defining issue that brings them all together. Is this valid?

The current discernible white backlash against immigrants is fast becoming plainly anti-Latino: legal or illegal or native born. This is serving ironically in many instances to further divide us: the native born Latinos from the immigrants and the legal from the undocumented; the white versus non-white Latinos; the wealthy from the have-nots and separate one Hispanic nationality from another.The sad fact is that Latino community is disunited, scattered, divided and often frustrated. But the yearning and hope for real and effective leadership remains among the community. But be certain that to be accepted as the real leaders, he or she must be sprung from the loins of the community. They cannot just be ‘designated hitters’ chosen by the dominant white mandarin class. These higher circles seek Latino leaders who have punched his and her ticket in all the white dominant institutions like the Ivy league, hallowed law firms, the correct political appointments, passed muster by the bankers and the real estate developers, be a media darling fabricated or cultivated by the white liberal or conservative establishment to be virtually a Latino Manchurian Candidate. The Latino community is consistently being underestimated in many ways. Yet, the community must begin to understand that political unity which implies being politically monolithic, possessing social cohesion, expressing one big vision leadership, attempting to cobble together a forceful amalgamated national group will all be largely illusive. We will continue to be a defused and diverse group to be certain but the label Hispanic or Latino which stems from being linked to the Iberian peninsula’s language or culture does have a real effect of making us part of a great and rich heritage as Hispanics/Latinos. But as Americans we are loyal and patriotic and earnest believers in the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights and justice and fairness. The Latino Community merely seeks genuine national leaders who will guide, steer and comfort them through these troubled waters. Just where are the Hispanic Congressional Caucus members, the Latino Academicians, the pundits, the artists, the Hispanic captains of industry and banking, the Latino clergy and high Churchman like the soon to be the first Latino Cardinal of the Catholic Church? These are the voices that need to be heard and become pathfinders to this awakening giant.

Most observers in Washington and for that matter the whole country too often lack clarity in noting that the Federal Reserve truly is the ultimate policy entity to modify, adjust, and re-define key elements of the world’s richest and most powerful economy. Moreover, the Fed’s board is independent of the Executive branch and is supposed to be free of political influence. The US Congress has oversight responsibility over its actions. The Federal Reserve Board like so many of the regulatory boards in Washington is safeguarded by this independence.

The stated reason for the creation of the federal reserve in 1913 just as Woodrow Wilson took over the presidency: to provide the nation with a safer, more flexible and more stable monetary/financial system. The four duties (areas) of the federal reserve are commonly known as the following:

• conducting the nation’s monetary policy by influencing the monetary and credit conditions in the economy in pursuit of maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates
• supervising and regulating banking institutions to ensure the safety and soundness of the nation’s banking and financial system and to protect the credit rights of consumers
• maintaining the stability of the financial system and containing systemic risk that may arise in financial markets
• providing financial services to depository institutions, the U.S. government, and foreign official institutions, including playing a major role in operating the nation’s payments system

The Federal Reserve System with Washington as its headquarters has twelve (12) regional banks. Interestingly enough, these regional banks are privately owned but are members of the Federal Reserve System. These include the first among equals (primus inter pares) New York, then Boston, Richmond, Cleveland, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Chicago, Kansas City, Dallas, Minneapolis, San Francisco and St. Louis. Many of these cities or regions have vast numbers of Latinos. Out west, San Francisco is the only regional Federal Reserve Bank west of the Rockies. The next three mid-western regions are Minneapolis, Kansas City and Dallas. The numbers of Latinos in these western states is most impressive and growing. Certainly Dallas, New York, Chicago, and Atlanta have also huge portions of the 46 million Hispanics nationwide. The current census being conducted and analyzed will help provide a clearer picture of the numbers and where they are living. But it can be argued that as of now out west with San Francisco as the only geographically western Federal Reserve Bank, the Hispanic congressional representation breaks down this way: the west has the majority with six in California (Roybal-Allard, Baca, Becerra, Napolitano, the two Sanchez sisters); one each in Colorado (Salazar) and New Mexico (Lujan) and two in Arizona (Grijalva and Pastor) and Dallas region has six (Ortiz, Gonzalez, Rodriguez, Cuellar, Hinojosa and Reyes) all in Texas. Chicago region has one Latino congressman (Gutierrez) and the New York region has two (Serrano and Velazquez) plus one congressman (Sires) from Northern New Jersey and the only Latino senator (Menendez) in the country (NJ). Atlanta has three from Florida (two Diaz-Balart brothers and Ros-Lehtinen). Therefore, the San Francisco and Dallas Federal Reserve Regions have over 15 Latino congressmen. Salazar in Colorado belongs to the Kansas City region; Atlanta is the third region to have Latino congressional representation. A closer look at these regional/sub-regional Federal Reserve Banks reveals few if any Latino representation on the regional bank boards.

In examining the composition of the scores of directors of these regional Federal Reserve Boards, only Dallas appears to have more than one Latino director. At the regional level, there is one (Roberto Estrada) of the main Dallas bank and at its sub-regional level San Antonio has four: Jorge Bermudez, Ricardo Romo, Ygnacio Garza and C. Treviño. Atlanta has one, Carol Tome at the regional director level. In the Atlanta region, Miami is touted as the banking center for Latin America, yet only one, Latino director is detected (Carol Tome). San Francisco has none at the regional or sub-regional level. Boston has one Luso-American (Portuguese: Cunha) on the board. Richmond, Cleveland, St. Louis, Minneapolis and Philadelphia don’t have any Latino sounding names on their boards. Interestingly enough, the leader of the regional pack, New York has one at the substantive level of director, Richard Carrion from Puerto Rico’s Banco Popular, but alas no other…More revealing is Kansas City with Lu Cordova from Boulder, Colorado as a key director, but uncertain that this board member is considered to be Hispanic. The sum of Latino representation in the Federal Reserve System’s decision-making circles is at best bleak.

As for the Fed’s board in Washington, the most powerful and key tool in the US economy, there is no Latino and never has been one. Yet, the Hispanic population is estimated now at least to be over 15% of the US overall population. The contribution by the Latino community to the US multi-trillion dollar economy is increasingly significant. It is rarely heard among the Hispanic congressional and Civic leadership on how the Fed affects the community in its operations or implementation of public economic policy. Plainly, the Fed’s actions affecting the money supply, credit, the cost of money, interest rates and how remittances are affected by supervising the flow of money transfers or exchange fluctuations have an increasingly important impact on the Latino community. Perhaps, the Obama administration will discover or find a qualified high-flyer Latino economist or financial type to serve on the Fed’s board. If we continue to wait for the nominal Hispanic leadership or self-styled Latino advocacy groups to discover the wondrous powers of the Federal Reserve, we could be in for a long wait. The growing awareness of the functions of the US economy in the context of the recent financial crisis and housing bubble along with high unemployment rates behooves the Latino community to seek greater representation and participation at the highest levels of the decision-making process.

I have been banking since I started working at the age of 16. My first account was with Burke & Herbert in Crystal City, a small community bank in Virginia that has been in business for over 100 years. I started with checking and savings accounts. There were times when I was at risk of bouncing a check. I was lucky though, as the bank manager would call and tell me that I could authorize him to transfer the necessary funds from my savings and all would be fine, no insufficient funds, no overdraft, and no penalty fees. Yes, this was before PC banking, cell phones, text messages, and automatic overdraft protection plans.

A few years later, I moved to Woodbridge, Virginia where Burke & Herbert did not have branches and decided to transfer my accounts to another community bank with branches near my home. Through mergers and acquisitions, I ended up with Bank of America where today I am fully banked. There is something to be said about the benefits the bank offered me for agreeing to do more business with them -– free checks, no monthly fees, a safe deposit box, no-closing-cost mortgage refinance, and branch offices all over the country and abroad. The problem was I went from a valued customer at the bank where the branch manager knew my name and looked out for my interests to just being one in an infinite number of consumers who as individuals are insignificant.

As time went on, banking rules changed. I felt powerless every time I got one more bank notice in the mail.

Several years later, the ATM machine entered the market. I got a check card, then PC banking started, etcetera, etcetera, and etcetera. Suddenly, the bank had all the power over my money, the blessing of the Congress, and all I had was the burden of proof! I felt I was getting the shorter end of the stick and became angered about the unfairness of the banking system.

I work hard to earn my income, which now goes into my account as a direct deposit. Yet, the bank has been acting as though it is doing me a favor despite the fact that it makes profits off of my money.

Some time ago, I deposited a check into my checking account using the Bank of America ATM near my home. The machine returned by check card but without a receipt. Upon my return home, I logged into PC banking and was surprised to see there was no record of a pending transaction in my account. Within twenty-four hours, I filed a claim with Bank of America.

A week later, correspondence came informing me that “There was no deposit made at an ATM” within a period that included the date of my transaction. “Therefore, we are unable to credit your account, thus closing this dispute,” said the letter. I called the issuer of the check and explained the incident. The person automatically put a stop payment to the lost check, issued a new one, and mailed it to me.

Six days after the first bank letter declaring the dispute closed, I received a second notice from Bank of America. In it, the bank said that the item had been found and was being posted to my account. By the time I received the letter, it was too late to tell the bank that the issuer had put a stop payment on it. Fifteen days after the second letter, a third Bank of America letter arrived at my home. This time the bank was informing me that a fee had been charged to my account because the item had been returned to the issuer.

Wait, wait! This was the item Bank of America lost, did not post to my account, closed the inquiry on, later found, and tried to post to my account. How was it my responsibility that the bank lost my check resulting in a stop payment by the issuer?

Bank of America was messing with the wrong consumer. That evening, I called to ask for a refund to my account in the amount of the penalty fee and an apology for the four weeks of inconvenience the bank caused me. I got the refund, but the apology never arrived!

Between the original date of my deposit and the notice of the fee, I conducted over 60 transactions, big and small. I’m one of the lucky consumers who does not live close to the margin. I cannot fathom the snowball effect of overdraft and penalty fees that living on the edge would have caused and cost me. This is only one of the many unsavory and time-consuming interactions I have had with Bank of America over the last several years.

The truth is that even if my deposits, my savings, my credit card, and my mortgage are insignificant in the grand scheme of Bank of America, they are significant to me. The bank makes money off my money in overnight investment transactions. With my savings, for which I get less than 1% in interest, the bank makes loans available to others who need capital at significantly higher interest than what it pays me or The Fed. It charges me 10% interest on the balance of my credit card. It gets to keep an administrative fee for collecting my mortgage payment and distributing the proceeds. And the bank tries to hit me with other fees and penalties to squeeze even more money from me. Now multiply that times millions of consumers. Yes, sometimes I wish I was a banker.

The bank has been playing “ring around the rosey” with consumers, and bankers seemed to have forgotten that in the end “ashes, ashes, we all fall down.”

When I was a kid in El Salvador (more than 30 years ago), my mom kept her business revenue (hard, cold cash) in the safest place in our home, the freezer. She did not make any interest on her money, but no institution robbed her either. She was a founding member of the small bakers union in 1950. Today, my mom lives in the United States and still keeps a significant stash of cash in the safest part of her house, under the proverbial mattress! I did not understand this until now.

As a result of the financial crisis, I have regained control over my money. I call to complain and demand refunds from the bank when they are owed to me. Also, I am interviewing banks and credit unions in my community to see if they are interested in my business and my deposits. Three weeks ago, I visited the Woodbridge branch of Burke & Herbert and opened a savings and a checking account. I also met the manager and other staff there. That is right Mr. Global Banking Institution, I am an investor deserving of respect. I demand services and products at fair prices. If I don’t get what I need from my banking institution, I am willing to shop around and take my money to a bank where I am somebody.

Call you senators today and ask them to support real financial regulatory reform, including the creation of a strong independent Consumer Financial Protection Agency.

Aracely Panameño has worked on behalf of consumers on various issues including health, education, and financial services for more than 20 years. She holds a BA in business administration and public policy from The Catholic University of America and is an MBA candidate at Johns Hopkins University.

“Well, the Center for American Progress today released the first-ever cost assessment of a mass deportation policy for the 10 million undocumented persons currently in the country and the 500,000 that successfully cross the border each year. And guess what? It would essentially drain the Treasury. The data analysis estimates the cost to be at least $206 billion over 5 years ($41.2 billion annually), and could be as high as $230 billion. We arrived at this number even after assuming that 2 million of the 10 million would leave on their own–a pretty large assumption.”

Back when he was candidate Obama, we were led to believe that he would not walk away from the 12 million undocumented people living in the shadows here in the United States and that there would be a “humane and comprehensive” immigration reform. You can see that here:

And now here we are in March 2010, and the raids continue, but today the Department of Homeland Security tells us that it overstated the number of deportations during President Obama’s first year in office. It’s rather convenient that DHS chooses to correct its deportation numbers on the day that multi-ethnic, immigrant rights groups hold the following press conference. Please do watch the press conference on immigration reform on this C-SPAN link and share your thoughts. It definitely is a compelling news conference.

My thought is that President Obama could stop the raids at a minimum before enacting comprehensive immigration reform, but I’m not holding my breath. However, there is something we all can do if we are bothered by the continued raids and lack of movement on immigration reform, we can contact the White House online. I’m going to do it, and I encourage you to do so as well. Comments on this blog only go so far, but a comment directly into the White House will have a stronger impact.

The soft drink industry spent $18 million in lobbying and millions more in direct campaign contributions to put a halt to any sort of federal level tax on sugary drinks in the last year. This doesn’t even count the money contributed to issue organizations and other charities. Next time you are in your state capitol or in DC and attend an event, note if there are any logos from Coca Cola or Pepsi on the schwag that is handed out.

The part that caught my eye in the LA Times piece was this:

“When California Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez (D-Shafter) introduced his soda tax bill, he said one penny of tax per teaspoon of added sugar in any sweetened beverage would generate as much as $1.5 billion each year. That money would pay for parks, recreation and school health programs, Florez said.”

and this:

“In California, the state affiliate of the League of United Latin American Citizens this weekend will consider a resolution urging its national assembly to leave the coalition that opposes the tax.”

At a time when states are already cutting dental and health programs for the poor that could have broader public health implications for the society at large, I still maintain that it is worth examining and even having a trial run on a soda tax. A recent poll in New York found that over three quarters of those surveyed backed a soda tax. It even appeals to blacks and Hispanics and tax-shy Republicans:

“A Quinnipiac survey found 76 percent of voters back a tax on soft drinks.

Support for the so-called soda tax to close budget gaps was strong among black, white and Hispanic voters in every borough.”

I’m hopeful that LULAC and some of the other Latino organizations that opposed a soft drink and junk food tax will reconsider, especially if it is popular. There is already a sense in the blogosphere and in the larger Latino community that our issue organizations are out of touch. Coke and Pepsi are laughing all the way to the banks, while our communities continue down an unhealthy path toward obesity and diabetes. Imagine what kind of battles we will be facing now that we are in a post-Citizens United era where corporations like Coke, Pepsi, and McDonalds can throw even more cash to our candidates. If you want to contact LULAC to voice your opinion about the organization’s stance on the soda tax, you can reach the organization via this link.

On January 28, 2010, huddled inside a Mexican grocery store & panaderia in Gresham, Oregon, Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian and I hosted a Labor & Employment Forum to educate Oregonian workers of their rights as workers, the work of the Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) and most importantly to listen to concerns from the Latino community. Interestingly, it began with a conversation I was having with Roxy De La Torre and Delia Hernandez over at KUNP-TV Univision regarding Latino workers not being paid. In their role as journalists they would receive calls and emails from workers who had performed work but were not being paid, workers who often didn’t know their rights, and workers who sent their requests over to BOLI but were being denied a claim. I became curious, and asked Commissioner Brad Avakian if he and his bilingual staff would join me at a community forum in Gresham to discuss and respond to these concerns, which he happily agreed to. Oregon Labor Commissioner Avakian leads BOLI and is one of six statewide-elected officials. He’s the person responsible for ensuring that “when you work a days work, you get paid.”

A few takeaways from the community forum:

BOLI receives and processes thousands of claims annually, but not all are awarded. Workers should document who they are going to work for at all times, including but not limited to business name, owner/contractor, address, phone, location of work, hours of work, etc. It doesn’t matter if you are a citizen of the United States of America, everyone who works has the right to get paid at least the minimum wage for hours worked. Document the license number of person who writes you a check in the case the check cannot be paid.

From the Q&A w/ Commissioner Brad Avakian:

Q: What is your agency doing so that construction company’s treat us equally with full benefits, not as sub-contractors.
A: We need to know when this happens. They need to pay you as an employee. Please let us know so we can help. We legally have the power to demand them to pay you.

Q: Is it illegal for companies to treat you as a sub-contractor?
A: If you are an employee, yes.

Q: I worked for a construction company for 3 months and I haven’t been paid. What do I do?
A: That’s illegal, they have to pay you. You need to file a claim. Companies have to pay you whether they have money or not. But, if they are in bankruptcy, there are funds to help companies in crisis.

Q: Why don’t I get a pay stub but I get taxes taken from my check?
A: That’s a problem, let us help.

Q: Why do companies do this? What is BOLI doing to stop this?
A: We need to know they are doing this in order to help. Employers have to pay at least the minimum wage ($8.40 p/hr), not just pay you.

Q: What are the rights when people get sick on the job?
A: When a person gets injured at work don’t go to BOLI, go to Workers Compensation. There’s a a way to get medical treatment and wages payed when you get hurt. If your employer fires you, then you got to see BOLI. Just remember this: call BOLI for any questions and we will direct you to the appropriate agency.

Q: What info is needed to win a case?
A: The more info you can give us, the better, i.e. any info that is given to you by your employer that specifies hours and wages you were told you were going to be paid, witnesses and other co-workers contact information.

Q: How long do I have to file a claim with BOLI?
A: A person has to file a claim with BOLI within a year after being unfairly fired.

Q: Is it illegal to not get a pay stub? A pay raise?
A: It’s not illegal to not get raises. Keep records of how many hours you are working in case they are not paying you so you can get your wages. Yes, you are entitled to your pay stub.

In the Nov 2009 Health Care Reform & Latino Health Care Disparities Forum, I used a combination of Spanish-TV, radio and print marketing (2,500 flyers) and the event attracted upwards of 60+ individuals. In the Labor & Employment Forum, I dropped the print marketing and focused my attention on producing a 30-second commercial (disclaimer: sponsored by Tienda La Tapatia & El Rey 93.1FM) and did interviews on KUNP-TV Univision, La Gran D, and Radio Tonalli. The results were as expected. Non-stop calls of individuals RSPVing to the forum.

Heartfelt thanks to Commissioner Avakian and his bilingual staff for their participation. Special thanks to Milan Homola of Clear Creek Community Church for letting us borrow chairs; Obie Quiroz and MEChA at Mt. Hood Community College for setting up chairs/tables, take-down and manning the registration table; Alvaro Gongora of Reynolds School District for his a/v equipment set-up and expertise. Special thanks to El Hispanic News y Más, AlegreTV and KUNP-TV Univision for their special news coverage. And, finally, Mauricio Alvarez of Tienda La Tapatia for his generous hospitality and sponsorship.

Commissioner David Molina serves on the Oregon Commission on Hispanic Affairs, an eleven-member statewide commission with statutory authority that advises the governors’ office and legislative body on all policy issues pertaining to Oregon’s largest and fastest-growing ethnic community, Latinos. Appointed by Governor Ted Kulongoski in April 2006, he was recently reappointed to a second three-year term.

Photo: Brad Avakian