Legal and illegal, Latinos labor to rebuild Texas

Even in Houston, a city long known as friendly toward undocumented immigrants, many people see the use of such workers as nothing more than a shortcut around the country's labor laws.

In the storm's aftermath, however, Mayor Bill White said homeowners need to find help where they can.

"I like to see people doing it, rather than letting debris pile up and people not getting roofs fixed," said White, who has a reputation for welcoming immigrants.

Early on most mornings last week, many of the more than two dozen spots in Houston where day laborers gather had been swept clean by contractors and homeowners looking for workers. Most are paid about $8 to $10 an hour to install wallboard, clear driveways and yards, or repair roofs. So far, workers said, wages had not increased much from pre-Ike rates.

At a Home Depot in southeast Houston, where as many as 100 day laborers gathered well before dawn Friday to wait for work, dozens of men from Mexico, Honduras, and El Salvador stood on the periphery of a parking lot.

Every few minutes, the drivers of cars, pickup trucks and SUVs would pull up and signal to the waiting men. It took mere seconds for the workers to converge on a vehicle, negotiate a price and jump inside.

The men left behind were both encouraged by the signs of burgeoning work and worried about the possibility of dishonest employers and immigration roundups.

"We're just looking for steady work to support our families," 45-year-old Antonio Velasquez, whose wife and nine children remain in El Salvador, said in Spanish.

Workers like getting paid each day
When things are going well, Velasquez sends his family $500 a month. Lately, he barely has enough to cover his own expenses.

Velasquez protects himself from wage theft by only working for employers who pay at the end of the day.

"Un dia trabajado es un dia pagado," he said, quoting a refrain often used by day laborers: A day's pay for a day's work.

Stories of widespread employer abuse and wage theft following Katrina have left immigrants wary of accepting long-term jobs in other locations.

On Friday morning, the driver of a bus looking for a crew to work for a week in the Galveston area, saying the pay would come at week's end. He got few takers.

Historic Galveston looks to a different future Latino laborers are key to recovery Some may not be allowed to rebuild Insurers balk on paying surge damage Cowboys, others round up critters Newsweek: Riders on the storm First Person: Are you there? | Your photos Interactive map of Ike's wrath Explore images of the aftermath Join discussion, view images on Newsvine Coverage by Houston-area affiliates

"They need us, but they also take advantage of us," said Alex Yovani, 26, a Honduran immigrant who also worked in Louisiana after Katrina. "Without us, how would they build Houston again? Without the work of our hands, there would be no way to move forward."

As Yovani spoke, homeowner Dale Emion eased his pickup close to the circle of men. It was immediately surrounded by over a dozen day laborers.

"I need two and will pay $7 an hour to clean up around my house," Emion said.

"You gonna give lunch?" asked one man in broken English.

Emion shook his head. No one got in the truck, but the men didn't walk away, either.

"OK. I'll pay $8," said Emion.

Two men got in the cab of the truck.

"I just need them to clean up my house," Emion said. "Where else am I going to find workers?"

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