Summary of Responses to Disorder at Day Laborer Sites
The table below summarizes the responses to problems associated with day laborers, the mechanism by which they are intended to work, the conditions under which they ought to work best, and some factors you should consider before implementing a particular response. It is critical that you tailor responses to local circumstances, and that you can justify each response based on reliable analysis. In most cases, an effective strategy will involve implementing several different responses. Law enforcement responses alone are seldom effective in reducing or solving the problem.
| Managing Day Laboring | ||||
| Response No. | Response | How It Works | Works Best If… | Considerations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Promotes orderly and lawful behavior and establishes site controls | …the organization is efficient and addresses laborers' and employers' needs | Assumes current sites are acceptable to area residents and merchants and land use is permitted | |
2 | Reduces the opportunities for problem behavior to occur | …time restrictions are enforced and the sites are managed during designated times | Can be temporary until a day labor center is built, or it can be permanent; requires routine police presence | |
3 | Organizes and controls the location and process of day laboring | …the design is efficient and other measures are taken to ensure it is used | Expensive; time-consuming; requires ongoing oversight and management | |
3a | Ensures day labor centers run and are maintained properly, and provides capable guardianship | …volunteers are sampled from a variety of groups to increase the "ownership" of the centers | Reduces costs; will need continued governance by someone or some entity | |
3b | Increases ownership of the problem | …merchants have a vested interest in addressing the problem | Amount of help will vary across merchants | |
3c | Eliminates the need for tax dollars | …a detailed and compelling case is provided for the needed funds | Use examples of successful day labor sites; takes time and effort to prepare proposals | |
3d | Creating and enforcing rules and procedures at day labor centers and sites | Formalizes the day- laboring process, increases efficiency, and sets boundaries | …rules are clearly defined and posted, and laborers and employers participate in formulating them | Requires day laborer and employer input; will require establishing sanctions for violations |
3e | Ensures center is maintained and increases ownership | …advisors have an interest in and can contribute to the center's success | Select advisors from various groups or organizations; consider incentives for participation | |
4 | Encourages law-abiding behavior and provides access to legitimate services | …the provided services meet the laborers' needs | Increased costs; requires additional space at the centers | |
5 | Closing streets and alleys, diverting traffic, or regulating parking | Decreases traffic congestion and increases employers' ability to find and negotiate with laborers | …the affected community supports the changes | Potentially costly; can harm legitimate commercial traffic; may lock the problem in rather than forcing it out |
| Response No. | Response | How It Works | Works Best If… | Considerations |
| Enforcing Laws | ||||
6 | Temporarily establishes order at day labor sites | …enforcement is combined with other effective responses | Has only a short-term impact; may displace day labor practice to other areas | |
7 | Temporarily establishes order at day labor sites, and establishes police control of the area(s) | …a prosecution will result in meaningful sanctions | Will be difficult to obtain witnesses for a prosecutable case | |
8 | Discourages unruly or unlawful behavior among day laborers | …it is supplemented with environmental changes or site relocation | Labor- intensive; may create the perception that the area is unsafe | |
9 | Creating and enforcing ordinances prohibiting the solicitation of work in non-designated places | Displaces day labor activities to designated sites | …enforcement is consistent, and the designated sites are useful and efficient for laborers and employers | Requires adoption by the city council; takes time and may not pass due to legal concerns |
10 | Enhancing fines/penalties for soliciting work or hiring workers in non-specified zones | Increases the incentive to use designated day labor sites | …the fines are high enough and collection is certain | New informal day labor sites may emerge in other places convenient for laborers and employers |
11 | Informs the community of new rules for day-laboring activities and encourages compliance | …police follow through with enforcing the rules and changes are made at designated day labor sites | Proper dissemination will reduce contempt for police when they enforce the law; widespread community awareness may encourage anti-immigrant views | |
| Response No. | Response | How It Works | Works Best If… | Considerations |
| Responses With Limited Effectiveness | ||||
12 | Temporarily removes illegal-immigrant laborers from the area | Produces distrust of the police by illegal immigrants throughout the community | ||
13 | Seeks to eliminate day labor sites and activities citywide | Ineffective as a long-term solution; could displace day laboring |
Free Bound Copies of the Problem Guides
You may order free bound copies in any of three ways:
Online: Department of Justice COPS Response Center
Email: askCopsRC@usdoj.gov
Phone: 800-421-6770 or 202-307-1480
Allow several days for delivery.
Email sent. Thank you.
Disorder at Day Laborer Sites
Send an e-mail with a link to this guide.
* required
Error sending email. Please review your enteries below.
- To *
Separate multiple addresses with commas (,)
- Your Name *
- Your E-mail *
Copy me
- Note: (200 character limit; no HTML)
Please limit your note to 200 characters.