LA Asian Community-Labor Groups Join Campaign against the Carwash Industry (2 of 2)

Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farmworkers, said,

Car wash workers are the urban farm workers. They work in the hot sun, stooped over cars for 10 hours a day. Every day they work with dangerous chemicals that threaten their health and threaten our precious earth. Many work for illegally low wages or no wages at all, surviving only on tips. They are treated like dirty rags by abusive bosses who only care about profits. We will not let such injustice stand!

Feliciano Hernandez, a car wash worker for more than 40 years, says the workers will gain respect with a union:

    I am 63 years old now. I can tell you, it's gotten much worse for the workers over the years. The boss used to pay us for all the hours we worked and for the overtime too. I could support my family working in a car wash back then. Now I have to work odd jobs in order to pay my rent and for gas and other bills. We used to get breaks for lunch and to take a rest. No more. Now it seems we just work for hours with no breaks and no water, even on the hottest days. And, in the end, the boss shorts our paychecks. I'm organizing with the union because I see how they treat these younger folks. The boss has no respect for us. We work hard and we don't deserve to be treated like animals.  

The campaign has targeted shops operated by Bennie Pirian, an owner of multiple Los Angeles area carwashes.   According to union representatives, Pirian represents the worst of the industry, and it's no coincidence that CLEAN has focused on cleaning up Pirian's operations first.   Workers described having their pay shorted and being forced to work without protective gear.   Workers are routinely fingerprinted before receiving their paychecks. Los Angeles has more car washes--430--than any other metropolitan area in the country, bringing in an average about $1 million gross annual income. The campaign has asked the public not to patronize "dirty" carwashes.

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