[gsdx]

Can anyone explain to me the "ins and outs" of hiring temporary mexican labor. And, can you get english speaking mexicans?

Muchos Gracias!

[AZTLANLC]

You will get someone willing to work hard most of the times, be on time, willing to obey orders, perform most any task.

The bad parts are that not many will speak or read english, you can have that as a condition to be hired but that will narrow your options by a big margin.
Most like to be directed and take orders. that means almost no one will be willing to become leader or take full responsability.
If you hire them from around here most will be ilegal, you can tell that by asking for a drivers license not just the immigration papers. If they don't have one or aren't willing to take the test, most likely they're not legal.
If you want to bring them from mexico you are of luck at least for this season since the gap will be met soon if not already.

And just for the record I'm mexican.

[Greensmith]

Mexicans are just like Americans, you get the bad ones and the good ones.

[drizzay]

I HAVE DELT WITH WITH MIGRANT WORKER AND BESIDE THE COMMUNICATION BARRIER. IT HAS BEEN MONEY WELL SPENT.MOST OF THE TIME THEY ARE WILLING TO GO THE EXTRA MILE FOR YOU AND THEY ARE HARD WORKERS. AS FOR THE ISSUE OF THEM BEING LEGAL OR ILLEGAL I COULD REALLY CARE LESS. AS LONG AS THEY ARE HONEST HARD WORKING AND RESPECT ME AND MY CUSTOMERS. I'LL CUT THEM A CHECK AND GIVE THEM A PAT ONTHE BACK. AND ONE MORE POINT MEXICO ISN'T THE ONLY COUNTRY SOUTH OF OUR BORDER. NOT THAT THERE ANYTHING WRONG WITH CANADIANS I JUST WOULDN'T WANT TO MISTAKEN FOR ANYTHING BUT WHAT I AM AMERICAN

[georgiehopper]

I love the hispanic people. We had the best times when we had a couple of guys from El Salvador working for us. I took it upon myself to learn enough spanish in 3 months to be able to communicate with them...

No american that's worked for us has ever shown the pride that these people show in their work. They had a wonderful sense of humor and we had a good time with them...and the work got done quickly. They told us their stories about crossing the border and then crossing the dessert.

Unfortunately, for us, it turned out they were illegal and we had to let them go. I still wish we had them back.

By the way, they had social security cards and drivers licenses.... looked real...but were fakes.

..and they are not all perfect(just like americans)..you get drunks,theives, and perverts looking for mamacitas.

Language is not that big a barrier...if one applies oneself for a few months, has a good english-spanish dictionary...there should be no problem. Our languages have many similarities.

I miss having them.

[mark m]

SS cards and DL cards? Jeez Georgie, they had everything covered for employment!

I HAVE DELT WITH WITH MIGRANT WORKER AND BESIDE THE COMMUNICATION BARRIER. IT HAS BEEN MONEY WELL SPENT.MOST OF THE TIME THEY ARE WILLING TO GO THE EXTRA MILE FOR YOU AND THEY ARE HARD WORKERS. AS FOR THE ISSUE OF THEM BEING LEGAL OR ILLEGAL I COULD REALLY CARE LESS. AS LONG AS THEY ARE HONEST HARD WORKING AND RESPECT ME AND MY CUSTOMERS. I'LL CUT THEM A CHECK AND GIVE THEM A PAT ONTHE BACK. AND ONE MORE POINT MEXICO ISN'T THE ONLY COUNTRY SOUTH OF OUR BORDER. NOT THAT THERE ANYTHING WRONG WITH CANADIANS I JUST WOULDN'T WANT TO MISTAKEN FOR ANYTHING BUT WHAT I AM AMERICAN

Please take no offense, but why all capital letters?

Mark

[Dale Wiley]

My guys are Guatemalan and great. I have 4, second year for them this year.

I am going to to let you all in on a big business tip, one that possibly will do more for your business than anything you can possibly do.

This is simply learning to speak Spanish.

It's not that hard, it is an easy language to speak after you learn it, and it will get you a lot of respect with your workers.

Consider this :

The majority of the Hispanic workers seldom go beyond the 6th grade in formal education.

They are hesitant to place themselves in situations where their lack of literacy skills will be noticed. That is English classes where they may be mixed with other dialects and education levels.

How you say things, and your body language is as important as what you say.

I learned to speak Spanish simply because that is what my work force will be. It makes it a lot easier to get the work done. With a higher education level, it is certainly easier for me to learn the language.

If you want your Hispanic workers to learn English, then you need to get them CD's and DVD's that they can listen to in the privacy of their own homes or cars.

Conduct a company meeting or safety meeting in Spanish. I managed a company years ago, where about 75% of the crew was Hispanic. I decided to have a company meeting / training session in Spanish and let the white dogs see what it was like. I introduced our head Hispanic uncle in Espanol', and the meeting went on from there.

The white guys were lost. It was great. and a water shed moment for the white dogs.

Since I want a stable work force, I learned Spanish. My guys are motivated to learn English, and we teach each other words every day. If you want your company to have a more stable operations base, you, your foremen, or somebody in authority needs to speak Spanish. You will get more respect as the patron', if you speak Espanol'.

And I know I won't hear much at this site, but spare me the this is the US, we speak English. I understand that, but I also understand what I have to do to have a quality stable workforce.

Communication is so important in any business. Making that communication easier, and more effective is part of being your comapny leader.

[mark m]

I agree with you Dale. We have a few Guatemalans working for us too. They're great guys. I checked out a couple of Spanish books from the library and was a little surprised that it seemed far more difficult that I imagined it to be. I've studied German in HS, University and living there and I speak some Norwegian as well. Scandinavian is easier than German but I thought Spanish would be the easiest. It's time for good Spanish books for me.

Mark

[georgiehopper]

You don't have to speak perfect spanish to be understood. When you really get into the proper grammar that is when it gets harder.... and sometimes you can even get away with some "spanglish"

[Greensmith]

I am very bad at languages, but I have this one great Mexican who goes out of his way to tell me spanish words and the correct way not the "proper" teaching of the books.

There are a ton of words out there that started English then got spanish-ized (spanglish). Some just sound similiar because of their Euro origins.

[Bill Schwab]

I am learning to speak Mayan along with Spanish. Guatamalans first language is Mayan, then Spanish, then English. I already know every dirty word in 3 languages. And, we add humor when teaching English by adding an adjective that starts with an F before asking things like "Give me that _____ hammer please!"

Can you put some _______ gas in the saw?" Will you bring my ______ paycheck to the job?" Pass me the _____ glue will you?"

This is only around places where we are the only ones on the job.

We clown around all day and it's great. I even got one of the guys doing Curly when he drops something. Mmmmmmmmmmmm-----Rrrrruff Rrrruffff!!! Whoob Whoob Whoob.....Nyuck Nyuck Nyuck.....

So then of course, Monday after the company meeting, we plugged in a 15 minute reel of Moe, Larry and Curly when they were plumbers. It set the stage for the week.

One of the guys' wife is having a baby in 4 months. I looked at him and said "Pablo, you don't have a thing to worry about. I know exactly what causes pregnancy" Everyone lost it. Now when he has to take his wife to the doctor, he comes back and tells me he knows what causes pregnancy too.....

These guys are the back bone and everything our company is. They are my second family in many ways and it is very cool to see the guys who will become citizens, the guys who will own their own homes, or opened thier first bank account, bought their first car and established that credit they need to live the American dream.

An investment in our employees is the best money we can ever put to work.

[GLAN]

Nice post Bill


My thoughts are the same....
I have had 3 guys working with me for what has to be 15 years. I watched as 2 of them went through English classes. And those 2 I took them for a pesticide apprentice course.

1 got a green card.

Buying cars.....at one point my drivers son bought a brand new Celica. While working with us.

My driver bought a house this past summer......he plows with us. This winter is nothing to be thrilled about concerning snow.......I ended up giving him some extra $ so it wouldn't be such a burden buying heating oil this first winter.

We've been through alot in 15 years..... Illness and deaths in the families....Learning English.....Handling paper work for them for immigration, insurance and just about anything else. Just this past fall one of the guys had gotten into a car accident.....Woman made a left turn while she had a red arrow........So. Her insurance company paid for totaling the car.........then they finaly paid up for the storage and junk fees..........Ended up they guy made $800 on the car over what he paid for it and drove it for 2 years.

There has been so much we all been through together that it actualy feels as though they are extended family members.

Way back in time I never imagined that there would be such a HUGE Spanish presence here..........so. I took 4 years of High School French. Never in my wildest dreams way back then did I ever think I would have Spanish working with me.

I've learned some working Spanish......but it's more like a working Spanglish......

Finding guys that speak English is getting easier as the years go by......so is finding properly documented workers.

[GreatScapes]

I've been in business now for a little over a year and can echo many of the comments I've read above. I really enjoy working with Mexicans because they are honest, reliable, and fair (generalization). My irrigation and stone subs are Mexican. Both speak very good English.

As was said before, you get good and bad people, not just Mexicans. Howerver, I find American kids want a raise after 6 months and expect to be CEO in a year (generalization). Unfortunately I think we've gotten a little soft. Mexicans are happy to work, and work hard.

One of my business goals for '06 is to learn working Spanish. It's not only the Green industry. Take note of who's on the restaurant staff, domestic help, and construction crews. I'll let the politicians figure out the politics of this situation, but as long as they are here and willing to do an honest days work, I say God love em.

[Bill Schwab]

"As was said before, you get good and bad people, not just Mexicans. Howerver, I find American kids want a raise after 6 months and expect to be CEO in a year (generalization). Unfortunately I think we've gotten a little soft. Mexicans are happy to work, and work hard."

I want to side spin just a tad. Fred, let me ask you, and others. Do you find this atitude I'll call it just within geration X and Y? Because that is what I find.

For the most part, Gen Xers are useless. They had/have no motivation beoynd working at oil change joints and pizza parlors delivering. Nothing wrong with that but I've never seen a group of people so unmotivated.

Generation Y, (we have one of those with my wifes son) are the entitled group. they are the CEO want to bes, expect Gwerman cars to drive, are hooked up with every electronic piece of crap every made and want big money for being lazy.

Somehwere we have taken work ethic out of their vocabulary.

The immigrant workers come from far less, see the streets we have can be paved with gold through hard work, and every one of them seems to go farther faster than those I have seen from the two generations described. Am I the only one?

[GreatScapes]

Don't get me started. Kids today are beyond my comprehension. I have 10 neices and nephews and only two would ever work for me -- and they were raised on an army base in Germany.

I do think we've gone too far in our effort to give our kids what we didn't have. My philosophy is they can have the ipod, xbox and everything else, as long as they EARN it with household chores. I tell my wife all the time our years as an economic super power are dwindling. Better learn to speak Chinese soon!

The best thing I ever had was a 10-speed bike I bought myself from my earnings as a NY messenger.

Bill: You're lucky that your Gen X and Yers want to work at the Pizza parlor. They could be walking around with baggy pants and hanging at the mall.