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HAAB Minutes 09/27/2001 Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board Minutes September 27,2001 HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY BOARD MINUTES OF MEETING of September 27, 2001 PRESENT: ABSENT: Carlos A viles, HAAB Member Eugene Greener, HAAB Member (Excused) Sofia Pagan, HAAB Member David Correa, HAAB Member Susan Calkins, HAAB Member ALSO PRESENT: Frank Loney, HAAB Member John Norman, citizen Robert Pina, HAAB Member Pete Cade, Jr., HAAB Member Ramiro Maiialich, Chief Assistant County Attorney and HAAB Staff Liaison The September 27, 2001 meeting of the Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board (HAAB) began at approximately 7:07 p.m. in the Board of County Commissioners meeting room. A quorum of 7 members was present. APPROVAL OF JULY AND AUGUST, 2001 MINUTES The Board reviewed the minutes of the July 26, 2001 meeting. Frank Loney made a motion to approve the minutes and it was seconded by Susan Calkins. The Board voted 7-0 in favor of approving the motion. The Board also considered the minutes of August 23, 2001 and a motion was made by Robert Pina to approve said minutes. Frank Loney provided a second. A correction was included in the motion to reference that Mr. Norman is ,!!, not the, director of Cinco de Mayo Festival in Immokalee. As amended, the Board voted 7-0 to approve the motion. HAAB REVIEW OF MEMBER ABSENCES A discussion was held regarding attendance standards in the HAAB ordinance and excusal of absences. With respect to Mr. Greener, Liaison Ramiro Maiialich reported that Mr. Greener had been in contact with the County Attorney Office prior to tonight's meeting and that Mr. Greener's office indicated they had not received timely notice of the September meeting. With regard to Mr. Greener's absence in August, Ramiro Maiialich reminded the members that Mr. Greener had previously stated at the July meeting that he had been prescheduled to be away at the time of the August meeting and that those plans had been in existence prior to his appointment to the HAAB. Susan Calkins made a - ". --"'.'"-'-^"-'--""---'-"""~'~""'-'-- .- '-"-'-'-<~'''.'"-''_,_-_,,__,,- motion to excuse both of Mr. Greener's absences. Robert Pina provided a second. The Board voted . 7-0 in favor of the motion. Frank Loney commented about his absence in May by stating that there had been illnesses in the family at that time. A motion to excuse the absence was made by Robert Pina and seconded by Carlos Aviles. The Board voted 7-0 in favor of the motion. Sofia Pagan explained that in May and June of 2001 she had had problems in attendance because of illness and Red Cross commitments. Frank Loney made a motion to excuse both absenccs which was seconded by Pete Cade. The Board voted 7- o in favor of the motion. Robert Pina explained that in May he missed the HAAB meeting due to an operation. A motion was made to excuse the absence by Frank Loney and seconded by Susan Calkins. The Board voted 7-0 in favor of the motion. FARMWORKER ISSUES David Correa informed the HAAB that he had made contacts with members of the County Commission about farmworker issues. He stated that it was his impression that Commissioner Colletta would support the HAAB's request for the County Commission and/or the Governor to make a plea for dialog about farm worker issues between the growers and the farmworkers. He said that he had explained to the Commissioners with whom he met that this is not a labor-management issue, but rather an economic-social issue in Immokalee affecting the Hispanic community. David also -. explained that he had met with Commissioner Henning and it was his impression that Commissioner Henning would not support said request of the HAAB because Commissioner Henning appears to believe that it is a labor-management matter. David stated that in his meeting with Commissioner Carter, the Commissioner appeared inclined to support the plea for dialog between the farmworkers and the growers. He also mentioned that Mr. Carter had suggested having a forum on the matter including Florida Gulf Coast University's caP!lbilities for dispute resolution. David thought that was a good idea but he was not sure if FGCU would require payment to provide these services. He wondered if the County Commission would pay for such services? David said that he thought that Mr. Carter would prefer that the matter came to the County Commission after the November elections. Mr. Carter seemed to think that the matter would receive a more favorable reception at that time. Frank Loney commented that he has long been involved in the farm worker issue. He did not prefer to wait to present this item to the County Commission. He emphasized that the HAAB is not asking for specific negotiations, just for dialog. He stated that the HAAB proposal is not asking for dollars to compete with other ballot items in November. He thought the issue needed attention now because there are too many impacts in the community. Mr. Norman commented that the average farmworker in Immokalee makes only around $8000 per year. He said it was hard to get accurate data because many of the farmworkers do not have social security numbers. He says that many times taxes are taken out of their wages but nothing comes back to them from the federal government because they are constantly on the move to other migrant jobs. . He also reminded everyone that the farmworker's occupation is subject to weather conditions. David Correa commented that the growers have refused to sit down at the table to discuss wages with the farmworkers. He mentioned that the Governor has previously sent a representative to Immokalee but there has been no significant progress. Sofia Pagan added that the growers deal with contractors. 2 - - '-' '~'~'''~^''''''~-'-''-''-'---''-'~-------''-''''~'''--- --.------.---.. She thought there were-two ways to look at the situation: the first was to get the farmers to improve living conditions; and the second was to improve the educational opportunities for the young people so that they can hold better paying jobs. She said it was necessary to break the chain of repeated generations doing the same low paying jobs. Frank Loney mentioned that it is difficult for illegal workers to cooperate with law enforcement. The growers continue to make profits; the workers do not even have social security numbers and still have taxes taken out of their wages. He mentioned that in Costa Rica the law requires that education be provided to citizens through the first two years of college. Mr. Norman observed that Immigration is never around when the growers need the workers in the field. He says that the pattern has been that after the crops are picked, Immigration shows up and rounds up illegals. He said this is kind of a standing joke in Immokalee. He mentioned that it costs the worker money to return to the United States. He commented that despite deplorable conditions in Immokalee, the workers return because the conditions in Immokalee are still better than those that they face in Mexico or other countries. He mentioned that there is a big push for reform and that President Bush has advanced a proposal to recognize the legal status of workers. Carlos A vilcs added that even if the workers are granted legal status, the issue will not disappear. He said that children in Immokalee need mentors. He cited Manny Touron, who is a principal in Immokalee and is a very good role model. He said that there is a need for Immokalee children to aspire to goals beyond high school and farm work. Susan Calkins asked if businesses in Immokalee were giving children openings for educational opportunities. Pete Cade added that Redlands Christian Migrant Association and the high school are involved in job training and mentoring. He said that recently there was program that featured an author about migrant life but there was small attendance. Frank Loney commented that he has been a member of Alcoholics Anonymous for 20+ years and has been sober for that time. He mentioned that he use to be a soccer player and has coached the Optimists' Club youth soccer league. He said that he requires good grades for the children on their soccer team to be eligible to play. He thinks that it is necessary to have the Immokalee community educated and involved in requiring all high school children to be exposed to career alternatives. More importantly, the growers need to sit down and talk with the workers showing respect for human dignity. He is not asking that the County Commission get involved in any terms of employment, merely in the plea for dialog between the parties. Sofia Pagan agreed that the problems will continue to exist if the causes of the problems are not addressed. Mr. Norman stated that he had never been a field worker but he has observed for several years the people in Immokalee and they are hard workers. He said many of them are uneducated and young and come from Mexico. From the census, it was determined that many of the workers have no schooling and cannot even count the money they are paid. He mentioned that in Naples, many of the construction, hotel and other service workers are coming from Immokalee. The main problem is for the field workers. There is no doubt they are taken advantagc of by employers but they continue to do the work because they are still better off than in Mexico. Mr. Pina recalled his Chicago high school experience where students were strongly encouraged to either pursue a university education or vocational/trade preparation. He thought that that type of emphasis was needed in this community where a large percentage of the students do not go to college. Mr. Norman agreed saying that many -, technicians are making more money than college graduates. There was a brief discussion about the timing of the presentation to be made at the Board of County Commissioners. Susan Calkins questioned whether there was a need to present powerful personal - 3 __._"..m~.M'~,"..""__. _"'''H'_.^,_.~ -" -.- ..'-....-..,..--- testimony. Mr. Norman stated that on a positive note, there were lots of housing projects underway in lmmokalee and that short term rents are available to workers so that they can avoid a double rent as they move between jobs. A motion was made by Susan Calkins to bring this matter to the Board of County Commissioners, if possible, at the October 23'd County Commission meeting. Specifically, a request of the Hispanic Board for the County Commission to request dialog between the growers and the workers and for the County Commission to request that the Governor also make the same plea for dialog. This is based on dialog being good for the lmmokalee community and the County. The motion was seconded by Frank Loney. There was a 7,0 vote in favor of the motion. Susan Calkins asked whether lmmokalee Civic Association Representative, Terry Aviles, could participate in the presentation. IMMOKALEE BANK PRACTICES -th (fl"",1( 06= Af'/\l'.ri0Gl.. David Correa mentioned a concern that he had regarding aR lmmgkallillil BaRk which is charging laborers to cash checks when the worker's employer does its banking at the same bank. David said this is a hardship on workers. He asked whether the HAAB should take a position on this. David said he felt this practice is wrong where the laborer is paid b~ crt~rom the same bank where he is trying to cash the check. He thought that Commissioner CeR\:tla might be willing to write a letter taking an interest in this matter. Frank Loney commented that he thought there were legal .. requirements that affected these types of practiccs. Mr. Norman stated that it is not just the Bank of America that has this practice. He said that banks argue that there is no guarantee the employer will have funds in the bank merely because the employer has an account with the bank. The bank maintains that it has to pay a percentage of money to insure that funds will be available for cashing the checks. He suggested that a HAAB representative should confer with Steve Price of Florida Community Bank in lmmokalee. Robert Pina made a motion for Chairman Correa to investigate this matter with the banks and report back at the October, 2001 meeting. There was a second by Frank Loney. The Board voted 7-0 in favor of the motion. The meeting of the HAAB was adjourned at approximately 8:54 p.m. Prepared by: Ramiro Maiialich, Chief Assistant County Attorney and HAAB Staff Liaison .;t1J Approved by the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board on this ~ day of (Y'~ ,2001. ~)~ ~/H...{'.& , David Correa, Chairman WRMlHAAB/Minutes - 4 ._-,- -'''''- ~~~.._._._. ..'-,----,---,~---- MEMORANDUM TO: Sue Filson, Administrative Assistant FROM: Board o~ Commissioners Ramiro analich,Chief Assistant County Attorney DATE: November 8, 2001 RE: Approved Minutes of the September 27, 200lMeeting of the Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board Please find attached the approved minutes of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board meeting of September 27. 2001. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. RM/kn attachment cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney "-~._---~--- ,- --~".,_.,--~"..,_..__._-- --,--..-... <,"~..- ---