It may take weeks or months to convince day laborers at a particular corner to form a Site Committee. The Committee meets with the police and the surrounding residents and businesses to negotiate a set of rules for people seeking work. A stretch of curb is designated as an official pick up site so contractors won t cause traffic problems as workers gather around their vehicles. Other rules ban drinking alcohol and bothering people driving by. Flyers are prepared for employers and potential employers.
Workers register themselves, which includes listing their interests and skills.
A system is developed to distribute the jobs among the workers and to attract more jobs. As sites begin to organize, workers begin to see themselves less as rivals and more as friends. Laborers have formed a Day Laborers Band, and soccer teams. In September of 1997 Day Labor Sites from across the city sent representatives to the first Inter-Corner Conference to begin to draft principles and bylaws for the Day Laborers Union. The DLU is attempting to set uniform standards for wages, provide legal assistance and develop the voice of workers in such matters as law enforcement and anti-day labor ordinances.