Inside the weird requests L.A.’s day laborers receive
Good morning. It’s Tuesday, Dec. 5. I’m Brittny Mejia, a narrative reporter based in Southern California. Here’s what you need to know to start your day.
- When day labor jobs take a turn for the weird
- A suspect in homeless killings was charged with four counts of murder
- 25 ideas for how to fill your dining and drinking calendar this December
- And here’s today’s e-newspaper
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When day labor jobs take a turn for the weird
Standing in line for concert tickets.
Cleaning the pool — and then being asked to stay for drinks and entertain the lonely employer.
Hauling away trash bags of rocks that turned out to contain dismembered body parts.
These are just some of the jobs day laborers — known as jornaleros — have been hired to do in Southern California.
When news broke recently that a group of day laborers had allegedly been hired by Samuel Bond Haskell to unknowingly dump body parts for $500, I started wondering what other “odd” jobs people offer to these workers. At job centers and home improvement stores around L.A., I heard stories of dangerous and weird requests.
Cesar Beiza, 59, told me he was once hired to help clean out a former brothel. As they moved a sofa, a co-worker was almost jabbed in the neck by a used syringe.
“We live from day to day,” Beiza told me. “If we work today we will probably not work tomorrow. We have to take advantage of the opportunity, but sometimes we put our lives and our health at risk.”
While reporting this story, I met a woman whose husband had worked as a day laborer at Haskell’s home for three months earlier this year. He and a group of others were hired by Haskell’s wife, Mei.
Police believe the remains discovered so far belong to Mei. Her parents are still missing. Haskell has been charged with three counts of murder in connection with the disappearance of his wife and in-laws.
The woman, who asked not to be named, said her husband had worked in construction near the pool. He said the family seemed very nice and he was shocked by the news.
“It’s incredible that we were in the house for so long and we don’t actually know people. We only see the outside appearance,” her husband told her. “You don’t know what’s going on in the background.”
Pablo Alvarado, co-executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said an organizer will be going out this week to try to find the Tarzana workers and offer assistance. He’s also hoping that — once they’re found — the city of L.A. will declare them heroes.
Today’s top stories
Crime and courts
- A suspect in the “bone-chilling” homeless killings across Los Angeles was charged with four counts of murder.
- L.A. County prosecutors have dropped charges in a “ghost gun” case linked to the LAPD gang unit scandal.
- A man who says he was punched by Mike Tyson on a plane is demanding $450,000. Tyson’s lawyer says the ex-champ has no intention of making a “shakedown payment.”
- The FBI has arrested an L.A. actor and Republican Party official over alleged involvement in the Jan. 6 riot.
Business and labor
- The next Republican primary debate could put NewsNation on the map.
- Spotify said it is laying off 17% of its global workforce, marking the third round of cuts this year for the Swedish audio giant.
- This L.A. firm hired kids to debone poultry with sharp knives and drive forklifts, the Labor Department says.
More big stories
- CSU faculty walk out for higher pay in tough times, launching the first of four one-day strikes throughout the California State University system.
- Why do California and Texas differ so much? Religion and the priorities of a white minority play huge roles, a poll shows.
- California wants farms to capture methane from cow manure. Neighbors say it’s killing them.
- Blue Shield has been hacked. Here’s what to do if your information was part of the breach.
- COVID, flu, RSV on the rise in California. Is another ‘tripledemic’ coming?
- Half a billion: That’s the latest price for a gondola to Dodger Stadium.
- Food workers at the W Hollywood allege rodent infestation at Sky Terrace restaurant.
- Biden claims he’s not trying to win the nation’s (unofficial) first primary. The truth is more complicated.
- Bedouins of the Negev desert face rockets from Gaza and discrimination and arrest by Israel. They seek safety as the war energizes the far right.
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Commentary and opinions
- Jean Guerrero: Why Elon Musk, the bully, is seen by many, including liberals, as a hero.
- Opinion: Gazans have no good options. Here’s the least bad of the bad.
- LZ Granderson: Only a seismic shift can reverse the rise in suicides among older adults.
- Jonah Goldberg: George Santos hasn’t been convicted of a crime. Congress was still right to kick him out.
- Kevin Baxter: Jaime Lozano knows Mexico must win or he’s fired — and he’s fine with that.
Today’s great reads
Inside the last porn theater in Los Angeles. Tiki Theater is the last adult film theater in a city that once had scores of them. Patrons call it “a refuge.”
Other great reads
- How to avoid overdoing it this holiday season.
- 18 folds and 21 grams. How the soup dumplings of Din Tai Fung are conquering the U.S.
- “How the Gringo Stole Christmas” brings a classic movie trope to East L.A.
- This year saw the formation of a new supergroup: books broke news about Madonna, Sly Stone, Lou Reed, Ella Fitzgerald, Barbra Streisand and even Bob Dylan.
- Lauren Betts struggled through her first season at Stanford. She says UCLA’s mental health support helped her become a key leader for the Bruins.
- “Barbie’s” influence hasn’t slowed down. Pink Crocs and gender equality, anyone?
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
For your downtime
Going out
- 🍣 🍕25 ideas to fill your dining and drinking calendar this December.
- 💿 The 40 best record stores in and around L.A.
- 🎊 🎇 A new Pixar-themed parade is coming to Disneyland.
- 🐠 🏊🏽 15 things to do in San Pedro, where creativity and community seem to emerge in the most unexpected spaces.
Staying in
- 📺 🎶 The best entertainment of 2023: Our picks for the top TV shows, movies, music and more.
- 📚The 13 best novels (and best 2 short story collections) of 2023.
- 🥮 Here’s a recipe for cinnamon holiday cake with bourbon and pecans.
- ✏️ Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and arcade games.
And finally ... a great photo
Show us your favorite place in California! Send us photos you have taken of spots in California that are special — natural or human-made — and tell us why they’re important to you.
Today’s great photo is from Victoria Mojarro of Los Angeles: Ascot Hills. Victoria writes:
Ascot Hills, a great hiking spot in the heart of the east side/ El Sereno Hills. My whole family goes, my sister, her dog, my mom, my kids, and our dog. It is a sight of mostly working-class Latino communities accessing nature and health.
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Brittny Mejia, narrative reporter
Elvia Limón, multiplatform editor
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Laura Blasey, assistant editor
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