Construction ground to a halt on the E-470 bypass, meatpacking plants closed, and maids and gardeners marched instead of going to work, but most businesses were prepared for Monday’s immigration rallies and stayed open.
Many companies in construction, landscaping, dining, hospitality, maintenance and janitorial businesses experienced higher-than-normal absenteeism as immigrants and their supporters took to the streets to rally for more lenient immigration laws.
Some companies came up with creative ways to make sure their employees showed up.
Faced with the prospect of losing as many as half his workers, John Nassif, owner and founder of Green Fine Salad Co. in downtown Denver, decided to have T-shirts made so his employees could express their support while staying on the job.
The white shirts bore images of American and Mexican flags along with the words “One Love.” Given the chance to wear the shirts, all of Nassif’s staff showed up at work Monday.
The Cheesecake Factory, a Calabasas Hills, Calif.-based restaurant chain with locations in Denver and Boulder and at Park Meadows mall, offered $100 bonuses to busers, dishwashers, line cooks and prep cooks who came to work Monday. The bonuses were based on what the company deemed were essential positions and not on the employees’ ethnic background, said Howard Gordon, senior vice president for the company.
Employers in businesses that are heavily dependent on an immigrant labor pool have known for weeks that they could face staffing shortages.
Still, some were unprepared for large-scale absences. When most of Lawrence Construction Co.’s Latino employees didn’t come to work, forcing the company to cancel its work on the bypass and two other projects, Richard Lawrence was shocked.
“They didn’t ask if they could take off, and they shut down 50 percent of our company,” said Lawrence, president of Lawrence Construction. “I didn’t expect this, because most of them are long- term employees. We pay union-scale pension and health benefits, they are making $20 to $30 an hour, and they walk off on me.”
Greeley-based Swift & Co. shut down four of its five beef-processing plants and two of its three pork-processing plants. The company will make up the lost time by increasing hours throughout the week, said Sean McHugh, Swift spokesman.
Denver-based Chipotle Mexican Grill kept all of its Colorado restaurants open but closed 29 locations in other states where workers attended the rallies.
Denver restaurant owner Mike Miller let his kitchen staff – all documented workers – vote on whether to work Monday or participate in the demonstrations. As a result, his Basil Doc’s pizza restaurant stayed open all day, but his HandleBar & Grill closed at 3 p.m. because the afternoon crew unanimously voted to support the demonstration.
“These guys have been with me a long time, and I honor and respect their decision,” Miller said.
The 30-woman crew of house cleaners at Molly Maid of Denver West took the day off, said Robert Kadnuck, the owner of the franchise. He canceled all of Monday’s scheduled work and expected to lose about $5,000 for the day.
“I found out three or four weeks ago that it was going to happen, and I was very supportive of it. It is what they think is good for their cause,” he said.
At TruGreen Landcare, about three-quarters of the 90-member metro-area workforce is Hispanic. The company canceled almost all of the jobs scheduled for Monday, said Bob von Gruben, the company’s senior vice president and general counsel.
Denver-based Furniture Row Cos. closed its three metro-area production facilities after employees approached the company about taking the day off. The company kept its retail stores, which include Sofa Mart, Oak Express, Bedroom Expressions and Denver Mattress, open.
“We’ll find a way to work around it,” said Greg Ruegsegger, general counsel for Furniture Row. “It wasn’t a huge inconvenience. It’s a matter of scheduling the work at different times.”
Denver-area hospitals, hotels, nursing homes and grocery stores said workers who wanted time off had requested it ahead of time, allowing them to schedule other people in their place. Most reported business as usual and said the impacts of the absences were minimal.
Among city employees, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper said there were reports that some used leave time to attend the rally.
“I have not heard any instances where our ability to serve our citizens was negatively impacted,” Hickenlooper said.
Other city agencies reported the rally had a minimal impact on city business.
“I am hearing a few folks put in requests for vacation time, and there were indications they were going to the rally,” said Sue Cobb, the communications director for Denver’s Department of Human Services. “But everyone did a good job of ensuring there was proper coverage to make sure our clients were taken care of.”
Staff writer Tom McGhee can be reached at 303-820-1671 or tmcghee@denverpost.com.
Staff writer Kristi Arellano can be reached at 303-820-1902 or karellano@denverpost.com.
Staff writer Christopher N. Osher can be reached at 303-820-1201 or cosher@denverpost.com.
146,000 – Estimated illegal immigrants who are part of Colorado’s 2.6 million workforce, according to the Pew Hispanic Center
111,600 – Estimated unemployed in Colorado, according to the Pew Center
