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After The Layoffs At Homeboy Industries

Roselle Chen |
June 19, 2010 | 12:19 p.m. PDT

Staff Reporter

Homeboy Industries has remained open, even with the cutbacks. (Roselle Chen)

After close to 300 layoffs last month at Homeboy Industries, the mood at the Downtown Los Angeles headquarters has been somber.

Father Gregory Boyle, known affectionately by staff members as "G," created a jobs program called Jobs For A Future in 1988 to help gang members get back on their feet, and grew the program into the non-profit organization in 2001. 

He stopped taking pay in November to help cut costs when the company ran into financial trouble, but ultimately he had to let go of his senior administrators, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The company provides services to ex-gang members such as tattoo removal, counseling and job placement. Homeboy Industries also owns a bakery and cafe run by former gang members.

Nearly 100 people were hired back two weeks after the layoffs because of recent public donations, bringing the total current workforce to around 200 people, according to case manager Norma Robles Gillette.

"There are almost 200 of the junior staff still out there and we're seriously concerned about their well being and what they're doing when they're not coming here," said Gillette. "In that respect it's kind of sad; it's not business as usual here."

The junior staff was paid from $8 to $10 an hour. Some of the former employees that were laid off have come to volunteer anyway because they simply missed being there, said Gillette.

"Typically the front lobby is very electric and energetic. Right now there are times when it's just totally dead," said Gillette. "For all of us it just feels very strange. It's given us time to catch up on paperwork and things like that, but the main thing for us here is working with people."

Gillette said she hopes that Homeboy Industries will receive the $5 million donation that it urgently needs to put itself in a good position. The deficit was brought on by the recession and internal accounting oversights at the company. Boyle said that when the company bought their current headquarters, it did not factor in enough money to pay for the services it offers, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The company has received "a flurry of donations from some really kind and well meaning people," but the amount so far has not been enough for the organization to rehire most of the people it lost, Gillette said.

"We're going basically from pay period to pay period," she said.

What is especially worrisome for Gillette is that the young people who were previously employed by the company may not be able to find jobs elsewhere because of their criminal records and visible tattoos.

Although current employees have been taking on the work left by the junior staff, there isn't much work that's ever left undone, said Gillette.

"We've never really had enough work for them to do, so that's why you see kids washing and cleaning the windows several times a day because they want to be here and we want to help," said Gillette. "But Father Greg has always hired more people than we actually need just to keep the kids off the streets."

Juana Armenta, a receptionist who has been working at Homeboy Industries for a year, was realistic about the company's situation.

"We're a non-profit organization and we're not funded by the government so something like this was bound to happen," said Armenta. "We just have to stick it out and stick by G because he's never forgotten us."

Armenta pointed out that even though the layoffs occurred, the two-week rehiring period happened rather quickly.

"This lets us know that our community needs us and we're here to help and hopefully Homeboy will never close," said Armenta.

Gillette said that she was asked by more than a few people if the company had closed, or was still going to be around, but it has never shut its doors during regular business hours, even through the layoffs.

The tattoo removal service, the cafe and the bakery are still open, and volunteer doctors at the clinic are still coming in, said Gillette.

Sierra Trask, an employee who has been with the company for eight months, said that there's been an outpouring of support from the community.

"There's still hope with us and hope with G because he took a lot and gave a lot to show us the support and love that we, as growing up, didn't have," said Trask.

Gillette said she remains sad but hopeful, "I think that eventually everyone will be back, but I have no idea when. I'm hoping soon."



 

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