Pedro Hernández has not had a stable job since he came here from Puerto Rico two years ago, and he must seek his daily bread by doing anything, including handing out advertising leaflets while he shouts out the offers of a cell phone store.
“This is bad,” Hernández, 44, told us. He said he earns $30 to $40 “on some days, but other days nothing. I hope the situation is going to get better now with Obama,” he said optimistically, and then returned to shouting out, “Free phone, take advantage, free phone.”
According to the latest statistics, unemployment among Hispanics has risen by 8.8 percent.
So far this year the economy has seen a loss of almost 1.2 million jobs nationally.
For Teresa Figueroa, 42, the current situation does not look rosy either. Having studied secretarial skills and social services, she tells us that “it's been a little while since I've found work.” Then she clarifies that the “little while” is six years.
“I've tried at a lot of places, at the post office, at a cable business – I passed the tests, but they never called me,” she told us as she waited for her bus at Fulton Street.
“Almost everyone's the same. Out of any 10 people I know, eight are unemployed,” was her final comment, sending a message to the new president: “We need more work. I'll keep on looking, but in the meantime my three children and I have got to keep on living with my mother, because I can't afford to pay rent.”
On another street, Victor Medina, 47, was also trying to deal with the crisis by handing out leaflets, “even if it's only for three hours,” he said. “I am an asbestos-removal specialist, and I worked for a long time for moving companies and warehouses, but now there's nothing out there,” commented this Hispanic man, adding that “anything that earns you a few bucks is good.”
Another immigrant, Mexican Alberto Carpinteiro, is one of the lucky ones; he shuttles between one job in a restaurant and another in construction, but he says, “Everything has gone down lately.” He tells us that many of his friends “come looking for work but go away disappointed.”
