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December 20, 2006
This is supposed to be a season of holiday cheer. But there is uncertainty in the air for more than 500 Watsonville families. They're facing unemployment as a result of a plant shutdown. The Santa Cruz County community is rallying to help them.
The Birdseye frozen food plant is closing down next week, 523 employees have been on notice since July that they'd be laid off.
Javier Marquez is one of them. He's a ten dollar an hour line worker. He spends his time now searching for a new job. He says some of his co-workers are really hurting.
Javier Marquez, laid-off worker: "Single mothers, maybe single fathers - people with limited English, perhaps - with limited comprehension of the work system in this country. I think they'll be the ones hit the most."
A county job training program is helping them hone their skills. Some of them were employed at Birdseye for 15 to 30 years.
Emily Balli, Career Center Manager: "The concept of job searching is new to them, so it's having to re-learn how to interview, re-learning how to complete applications and a resume. That's going to be a challenge to them."
Jobs at Birdseye and other frozen food plants were a big draw 20 years ago. But the plants have fallen victim to low cost foreign labor. After losing some 2,500 jobs over the years in the food processing industry, the city of Watsonville now thinks it has a way they can create new jobs to keep their residents employed -- namely, this 90-acre site at the intersection of Highways 1 and 129.
Watsonville officials say 2,100 jobs will be created when the new industrial area is completed. The assistant city manager says that won't happen overnight, but it does provide hope for economic recovery.
Marcela Tavantzis, Assistant City Manager: "In the past, I couldn't even begin to imagine how we could attract new businesses and create jobs when we had no vacant land. But having vacant land now gives us hope."
Watsonville's jobless rate averages 15 percent -- three times higher than the state average.
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