FEDERAL COURT REJECTS LIMITS ON DAY LABORERS.

Byline: Susan Abram Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - A federal ruling in a Glendale case involving day laborers will have implications for Santa Clarita, where local officials have considered opening a hiring center to deter migrant workers from gathering on street corners to solicit jobs.

The ruling, handed down on Monday by U.S. District Judge S. James Otero, strikes down a Glendale ordinance that had barred day laborers from soliciting work on city streets.

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund filed a lawsuit last year against Glendale on behalf of day laborers, claiming the city's law and subsequent enforcement violated the workers' rights to free speech.

This week's ruling by Otero could have far-reaching effects on cities such as Santa Clarita that want to build centers as a means to prohibit laborers from soliciting work on public streets.

Leaders with MALDEF have called such measures illegal under the First Amendment.

Glendale is one of a handful of cities in Los Angeles County that has a temporary skilled work center, built in 1997 across the street from a Home Depot. The center provides laborers with a safe, sheltered place to congregate, use bathrooms and receive information.

In court documents, Glendale attorneys argued that the hiring site gives the city leverage in prohibiting solicitations from public streets.

``I think some believe if they have a center, they could impose an ordinance,'' said Thomas Saenz, vice president of litigation for MALDEF. ``The simple fact is, you can't have an ordinance, with or without a center.''

Santa Clarita officials had started studies last year on establishing a local day-laborer hiring center. The City Council considered building a work center to restrict solicitation on public roads through an ordinance but halted discussions until the Glendale ruling was handed down.

The ruling ``certainly narrows down what we can and cannot do,'' said Santa Clarita spokeswoman Gail Ortiz.

The City Council is expected to discuss the issue in the near future, she said.

More than 100 day laborers congregate on San Fernando Road in Newhall between 15th Street and Sierra Highway daily, according to the Sheriff's Department.

Workers who stood under the morning sun on Wednesday said if a center were built in Santa Clarita, they may like to use it.

``The truth is we would like the protection,'' said one man in Spanish who would not give his name. ``But if we can't have one, then there's no choice.''

Susan Abram, [phone]

susan.abram(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

(color) Day laborers wait at an equipment rental shop in Newhall. The new ruling strikes down a Glendale ordinance on day laborers soliciting work on streets.

David Crane/Staff Photographer