San Francisco Day Labor Program

What a great idea. Why hasn’t this expanded to every big city in the USA? After I finally had enough of the San Fran rents, I rented a place in the East Bay. I called and the friendly person on the phone helped me arrange two guys to help me move on a Saturday. Two gentlemen arrived right on time at 7:00 Saturday morning. They had paperwork and IDs so even single women can use the service with confidence. They spoke almost no English, but that’s ok — my Spanish is passable and I told the lady on the phone that English was not a requirement. Anyway, these guys kicked ass! I was pretty much prepared, everything was boxed up, just needed help loading the boxes and furniture onto the truck, and taking apart the bed and loading it. I helped with the first couple loads of boxes, but I realized I was just in the way, and stepped aside and let them go. They were like two ants — carrying 3x their weight! They got the truck loaded in under an hour, drove with me over the bridge and unloaded me in the new place in no time. While they were unloading I ran and got us a bag of burgers. Loaded them back in the truck and took them home — 4 hours total and all moved by 11:00. Fantastic work at a great price and not having to ask friends for help was well worth it. Most highly recommended.

A very hardworking employee named Luis worked for me yesterday for five hours cleaning out the yard, bagging weeds and debris. He was able to do what we could not in our dead, dry yard, and it was a positive experience.

Very happy experience with the day laborers. Everyone I spoke with was polite and professional. They negotiated a special rate when I did not need them for the minimum time. The supervisor is courteous and follows up to be sure that the job is done satisfactorily. ‘ll definitely call them for my next project and may check out the house cleaners too.

SAFETY CONCERNS!
Know what you are getting into when you use the SF Day Labor Program to book labor. The people that organize the laborers do not and cannot fully represent the laborers they send to your home. While some laborers may be hardworking and reliable, many are not. Many laborers haven’t eaten all day, and some have problems with hygiene. Many workers are enthusiastic, but some are too enthusiastic and can’t follow instructions.
The last guy I got is literally the LAST GUY. I booked this guy for 3 hours, we started 30 minutes late and I let him go 30 minutes early. When I was paying him his wages he demanded more money. He said he did the work of two people. I pointed out that he got 3 hours pay for 2 hours of work, and I made it clear he wasn’t getting more money. He called me a thief, then stuck up his two middle fingers, kissed them and «threw» them at me, while spitting out a mouthful of curse words and walking away.
It was a fairly threatening situation, and I will never again put myself or my client at risk by having laborers from the SF Day Labor Program. I’ve used the program in the past and it’s been okay enough, but this experiences changes everything. It also doesn’t help that they’ve increased their minimum hourly rate to $ 20 per hour. You could find better labor for less money if you just look in the right places.
Good luck and be safe!

This is a great program. You call up, say what you need, and they send someone over. Remember to be clear as to what you are looking for and confirm your time though. We had Antonio, a gardener, come and do some yard work for the house we just moved into. He was a hard worker and did a really good job. We would definitely have him back!

This is a really good organization, and one to support. We just wanted someone who could do basic yard clean up, weeding and raking. When I called, the nice guy answering the phone suggested that if it was light labor, would we be ok with someone who was unable to do heavy moving jobs but still able to garden.
We were totally fine with that, and were connected to Juan, a wonderful older gentleman who for the past months has been prompt, courteous, and has done a great job tidying up the yard. We now have him coming twice a month and couldn’t be happier.

I had two guys helping me move today and they were amazing! Very careful and hardworking. Zero scratch on my furnitures and not a ding on the wall. I’m so glad I went with the SF Day Labor Program.
Thank you Roberto and Lupe!

Totally a steal of a deal. They might not be hustling their pants off. But for the price difference you get much more for your money. I feel bad only paying them $ 50 for 3 hours of heavy labor. If they take a little longer than those $ 300 movers with moving companies that is still getting it done for a third of the price. Totally worth it.

This was my second time using SF Day Laborers to help with our move (last time was 2 years ago), and I will continue to use them as much as I can. The guys were nothing short of incredible, and the whole experience was such a positive one. The back end: I filled out a form online, someone called me back the next day to tell me we were all set, and then they called the day before the move to re-​confirm. All three of the guys, Benny, Gregory and Santiago showed up early and were incredibly hard and fast workers. We moved out of our one bedroom apartment and storage unit in Potrero and into our two bedroom in the Mission all in about 3 hours.
Santiago was a complete workhorse and helped my husband arrange the furniture in the UHaul. Gregory and Benny were very hardworking and they wouldn’t let me or my husband lift a thing! They were incredibly efficient and we paid them extra because we couldn’t believe how fast it went. It’s only $ 50 for the first 3 hours then $ 15 after per person but if you price professional movers it’s $ 50+/hour per person, so it’s worth it to give these guys some extra if they do a great job. Also the program gives the workers 100% of the money which I just find fantastic and we got to hear from the guys a bit about their struggles with finding work in the city. It was professional but also really educational. I really hope this program continues to exist!
Thanks so much!

Fidel, thanks for the great job you did weeding my backyard!
I recommend calling instead of using the online system. I had to finalize the appointment by phone anyway (and had quite a case of phone tag to do so). But because I like the idea of not having to pay a middle man, and giving work to those who really want it, I didn’t mind a little extra hassle.
Fidel was on time and did a very thorough job. I speak barely any spanish, but really didn’t need to explain much.
I’m calling to book another visit today! Only my yard is so over-​grown I think I need 2 people this time!

I had a great experience with this affordable service. Juan showed up on time to do some gardening for me that required someone stronger than I. He was courteous and hard working. It took him a lot less time than I expected so I paid him for the hours I thought it would have taken. One needs to keep in mind that the workers are only semi skilled so if you want an expert, you’ll need to pay for one.

After having a great experience with this group 18 months ago, when I needed help to turn a jungle into a backyard, this was the first place I thought of. Saul and Juan were perfect. Very hard workers. I can’t believe how good it is to look the back windows and see no weeds or extraneous growth.
I like the process. Especially paying the workers directly and the program does not get a cut.
I will definitely use them again.

Im not sure I can say enough positive things about the program and the men and women who I have met. From the time you call and place a request to the moment they show up — its been efficient, cost effective and reliable. IN fact they can be so efficient when I moved several s back the 3 men who showed up on the day of were so good and focused — we essentially had to stand aside because we were slowing them up.
I love the idea I pay them direct with no middle-​person except for the booking and that many of the folks are looking for regular projects.
The fee is well priced for what you get.
We’ve also benefitted from the Women’s collective for both routine and seasonal house cleaning and I couldn’t be happier.

I’ve used this service for several different things. 1 was to reorganize my closet and the lady did a great cheap job. The second was for housecleaning which was just all right but again cheap. The third was fixing ceiling cracks, electrical, plumbing and lighting fixtures. This was done by a guy named Louis. It was a great job but more expensive. Louis also did some plumbing (setting up a shower in a claw foot tub). He did a fantastic job on that one and reasonably priced for that job. I use the service as much as I can for general fixit stuff. This is a great place when you have odd jobs around the house and don’t know where else to go.

We moved out of our condo and needed someone to do a deep cleaning. Luckily, Norma was assigned to be our cleaner. I asked her to show up at 0730 so that I could go to work and she was at my door-​step by 0715.
I walked with her throughout the condo, gave her some quick instructions, paid her cash for five hours of work and left. I returned to the condo after work and inspected the condo. The place was cleaner than when we moved in. One minor issue — I asked her to clean the fridge, and the fridge did appear to be clean, but the drawers were still dirty. Next time, I would specify that she also clean the inside of the refrigerator drawers.
I would definitely ask for Norma again.

Good for unskilled or semi skilled labor. The rates are set, so no haggling which is nice, plus better prices than TaskRabbit. The organization promotes fairness for day laborers, which I personally appreciate.
My tips:
1. Don’t assume everyone is equally skilled — make sure to specifically ask for someone who is skilled at the task you want (e.g., a skilled painter, an experienced gardener).
2. Commit to at least 8 hours of work (i.e., if you want someone for 4 hours, the rates are low, so they may try to stretch it to make it worth their time).
Do not promise a second or third day (until you know if you are happy with the worker you get).
3. Use normal caution as you would anytime inviting a worker into your home (I say this as I’ve had stuff stolen in the past by subcontractors, not from these guys though).

My first time use of the program. I was delighted with the eager beaver 62-​year old (Joaquin Gutierrez) who showed up on time and put his heart into the job for six hours. I want him on my next engagement and will ask for him specifically. You should as well.
Followup — used him another 2 – 3 days getting my stuff together for a move to Brentwood. He can handle just about anything. Polished fellow as well. Good pholosopher to boot.

Reliability, skill and honesty of the yard-​work workers in this program is really a hit or miss. To ensure smooth delivery of services by workers, the program needs to provide a spanish/​english form to filled out with tasks and agreed price to share with employers/​employees before the men show up for work.
I showed two workers the extent of work, got their verbal consent on estimate/​price (much higher than typical rate, hoping for diligent and happy workers). once they arrived on the job they started to behave badly after just 5hrs of 2 day job. Then next day demanded full payment after just completing only 60% of the agreed upon job. Beware of Pedro with a red pickup truck, he is not pleasant person to work with no matter how well you treat him.

5 Mega stars. The 3 guys arrived early, were polite, hard working and did an awesome job. They moved among other things the biggest most unwieldly sofa out of here and down the stairs without so much as a scratch on a wall. They got the job done in a fraction of time. I would not hesitate to hire anyone from
again and believe me, I will. It was a great experience.

HIGHLY recommend the SF Day Labor Program! Had 2 men help with a move. Lee and Frederico came on time, were friendly, hard working, conscientious, and diligent.
Thank you for making our move go so well!