The James Irvine Foundation

My Boss Owes Me Over $12,000

A Bay Area Restaurant Worker Recounts His Fight Against Wage Theft

This piece was published alongside the Zócalo/Irvine Foundation program “How Can Workers Make Sure They’re Treated Fairly in the Workplace?” Read the Takeaway of the event here.

I found out about the restaurant from my brother, who was supposed to work there but had another job. It was only going to be for one day but the owner asked if I could work all week. After that, she hired me and I started working with her regularly as a prep cook in her San Francisco …

by Eder Juarez |

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Four panelists sitting in front of a blue backdrop that has the logos of Zócalo Public Square and The James Irvine Foundation on it. The panelists are, from left to right: Cresencio Rodriguez-Delgado, Janette Dill, Helda Pinzón-Perez, and Martha Valladarez.

Better Health Care Starts with Better Health Care Jobs

The Industry Needs Higher Wages, More Paid Leave, and Pathways to Advancement

by Joe Mathews |

The most important healthcare workers in this country—entry-level workers who do the caregiving and provide preventive services—are often paid poverty-level wages and provided insufficient benefits and supports, said panelists at …

My Work as an In-Home Caregiver Shouldn’t Be This Hard | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

My Work as an In-Home Caregiver Shouldn’t Be This Hard

Minimum Wage, Unpaid Hours, Tricky Client Dynamics, and No Outside Support Sometimes Make This the Worst Job I’ve Ever Had

by Alva Rodriguez |

As one of the over 550,000 caregivers in the state’s In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) programs, I am part of a big system that keeps 650,000 disabled, blind, or elderly Californians …

Can Books Build Community?

Putting California’s Inland Empire on the Literary Map

By Cati Porter |

Ahtziri and I are sitting on a stone garden bench outside the church in Riverside, California, where my children take piano lessons. In her hand is a stack of papers—typed …

When Choreography and Secrets Collide

A Collaborative Art Project Seeks to Turn Community Memories Into Dance

By Sue Roginski and Casey Avaunt |

Does a work of art have to be created by one person with a singular vision? Our experience says “no.”

Art-making also works when a group of specialized artists—or even …


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