Sweat Equity: Love of Labor Not Lost on Local Workers
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In the labor market, butcher, baker and candlestick maker are cushy employment compared with carpenter, mason, roofer and farmer.
“I’m old school. You go out and work your butt off and get what you deserve,” says Ken Howell, a stone/brick mason and lifelong Moore County resident.
Mechanization and outsourcing may have diminished their numbers but not the importance of the labor force whose toil Americans celebrate on Monday. The precarious economic climate has trickled down to trowel and tractor; now, to stay afloat, workers frequently diversify.
John Blue Jr. of Aberdeen, a sixth-generation farmer, cut back on tobacco and started growing bok choy and daikon radishes for Farm to Table subscribers.
Construction workers are not so fortunate. Larry Parker of the N.C. Department of Employment Security reports that statewide, construction jobs were up by 200 in the past year — from being down by 3,700 the year before.
Gene Norton, manager of Aberdeen Workforce Solutions/ N.C. Department of Commerce, doesn’t have much better news: “There are lots of skilled construction people out there looking for work because commercial (and especially) residential construction is down in the dumps.”
Furthermore, Norton continues, out-of-town construction companies may bring their own people, rather than hiring locally. Unskilled helpers earning $8 to $12 an hour have slightly better job prospects.
The law enforcement center in Carthage is the only government project under construction in Moore County. Commercially, Dick’s Sporting Goods in Aberdeen, a junior Walmart in Carthage, stores at Southern Pines Village and the widening of N.C. 211 have provided some construction jobs.
The American laborer’s heavy lifting has, paradoxically, long been romanticized by writers of poetry and fiction — from Walt Whitman to John Steinbeck, Studs Terkel and current U.S. Poet Laureate Philip Levine, author of “Overhand the Hammers Swing: Poems of Work.”
Farmer Blue chuckles at the notion: “When you get up in the morning and the tractor’s broken down, you have two flat tires and (by afternoon) it’s 108 degrees, that’s not very romantic.”
Labor Day Origins
Labor Day originated in Canada, in 1872, when striking typographical union workers organized a parade protesting 58-hour work weeks. A decade later, on Sept. 5, 1882, a “workingmen’s holiday” was observed in New York City. The idea took hold. Labor Day became a federal holiday in 1894. Celebrations, often contentious and sometimes violent, have morphed into summer’s final barbecue and, during an election year, political rallies.
North Carolina made labor waves in 1934 when a United Textile Workers strike that closed 104 mills in Gaston County spread throughout the South and New England. Half a million workers joined the protest against wages and working conditions. Presently, the N.C. State AFL-CIO represents a variety of unions. Their annual Labor Day parade on Sept. 3 in Charlotte honors “the accomplishments of organized labor in this country, region and community.”
These laborers working in Moore County illustrate a breed beyond hard hat and metal lunch pail.
High Hopes
Butch Ciarrocchi, grandson of a welder, looks every inch the iron worker: lean, muscular, tan, grimy hands and a five-day stubble.
“Physical labor’s my strong point,” Ciarrocchi says.
He’s been at it for 15 years, mostly in New Jersey. “My wife worked for a steel company — I started as an apprentice doing the dirty stuff and worked myself up.”
“Up,” meaning 100 feet in near-zero temperatures for 50 to 80 hours per week, sometimes into the night. Ciarrocchi has never been seriously injured but had a friend who was killed on the job. “It’s good to be a little scared up there,” he nods respectfully.
Heat is the enemy. “Me and three guys drink three cases of water in a 10-hour day.” His uniform: a ripped T-shirt, well-worn jeans and high boots, for safety, costing $125.
Ciarrocchi, 46, has erected steel structures for the military; now, he is framing retail space on Brucewood Road in Southern Pines, which means a 90-minute commute from the horse farm he bought in Oxford. His wife loves horses and his daughter wanted to attend nursing school in North Carolina.
Ciarrocchi appreciates the slower Southern pace although wages are considerably less than in the union-controlled Northeast. As for the commute, iron workers are accustomed to following jobs — and completing them with pride. “I drive my wife crazy saying ‘I built that,’” he admits.
Erecting steel beams, Ciarrocchi concedes, is a younger man’s profession. “But I plan to work until the day I die,” eventually, he hopes, as a project manager.
What’s missing from this poster is stress. “Office work would drive me crazy,” Ciarrocchi says. Replacing it are phrases rarely heard in today’s workplaces:
“I’m living out the American dream. I have my health, my wife, my father in heaven. I’m as happy as can be.”
Building Blocks
Want poetry? Ken Howell uses a trowel. Romance? Howell laid a good percent of the bricks that make downtown Southern Pines so charming. Southern Prime Steakhouse is his, along with sidewalks on Pennsylvania Avenue.
“Yeah, I did that.”
Besides the manual labor, Howell, 54, is a businessman, bike racer, runner and creator of brick sculptures.
“I have to have a vision of what something’s going to look like,” Howell says. He calls stone subjective and creative, and says “My tools have to be comfortable in my hands.”
This mason can recognize a straight plumb line at 35 mph.
Tall, lanky, wearing jeans and wraparound sunglasses, Howell is unmistakably an outdoorsman. “I got my work ethic working on farms,” he says. Son of an architect, he tried college for a year. “Not for me.”
Howell started as a tender/helper about 1977, working himself up to apprentice, journeyman and mason. Along the way, he worked side jobs, learning that construction is a hard, cruel business.
“You’re out in 110 degree heat and the customer is complaining and the bills are due tomorrow — that’s the most frustrating.”
Yet rewarding. “If you’re smart about your body you become strong, like an athlete.”
Projects have been scarce during the economic downturn. In the past, 90 percent of his work was residential, 10 percent commercial. “Now, it’s the opposite. Collecting from the state or federal government is hard,” Howell says.
Still, regrets are few.
“It’s nice to look over your shoulder and see what you’ve created. I wouldn’t trade it to be behind a desk. After a lifetime of physical work I’m happy,” says the brick connoisseur who started out carrying a metal lunchbox.
“Now I run over to Betsy’s for a crepe.”
A Case of the Blues
John Blue Jr.’s labor continues six generations who farmed the 400 acres in Aberdeen.
“My dad was a hard worker. He plowed with a mule. I was on a tractor at age 6.”
At 15, Blue’s father gave him land to grow a test crop. Along the way, he learned the science, mechanics and labor of farming, from tractor repair to navigating 700-pound hay bales and pulling pigweed manually.
“Harvesting tobacco is the hardest, dirtiest job. We still do it by hand,” Blue says.
His mind wanders while working in the field. Sometimes he meditates on the responsibility he has assumed. “You’re more like a steward to the land (than an owner),” Blue says. “This makes the hard work tolerable.”
Big, burley Blue may be the boss, but he works 12 to 14 hours a day with his crew during the growing season, in long sleeves and a hat. Nothing protects him from the muscle soreness that sets in with age. “You learn to do things smarter,” Blue says.
In the winter he cleans equipment and builds greenhouses for diversity crops.
Farming can be just as tough business-wise. Months of labor and their proceeds can disappear in a hailstorm. A farmer is at the mercy of drought and infestations.
At least, after a lifetime of farming, Blue knows the score.
“Faith comes into it,” he says. “I pray a lot. But I like physical activity. I’d go mad inside, in front of a computer. You can’t hear a cellphone on a tractor.”
The future of Blue’s labor lies with his only son, Sam, now 12. Sam answers the expected question with, “I don’t really know for sure.”
Blue exerts no pressure, but the strong young man is already growing radishes to earn money, and helping with other farm work. He’s considering a degree in agriculture before becoming the seventh-generation farmer Blue.
A Roof Under His Head
Bob Greenleaf can do almost anything: build, repair, move, flash, shingle, demolish. Just ask him.
‘My father (who owned a machine shop) made me work every day of my life. I had to fix things, make them work,” Greenleaf says with broad Massachusetts vowels.
When Greenleaf tired of working in the machine shop he learned flashing/roofing at a small company. “I went in as a laborer and after a week I was the foreman.”
Flashing took him high (30 stories up the Prudential Tower in Boston) and low (underground subway grates). His mother’s love of horses and friendship with equine luminary Ginnie Moss brought the family to Southern Pines where he labored bedding and stabling horses at Carolina Horse Park.
“Anything, as long as it was outside,” Greenleaf says.
Then, roofing full-time for nine years at a local company. He’s not afraid of heights and has witnessed serious accidents but never had one, unless you count a tense rooftop face-off with a rabid possum. The roofer prevailed.
Greenleaf is slight of stature but agile, energetic and strong, with the ruddy face and hands of a laborer. “Going out at night with roofing glue and cement on my hands — that’s the worst,” he says.
Greenleaf’s accomplishments include the Southern Pines Civic Center, train station and Hawkins & Harkness jewelers. He solved a 30-year roofing problem on the old governor’s mansion in Greensboro in three hours.
During 25 years in the trade, Greenleaf has developed some definite ideas: He won’t tear off a perfectly good roof, and he won’t work with certain materials. Other than that, “I like a challenge. If it’s easy everybody would do it. I like to do things nobody else wants to do.” He loves Moore County, where people greet him with “good morning” instead of “get out of my way.”
At 50, Greenleaf plans to work for another 10 years, some of it blowing pine straw off roofs. Then, an active retirement with plenty of horse involvement.
“I like to get up and do something every day. I’ve worked with my hands my whole life — no smartphone, email or computers, only a calculator. I work with people I respect. As long as I can eat and pay my bills, I’m happy and can enjoy life.”
Contact Deborah Salomon at debsalomon@nc.rr.com.
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Comments
alladat1 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Good news - as far as I know bok choy does not cause cancer.
RD28327 8 months, 3 weeks ago
The last time I checked, John Blue lives near Carthage. Once again, The Pilot screws up on research and fact checking.
phstresident 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Quit reading then RD, then you won't notice the typos/errors.
cooldaddy 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Don't worry about the cranky yankee RD...it will probably move back north or expire soon.The nice ones live a long time. Read on. Keep commenting and weed them out!
debsalomon 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Mea Culpa...Carthage it is. Not the fact-checkers fault The heat got to me...So Sorry. Deborah Salomon
cooldaddy 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Pretty good story. People People make America. We need our small businesses and need to think about who will promote All business when we vote. We need to stay aware and not let the politicans forget. None of them have done a good job with our world stability...not in 20 years or so.
Behan 8 months, 3 weeks ago
You didn't build that...
cooldaddy 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Behan...thanks for the reminder! Man! I almost forgot that Al Gore paved the way for us by inventing the internet! How stupid of me? Thank God he did so Mr. Obama could research where he was going and could travel all 58 states and conclude that small business owners did not build that!
RD28327 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Thank you Cooldaddy!!!
JD 8 months, 3 weeks ago
you're doing it wrong by JD
JohnANagy 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Not every thread needs to be about national politics. Please feel free to post your views in the appropriate thread and don't highjack this nice Labor Day feature.
LSM 8 months, 3 weeks ago
But Mr. Nagy, this was the only logical path this thread could take, one of people working hard, using their intelligence, of being successful. “…look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own. You didn’t get there on your own. I’m always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart. There are a lot of smart people out there. It must be because I worked harder than everybody else. Let me tell you something — there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.” President Obama.
This man hates success.
Toda 8 months, 3 weeks ago
One has to wonder how many of those salt-of-the-earth people and companies employ Hispanic labor. Deborah Salomon over sighted the fact that the new Ricky Rhyne Detention Center was built with mostly Hispanic labor. I know Ken Howell uses Hispanic labor.
debsalomon 8 months, 3 weeks ago
For Toda: I approached several Hispanic laborers at a building site. They declined the interview. The laborers/artisans selected, by random and recommendation, were either Moore County based or represented another facet of the American work force. Had I been able to interview Hispanic laborers, you or somebody else would have commented that these people, legal or not, are taking jobs previously held by Americans. You just can't win. But, then, Labor Day has always been a time to voice protest. I did mention Hispanic laborers to one of the government spokesmen. The comments I received indicated that this was a separate story, perhaps for another time. However, obtaining statistics on how many Hispanic laborers work in the county or state is a difficult task. My real purpose was to illustrate, through examples, how physical labor appeals to certain people...the satisfaction they derive from it. The people, rather than the issues, were my focus. Hope you're having a pleasant Labor Day.
Toda 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Thank you for your reply. "you or somebody else would have commented that these people, legal or not, are taking jobs previously held by Americans" ... I asked the question because of another thread where some of those who are prejudice don't condone working undocumented workers.
CC85 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Honest work. Nice story.
mcgal 8 months, 3 weeks ago
I enjoyed this article. Physical labor is rewarding in many ways. More people should give it a try.
debsalomon 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Let's put this one to bed and enjoy the rest of the day.
Behan 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Slainte.
JD 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Sláinte
noob.
AFCHIEF 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Initiative to work is wonderful thing.
oceangypsy 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Well said, Deb all around, enjoyable read!
clarabelle 8 months, 3 weeks ago
"toobadyouhadadaddy - Don't worry about the cranky yankee RD...it will probably move back north or expire soon.The nice ones live a long time."
Excellent - then we can expect you gone soon ..............
I'll have to sell my "depends" stock !
JimRussell44 8 months, 3 weeks ago
Enjoyed the article, Ms. Salomon. the people you have featured are what "Labor Day" is about. Thank you also to Mr. Nagy for your comments to those who have to get their hate on at every opportunity.
Courseaire 8 months, 3 weeks ago
By a friend of mine:
Single gals choose Romney By Erin Smith Thursday, August 30, 2012
President Obama seems to think single women are one-issue voters. He sees himself as a dashing knight, promising to rescue us from the evil dragon of abortion being outlawed and to provide us with access to free birth control throughout the kingdom. Single women are not damsels in reproductive health care distress, and they vote on a plethora of issues.
Single women, like most other demographic groups, care about the economy. Mr. Obama’s lack of experience and poor economic leadership have gutted our economic prosperity. Our unemployment rate proves this point. Unemployment among single women is 11.6 percent, which is 40 percent greater than the official national average. Mr. Obama’s failed economic policies have eroded the independence of single women. As a group, we are worse off now than we have been in decades. Many of us can no longer support our dependents or ourselves.
Mr. Obama’s record shows he is not trying to empower and improve the position of single women in America. His economic policies have chipped away at our independence over the past 31/2 years. Rather than acknowledging that, he staged a fake battle in an imaginary Republican war on women so he could appear to fight on our behalf. His campaign wants us to support him simply because he offers reproductive health care options that we already have. He thinks he can buy us off by pandering to the stereotype of the persecuted female in need of government protection and goodies such as subsidized birth control.
Single women don’t need that kind of patronization. We can look at the facts. Abortion is the law of the land. It is unlikely to be completely outlawed in America. This is not my opinion, but logic and the national consensus. Since Roe v. Wade, there have been more pro-life presidential years than pro-choice years, but overturning Roe has never come to the forefront of a pro-life presidential agenda. If, however improbably, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the ruling would leave abortion laws up to the states. The legal opinion of Harvard Law School graduate Mitt Romney is that abortion should be an issue dealt with by the states, not the federal government. It’s a reasonable position to have.
Mr. Romney is offering single women solid, independence-building choices. A Romney administration will give us the opportunity to better our lives by bringing back a strong, vibrant economy that rewards our efforts. I encourage all single women to look at the facts and choose your president as you would choose a doctor, college, career or any other important decision that affects the outcome of your life and lifestyle.
Courseaire 8 months, 3 weeks ago
By a friend of mine:
Single gals choose Romney By Erin Smith Thursday, August 30, 2012 continued...
Ask important, relevant questions such as: Which candidate is the most successful — personally and professionally? Which candidate has a proven track record of creating jobs and economic growth? Which candidate is looking out for my long-term best interests, supporting policies that will enable me to support myself? Which candidate will encourage a position of financial independence, free from reliance on government, men and charity? What are my long-term goals and dreams, and can I achieve them if the country continues on its path of economic stagnation and shrinking opportunity?
The answer to these questions is Mr. Romney.
Single women want lives of happiness and dignity that only come from financial security in a growing economy. We must base our votes upon which candidate can lead us to an economic future and not the red herring of abortion “rights.”
Erin Smith is the founder of Single Women for Romney and a delegate to the Republican National Convention for Virginia.
JimRussell44 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Courseaire: As they say out there on the street...WTF???? This is an article about Labor Day!!! Try to keep up.
teufelhunden 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Good read. Hearty labor is good for the soul. I respect these men for working so hard.
Courseaire 8 months, 2 weeks ago
JR44 - It is very apt to this article as it pertains to the labor force (or non-labor force of women) - do also try to keep up.
JimRussell44 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Courseaire, inserting a politically charged, right wing opinion piece into a local interest piece done to celebrate Labor Day is beyond disgusting. There is a time and a place for this type of verbal BS and, buddy, it was not here in this article.
Courseaire 8 months, 2 weeks ago
JR44 - I know you are smarter than your last statement. Did you not read any of the other comments? I interjected politically charged.., into this? I think not. The above opinion piece only addresses 4 men. Where are our women laborers & their stories, failures or successes? This is not about politics, but fairness. But in fairness to you, I do view things from the right.
debsalomon 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Not being defensive, but I made several unsuccessful attempts to find women career laborers...see earlier thread. However in March, I wrote a front page news feature about the women's firefighting brigade in Southern Pines. They are not excused from any duties based on their gender, according to their male counterparts. I guess you could call what they do VERY hard labor. Quite an admirable bunch.
Courseaire 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Deb - Thanks, I'm glad you tried. Would you be able to provide a link to that prior column?