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The Unappreciated Hands

“It’s that great feeling of being proud I get, when I pass by a place me and my co- workers

built,” states Ricardo Rivera, a current construction worker that works with drywall.

Construction work is a high demand job all over the world, with different categories to it, there is

drywall workers, carpenter workers, plumbers’ workers, the list is endless. Construction workers

are not given the proper recognition for their work. They have an impact in the economy, despite

their harsh working conditions, they build the base of what will become a beautiful home,

without them there are no places for entertainment purpose, for grocery stores or places that

people work in.

Loading the material out of the truck, “Did you count the drywall sheets?” Ricardo asked one

of his co-workers.

“Yeah, its 50 sheets in total, we are missing five…… did you hear that there is going to be

wind and a maybe rain.” The co-worker replied

Ricardo looked at the cloudy sky, “lets cover up the tools, and finish what we have left to

work on”, the co-worker nodded.

Working outdoors during windy springs, hot summers, rainy autumns, and cold winters is

such harsh conditions to get used to. Construction workers deal with this weather all year round,

adapting to this work environment is not as easy as it seems. “My first years of working weren’t

as easy as I thought they would be, it took me a while to adjust working under the hot sun, and

cold windy winter, I regret not wearing sunscreen now that I’m all sunburnt.” He said.

Construction workers sacrifice their health to earn a living, they work outdoors just for people

like us can have a roof to be under off. They spend their day lifting bricks using their back as

support, carrying drywall on their shoulders, handling heavy tools such as drills on their hands
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creating blisters and cuts. As expressed, being a construction worker is being able to adapt to

these harsh working environments in order to get the job done.

Without even noticing you are actually on a place a construction worker once worked on.

Houses, schools, grocery stores, malls, office buildings and let’s not forget about restaurants are

all build by these workers. Of course, people can’t see all the hard work and dedication put into

the building because of the interior design on the place, but they can assure you it’s there. These

workers impact the economy in ways people can’t even imagine, they are the reason why the

economy gains money. Government has a high investment interest in construction workers on

how they help grow the economy. Think about it, they build malls, places with entertainment and

offices which all make money improving the economy. Beautiful building structures manmade

by these workers is what attracts tourist the most. For example, the Eiffel Tower, skyscrapers are

structures made by dedicated workers, which end up benefiting the country. Without all these

places what other way would the country’s economy expand.

“You see the Fountains mall, I took part in building that place, umm the new Horizon City

houses?... that was me and my crew the ones who build them.” Ricardo adds. It is amazing how

construction workers are all around El Paso, not just here but the whole world. Passing by a

construction site seeing them work hard on a structure that just looks like wood and metal put

together by a bunch of screws wait a few more weeks and viola, a new, busy Whataburger

restaurant. That Whataburger restaurant will become a job opportunity for many teenagers. The

construction of school’s impact both the economy and a person’s life, school gives people a

chance for a better future and helps them socially, interacting with others.

Community are established and developed by the hands of construction workers. Expanding

the community by building new houses and shopping centers so people are fit to move in and
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take part of helping the community grow. A simple neighborhood to establish is all it takes for

the community to start expanding. Thanks to men like construction workers, that have the

stability of working in harsh conditions so people in society can have a welcoming home. People

are able to hang out and socialize with friends and family thanks to the construction worker who

build places of entertainment for example, movie theaters, malls, and restaurants. Yes, they form

a community by working hard, but people yet don’t show the gratitude towards them, with a

simple gesture of giving them a bottle of water or saying thank you would make a worker’s day.

Overall, they are the base when it comes to forming a community.

Giving themselves credit for all the places they have built without recognition. It is amazing

how construction workers build millions of places, working from seven in the morning till five or

six in the afternoon must be tiring for them. Construction workers do not just build for a living,

they build with a purpose of benefiting both the economy and the community. Building homes,

malls, all have a background story and they start with construction workers.

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Appendix A

Interviewee: Ricardo Rivera

Interviewer: Melaney Rivera

Date of Interview: 09, 22, 20

Location of Interview:

List of Acronyms: RR= Ricardo Rivera, IN= Interviewer

IN: Good evening, what is your name? (shakes hand)

RR: My name is Ricardo Rivera, …I am a drywall construction worker.

IN: How many years have you been working in construction?

RR: I have been in construction for about twenty years now.

IN: How was the first months/ years of working in construction?

RR: My first years of working weren’t as easy as I thought they would be, it took me a while to

adjust working under the hot sun, and cold windy winter having to wear layers was a drag on the

job, I regret not wearing sunscreen now that I’m all sunburnt. But now to me the job is a piece of

cake.

IN: Tell so far about your construction sites?

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RR: Well you see the fountain mall, I took part in building that place, umm the new Horizon City

houses (scratched head) ... that was me and my crew the ones who build them. I can’t tell you all

of them in specific but just know that I have worked all over El Paso.

IN: What is the feeling you get when you pass by a place you worked on?

RR: When I see a place, I have worked on (smiles)…I get this proud feeling, it’s indescribable

sometimes just to see how the place turned out.

IN: That will be it, Thank you so much!

RR: Your welcome.

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Work Cited

Rivera, Melaney. Personal interview. 22 September 2020.