Hard labor: one company's exploits in day labor reveal what's wrong with the temp industry. (To the Point).(Labor Ready Inc.)

It's 5 A.M. on a downtown street in a metropolitan city. There is very little hustle and much less bustle; the buses are only just starting to trek down the main boulevards. Yet, some men begin to gather outside a storefront this early in the morning. They slowly filter through a swinging glass door and into a room with cold concrete floors. They sit down on plastic chairs, talk, and drink coffee. Many wear well-used clothes and broken-in boots and sneakers. Most are African American or Latino, some poor, some homeless. They all jot their names on a signup sheet. They gather here to put to the test the slogan displayed so prominently in this office: "Work Today. Paid ...