Thread: Immigrant workers not getting paid now a more common issue

Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008 , 12:01 a.m.
Chattanooga: Immigrant workers not getting paid now a more common issue


By: Perla Trevizo
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Joe Wolverton

When Amitay Samayoa quit a cleaning job in September, he thought he was going to work for a landscaping company that paid more money. The 17-year-old, who’d dropped out of school to work, needed the extra cash for his parents in Mexico.

But after working for a month without pay, Mr. Samayoa said he is owed close to $1,200.

Although they are in the country illegally, Mr. Samayoa and four of his co-workers who also worked without pay — some for a week, others for a couple of months — decided to contact a lawyer. They claim the owners of the landscaping company owe them about $7,000 in back wages.

Mr. Samayoa’s case is not that uncommon, local organizations and law enforcement officials say. Some employers feel they can get away with not paying illegal immigrants because, after all, what can such workers do? Fear of deportation keeps them away from the police or the courts, a sticking point some employers exploit.

Chattanooga Police Department Officer Harold Diaz, who called Mr. Samayoa’s former employer about the wages owed, said he has received two complaints in the past couple of months about 12 Hispanic workers not getting paid at two separate companies. He’s sure there are many more cases he doesn’t hear about, he said.

Joe Wolverton, a local attorney representing Mr. Samayoa and his four co-workers, said he gets about five calls a week from immigrants who didn’t get paid, and the problem is getting worse. Cases usually settle in a couple of weeks with the employees getting what’s owed, he said, but occasionally they can end up in court.

“It usually takes about a week, two weeks (to settle), once everyone realizes the workers are serious,â€

How does an illegal alien prove he is working for someone if he is usually paid in cash and his name (the name he uses to sue that employer, that is) does not appear on the employers' payroll or he has no paystubs?

Since we're talking about the rule of law, the double standard here astounds me.

It's illegal to hire an illegal alien, but employers do it anyway.

It's illegal for an illegal alien to work in the US, but they do it anyway.

So tell me WHY any illegal alien is allowed to sue an employer without fear of deportation?

I agree that the employer should pay for his illegal actions, but so should the illegal alien

Are we to expect that this will be the "new" way for illegal aliens to "earn" wages, by scamming any business?

If they do the work then pay them of coarse then deport them.