Thread: Maria Elena Salinas: Lies all around on illegal hiring

Maria Elena Salinas: Lies all around on illegal hiring
Published 12:00 am PDT Sunday, September 21, 2008

Now, here's a novel idea. What if we actually put some blame on perpetrators of abuse and made them accountable for breaking the law? Most people would think that's a given, but unfortunately, when it comes to cracking down on the hiring of undocumented immigrant workers, it is the exploited employees who end up paying the highest price.

While most workers who are caught without the proper documents end up going to jail, getting deported and being separated from their families, those who hire and abuse them get a slap on the wrist, a warning and once in a while are forced to pay a fine that probably won't make much of a dent in the fat profit margin they are able to have because they hire undocumented immigrants and pay wages below the required minimum salary.

But the management of Agriprocessors Inc., a meatpacking plant in Postville, Iowa, could be one of the first ones to not get away with it. Federal prosecutors have filed 9,311 criminal charges against the owner of the plant, his son, their human-resources manager and two of her subordinates.

The charges against the five defendants, filed in August, stem from child-labor violations discovered when immigration authorities conducted the single biggest raid in U.S. history back in May. Almost 400 people were arrested, among them at least 32 minors, some even younger than 16.

The charges claim that not only did the company knowingly hire undocumented, underage workers, but it exposed them to hazardous working conditions. The workers had to operate machinery such as meat grinders, electric saws and power shears, and handle poisonous chemicals and dangerous substances.

In its defense, company spokesman Chaim Abrahams denied that underage employees were knowingly hired, and he actually blamed the victims: "All of the minors at issue lied about their age to gain employment at the company. At the time of hiring, all of the minors, like all job applicants, presented and signed documents stating that they were over 18," he wrote. "Our management is looking forward to their day in court," he added.

On Sept. 17, they got their day in court, except they didn't show up. Granted, because the charges are misdemeanors, the defendants are allowed to enter a written plea through their lawyers. Not surprisingly, they all pleaded not guilty. But while they are going on with their business, many of the workers who were rounded up in the raid are still in jail, unable to see their families and with no access to legal representation.

If found guilty, the five defendants face penalties of up to 30 days in jail and fines of $65 to $625 for each of the more than 9,000 violations. It is possible that the case will end up being settled out of court or with some kind of plea bargaining – yet another privilege that the workers do not have.

But the distressing part of all this is not only the inequality and unfairness of our legal system, but the absurdity of our broken immigration system. Like Agriprocessors, there are many plants and factories around the country that rely on the hard work of immigrants to keep their business competitive. And like Postville, with a population of about 2,300, there are cities across the United States that rely on these types of businesses to keep their economies afloat.

All over the country, you see immigrants doing jobs that Americans will not do for wages that Americans will not accept. Ironically, many of those workers who are abused, exploited and exposed to risky working conditions are just grateful to have the opportunity to make a living and support their own families.
http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/1251440.html

There is a good point in all this other nonsense.

The employers are getting off and they are the key to all this. If employers saw other employers marched out of their offices into a jail cell and then standing in a courtroom being sentenced to felonies, I'm thinking this would change pretty quickly.

How in the world is it a misdemeanor to do this? These people who run these companies are not ignorant, just without honor. They know they are hiring illegals. This old 'I didn't know' has got to stop being allowed to be used.

Now the rest of the article is same old, same old rhetoric.