On the National Day of Action to Stop Wage Theft:
- Interfaith Worker Justice (IWJ) raised $7,383 toward its efforts to stop wage theft;
- In Memphis, the Workers Interfaith Network released the results of a survey it conducted of local low-wage workers, 68 percent of whom reported not being paid for all the hours they’d worked;
- In Chicago, four Polish workers each owed over $10,000 by a contractor
The contractor is Walter Bochenek, a prominent Polish contractor. Bochenek owns three construction companies and has long hired Polish immigrants, many of whom don’t speak English. Since 2007, workers hired by Bochenek for a rehabilitation of the Sacred Heart School on the city’s north side have been shotchanged $70,000. Pan Bochenek, My dla ciebie – Ty z nami? , together with religious leaders and organizers with the Arise Chicago Worker Center, announced a lawsuit for back wages at one of the contractor’s current work sites; - A rally and press conference were held at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, workers and members of the clergy joined with the Workers’ Rights Center to demand both state and federal government measures to combat wage theft;
- IWJ, along with key allies (NDLON, NELP, AFL-CIO, Change to Win, SEIU), met with Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis and other top Department of Labor officials about increasing enforcement and outreach efforts in the department’s Wage and Hour Division and OSHA; and
- In New York, the Department of Labor announced the results of a sweep of restaurants in the tony Park Slope neighborhood in Brooklyn.
From The Brooklyn Paper: Slopers in guilt trap as restaurants shortchange deliverymen
First, Park Slope residents had to feel bad about eating non-organic food and having a high carbon footprint. Now, they even have to confront their liberal guilt when ordering in.
Last week, the state Labor Department claimed that 25 Slope restaurants underpaid their mostly immigrant workers as little as $2.75 per hour – a charge that has left Park Slope reeling, as customers struggle to reconcile their political sympathies with their appetites.
Much-loved stalwarts such as Aunt Suzie’s, and Taqueria, plus others including Bogota, Sette, Coco Roco, Olive Vine, Uncle Moe’s and Bagel World were caught in the dragnet, which included fines and negotiated settlements that stemmed from more than $910,000 in allegedly underpaid wages.
“Wage theft happens not only in dimly lit factories or grim depressed neighborhoods,” state Labor Commissioner Patricia Smith said in a statement. “Even our very nicest neighborhoods sometimes have sweatshops on their main streets.”
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Still, all of the workers who spoke with The Brooklyn Paper bore no ill will toward their employers – in fact, they were grateful for the money.
“The boss looks for ways to help people, actually. Here we are fine,” one employee who wished to remain anonymous said in Spanish.
A typical response from undocumented workers. They are afraid to cry foul because the boss will immediately turn them over to Immigration. The workers live in fear and are thankful for the work. Their employers know the situations and purposefully exploit these folks. Its happened over and over, from Polish immigrants forced to visit the company stores of West Virginia and Pennsylvania to the well off neighborhoods in the cities and suburbs of today.
The workers weren’t upset, but in Park Slope, where buying a Fair Trade heirloom tomato that costs $2.50 is a badge of honor, many were shocked to find that they were benefitting from a system propped up on cheap labor.
“In this community, this happens?” said Sheri Saltzberg, a 35-year resident of the neighborhood. “It makes me question how those restaurants treat their staff.”
Others were disappointed that their favorite restaurants had been accused of such abuses.
“I was sad because those were places I had gone to,” said David Chorlian, a member of the Park Slope Food Co-Op. “One of them was Miriam’s and another was Aunt Susie’s. I was stupidly surprised that this happened.”
David, Wait till you see the two business owners responses at the end. They don’t give a **** for your sentiment or your country.
Most of the fines were the result of excessive workweeks at salaries below the minimum wage. But roughly half of the underpaid wages were allegedly at two restaurants: Coco Roco and Olive Vine.
The eateries were cited for underpaying their workers a whopping $587,000. In one example, food deliverymen were paid a meager $210 for a 70-hour workweek. The two restaurants’ abuses were so excessive, in fact, that the Labor Department expanded its search to two other locations of both eateries, a spokesperson said.
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Still, owners who did agree to talk bristled at the notion that they were abusing their workers.
Martin Medina, the owner of Rachel’s on Fifth Avenue between Seventh and Eight streets, insisted he treated his workers fairly and that they did not work excessive hours. Instead, he likened Labor Department inspectors to “meter maids” who bully small business owners and never leave without levying a fine.
“They say I’m not paying overtime or giving lunch breaks, it’s a total lie!” said a fuming Medina. “If I was treating my workers bad, why would they stay with me?”
Because at a minimum they are your indentured servants and live in fear of what you will do if they speak up. Why don’t you point your indignation at the fact that you broke the law.
Indeed, some restaurants ended up on the list for seemingly minor infractions.
Melissa Murphy, owner of Sweet Melissa Patisserie said that her bakery cafe underpaid its workers by just $382 over two years. She attributed the mistake to clerical error.
Minor or not, even tiny amounts of money are a big deal to immigrant workers.
“A lot of people with low skill levels don’t have a lot of job options,” said Terri Gerstein, a deputy commissioner with the Department of Labor. “They’ll stay in a bad situation for fear of complaining or retaliation from the government.”
Exactly.
Some Slope residents are talking boycott, including, of course, workers at the Food Co-op.
“People are actively minded here,” Danielle Leon, who was shopping at the co-op said. “They [might] boycott these restaurants.”But most owners seem more concerned with their profit margins than their tarnished reputations. Irene LoRe, the owner of Aunt Suzie’s, which allegedly underpaid its workers $10,196, even testified against a bill requiring paid sick days for workers.
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In the end, it’s unlikely that boycott talk will take hold, added renowned restaurateur Alan Harding, best known for the now-closed Patois and the still humming Pacifico. Despite all the righteous chatter, customers are just like the restaurant owners – always trying to save a buck, he said.
“There is this ‘Oh woe is the deliveryman’ idea, but God forbid the turkey burger goes up $2 to reflect the required worker’s insurance and fair wage,” Harding said.
And it’s not as though cheap, hard-working labor is just going to disappear. As such, Medina said he would fight the fines to the bitter end.
“The immigrants I love,” he said. “It’s the Americans I hate.”
Now for the irony… Mr. Medina who owns Rachel’s Taqueria is the son of immigrants, from Mexico. He’s livin’ the American dream by pushing down on immigrants (his own people – I looove you, but be my slave) and cursing the people of the country that’s given him every opportunity. Mr. Medina, return to Mexico and push your taco stand around Mexico City. We’ll see how far you get. The Mexican meter maids will put you away for a long time…
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