Illegally in U.S., and Never a Day Off at Wal-Mart

The New York Times ^ | November 5, 2003 | By STEVEN GREENHOUS

[rightbanker]

They came from Russia, Poland and Lithuania, and their tales of washing and waxing Wal-Mart's floors for seven nights a week sound much like Pavel's.

Last February, Pavel responded to an intriguing Web site that boasted of cleaning jobs in the United States paying four times what he was earning as a restaurant manager in the Czech Republic. He flew from Prague to New York on a tourist visa and took a bus to Lynchburg, Va., where a subcontractor delivered him to a giant Wal-Mart.

Pavel immediately began on the midnight shift and said he soon learned that he would never receive a night off. He said he worked every night for the next eight months. In this way, Pavel, who refused to give his last name, became one pawn among hundreds employed by subcontractors that clean Wal-Mart stores across the nation, paying many workers off the books.

[rightbanker]

I personally hope they throw the book at Wal-marts, make an example of them.

This sort of think is distorting the wage and employment structure of the US. And needs to be stopped.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a hard-nosed capitalist globalizer. I'm all for free trade, for labor and capital mobility. But's all got to be done by a system of rules that are not socially destabilizing. We need a guest worker program that brings this underground economy above ground. Ad the first step toward getting there is cracking down on those who employ illegal immigrants

[Chummy]

Wonderful.

They break our nation's laws to take advantage of our society, and then have the schnutz to demand equal (or greater) protection under the law.

Sheer idiocy.

[Toskrin]

Glad to hear a reasonable voice on this issue.

I have no problem with a large foreign work force. But right now it operates outside the law. Foreigners willing to break US immigration laws are rewarded while those who go through legitimate channels are punished. Payment is often untaxed cash. The workers are paid a decent wage but excessive time demands are placed upon them.

We need to totally restructure the immigration law, not just enforce laws that are obsolete in the 21st century.

[jsbankston]

They break our nation's laws to take advantage of our society, and then have the schnutz to demand equal (or greater) protection under the law.

Yes, Wal-Mart broke our nation's laws but I am not sure how you can say that Wal-Mart is demanding greater protection under the law.

[dts32041]

We need to deport all the illegals, so that the unemployed will have jobs, and can contribute their taxes to a Social Security and the federal boondoggle.

[ItsOurTimeNow]

Why do I have such a hard time feeling sorry for illegal immigrants who willfully break the laws of the US?

[Chummy]

Not WalMart.

And, until it's proven in a court of law that WalMart did violate the law, they're innocent.

I am referring to the illegal workers referred to in the article: they're admitting to breaking the law, but demanding equal, or greater protection under the law.

[_Jim]

They came from Russia, Poland and Lithuania, and their tales of washing and waxing Wal-Mart's floors for seven nights a week sound much like Pavel's.

...

Pavel immediately began on the midnight shift and said he soon learned that he would never receive a night off.

He said he worked every night for the next eight months.

- The New York Times

Cruel, heartless - and printed in the New York Times (former home to Jason Blair)...

[BibChr]

This sort of thing always strikes me as about the same as someone breaking into my house to steal and rob, then complaining about the air conditioning.

Dan

[narby]

What was Walmart thinking? They should know to not hire white Europeans when they should be hiring Mexicans! No wonder they got busted.

[jjm2111]

"When I talk on the phone to friends in Mexico, they ask me how the pay is, and I say, `We're getting $350 a week,' " said Mr. Zavala, a native of Mexico City who was rounded up in the Oct. 23 raid. "They say, `Wow, in Mexico we're earning 300 pesos a week.' That's just $30 a week. So compared with Mexico, it's good money."

Mr. Zavala said it was unjust to deport immigrants who worked hard and well. "We were proud of what we were doing," he said. "Every morning we looked back at the floors, and they looked real shiny. I don't want to get too emotional, but do you think we want to go back to our country and earn just $30 a week?"

And this why they come here.

[TheFilter]

It's not just the US. I live in the UK and Asda (owned by WalMart) employs contract cleaners who are asylum seekers. (Who, technically, aren't supposed to work.)http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/norfolk/3091670.stm (this man, and his girlfriend who he was found guilty of murdering, both worked as Asda janitors.)

Who knows what kind of pay they're getting.

[wylenetheconservative]

Exactly. Wal-Mart's sin was that the illegals they hired were white. If they had been Mexican, none of this would have happened.

[Prodigal Son]

You could've posted the whole thing.

[Onelifetogive]

I personally hope they throw the book at Wal-marts, make an example of them.

Wal-Mart was only the middle man...

The sub-contractor actually "payed" the illegals, Wal-Mart "payed" the subcontractor and millions of Americans "payed" Wal-Mart. I think they should throw the book at EVERYONE who shopped at Wal-Mart. They, not Wal-Mart were the ultimate consumers of the illegal "services."

[FrankR]

"...I'm a hard-nosed capitalist globalizer. I'm all for free trade, for labor and capital mobility.

Yes, it HAS got to be done with "rules", however, it seems that the U.S. is the only country without rules.

For instance, you can't move to Mexico and go to work...they don't allow "foreigners" to work there, as it upsets their economy.

Same with Australia, and many other countries.

All of a sudden - in the left's quest for new voters - every foreigner, legal or not, who steps foot on our shores has immediate "rights".

The bottom line is, if everybody has "rights", then NOBODY has "rights". The natural born citizen's right are null and void, if they are forced to pay welfare, unemployment, etc., to illegal foreigners.

The latest in vogue argument, is that "...they do the jobs that Americans won't do...". Well, someone did those jobs before the big influx of illegals.

Don't misunderstand me, I have no problem with anyone going through the proper channels, coming to America, obtaining the proper paperwork, and being a legal resident or becoming a citizen through naturalization. However, those dreamseekers, the ones who are immortalized on the Statue of Liberty inscription, are few and far between these days.

Most are out just for the money, and don't mind scamming us all to get it. I know of Mexicans who work here for 10 months a year, make good money, then go back to Mexico for two months so they don't have to pay any income taxes. Meanwhile, they're here most of the year enjoying all of the conveniences that Citizens do, without paying for any of it.

[kcvl]

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS SUE WAL-MART FOR LABOR VIOLATIONS... DEVELOPING... per Drudge

[BooBoo1000]

When all of the political B-S and smoke clear away, you will find that Wall Mart did not hire these people. They hired a cleaning company, and that company hired the illegals. They ( The Cleaning Company) should have and will be held responsible.

President Fox of Mexico is in our country as we speak and he is trying to get all border restrictions removed. Where is Pres Bus?. You are seeing the Balkanization of our Country.

The people that came to our country in the old days were Eastern European people for the most part. They came under a quota system, and they came to learn the language, and build a better life for themselves and their children.

They worked and saved, and learned the language and required their children to learn to speal English.

This is not the case with the Mexicans, they just come to get all they can including the welfare, free medical, everything else, they send a large part of their pay back to Mexico, and have no interest in learning our language or helping to make America a better place. If you doubt this go to LA and look at the conditions they have brought with them..

[KittyKares]

What's 300 illegals compared to how many we have and what's coming down the pike?

"MEXICO CITY (AP) -- A bipartisan delegation of U.S. congressmen visiting Mexico Wednesday said they expect quick passage -- perhaps as soon as December -- of a bill that would help some immigrant agricultural workers gain legal residency.

However, the delegation, which is to meet with Mexican President Vicente Fox on Friday, said broader immigration reform is still far off.

"The first (migration) legislation that could get adopted in Congress is the legislation dealing with agricultural workers, and that seems to be moving well," said Rep. Sam Farr, a Democrat from California. Referring to Mexico's hopes for more work visas in all industries and amnesty for the estimated 7 million undocumented workers currently in the United States, Farr cautioned patience.

"The rest of the agenda is going to take a little bit longer," Farr said.

U.S. House Democratic leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi said "we certainly would want to do more" in immigration reform, but noted "if we can get this piece of it passed, it would pave the way and serve as a model of how we can build confidence and build bridges."

The proposal -- known as the Berman-Cannon bill after its sponsors, Republican Chris Cannon of Utah and Democrat Howard Berman, of California -- would allow about 500,000 undocumented U.S. farmworkers to become legal residents. The bill would simplify the H2A visa program so agriculture employers can more easily hire immigrants as temporary laborers if they can't find U.S. workers.

Immigrants would be allowed to come to the United States as temporary workers for up to three years. After that they would have to return to their country of origin. Mexico has pushed for years for legalization to protect workers from abuse and exploitation."