Roy Jay: Latino Slavery in Portland

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Monday, October 27, 2014

Roy Jay, GoLocalPDX MINDSETTER™

Oregon businesses should not exploit or cheat undocumented immigrants out of wages they are due, and those workers should not be afraid to come forward and complain.

You’ve driven by them many times, sometimes without giving it a second thought. 

Everyday about a block from the Oregon Convention Center, you will see groups of migrant workers from Mexico, Central America and South America strategically positioning themselves on the corners of the MLK Work Center as early as 6 AM waiting for a daily pick up to take them to some strange location for up to 10 or 12 hours a day.

A Hillsboro firm, Cornerstone Janitorial Service, has been utilizing some legal residents, some undocumented to handle a variety of labor-intensive construction site cleanups. They subcontract with some of the largest construction firms in the region and the world, Hoffman Construction and Skanska.

See Full Story on Local Company Steals Wages, Tax Dollars, Whistleblower Says: Here

Cornerstone owner, Nam Sang, a Korean immigrant himself can apply for subcontract work as a minority owned business, which gives him a leg up on winning contracts for jobs involving tax dollars.

Cornerstone has worked on some public projects like the new Oregon State Hospital in Salem, school buildings in Stayton and Philomath Oregon, and the athletic centers at the University of Oregon and Washington State University in Pullman.

However, recently, several undocumented residents and workers for Cornerstone has come forward to say that on taxpayer funded jobs, where the government-mandates a wage of over $30 hour, they never made more than $13 an hour, with Nam, supposedly pocketing the difference.

Cornerstone and others get these government contracts by agreeing to pay worker at certain mandatory wage levels. 

It’s one thing to hire undocumented workers, but another thing when you cheat them out of wages that are due to them.

If the allegations prove to be true, Nam could have been doing this type of business for years. There is no indication, at this point, that Hoffman or Skanska, the general contractors on a number of Cornerstone jobs that have been called into question, have played any part in financial deception. 

In the case of Cornerstone, the spark that lit the fire was when worker Jose Tandy was injured on the job. The ensuing paperwork and diligence by Hoffman Construction, the primary contractor, led to the discovery that Tandy was making about $13 in cash and hour, on a job that paid $35.96. 

An internal investigation at Hoffman Construction prompted them to file complaints with both the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industry and the Washington Department of Labor and Industries.

Sang Nam of Cornerstone Janitorial refused to speak with us for comment and to shed a balanced beam of light on this situation.  

BOLI had 118 cases in the last fiscal year and collected $614,062 in lost wages for workers on these type of taxpayer wage scams (and that’s just the ones that actually gets investigated). But the BOLI system is complaint driven, but many people are afraid to speak up because they are fearful of being fired, deported or unable to get a job elsewhere. 

Even Tandy has not come forward to claim wages he might be owed. 

But, what workers should know is that the law is there to protect them, even if they in this country without the right paperwork.  BOLI does not look someone’s legal status in this country when they investigate a wage theft case. What is more, legal experts say, that if illegal residents are victims of a crime, they enjoy special protection for deportation.

We have to remember that these workers are human beings. Some people treat them like they are going to a clearance sale at Kmart where you are buying for the lowest price. There is nothing wrong with a company wanting to hire immigrants. But you must treat them the same as you do any other race of people in mainstream society

The old saying of “buy low and sell high” is good for trading in commodities but it should not apply to the labor of people working hard to create a life in this country.  

Stay tuned for more information this one.  

If you have stories that could be of interest to my readers, please do not hesitate to let me know. Good, bad, middle of the road... it’s news worth talking about.  Simply send me an email to [email protected].

Roy Jay is a businessman with a footprint from coast to coast and beyond. He has been ranked as one of the most intriguing people in Oregon politics, yet he does not hold office. Learn more at: RoyJay.Com

Banner Photo Credit: iStock 

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