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Congressman wants investigation of workers’ charges
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Rep. George Miller is asking for further investigation into allegations by guest workers from India who quit their jobs at Signal International last week, saying they have been victims of trafficking and unfair treatment.
More than 100 Indian workers left their hard hats outside the company’s Pascagoula shipyard before boarding a bus. They traveled to New Orleans and filed a class-action lawsuit claiming Signal defrauded and exploited more than 500 Indian workers in its Pascagoula and Orange, Texas, facilities.
Miller, D-California, sent a letter Tuesday asking U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Elaine Chao to confirm Signal’s claims he read in The Mississippi Press that the DOL inspected Signal’s facilities and found no violations after Indian guest workers made similar allegations last March.
Many of the workers said they paid between $15,000 to $20,000 to participate in the United States’ H-2B program. Temporary visas are issued, but the Indian workers claimed that recruiters with India-based Dewan Consultants told them they would receive green cards and permanent residency in the United States.
The workers also alleged that during their stay the company kept them in substandard living quarters and threatened deportation when workers asked for upgrades or status of their visas.
The company vehemently denied the allegations, calling them “unfounded and baseless.” A majority of Indian workers, Signal added, have been pleased with the program and their working conditions.
Miller, chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, also asked for all H-2B guest worker applications and certifications for the past five years including all supporting documents — for Signal International, Dewan Consultants, Five Star Contractors, LLC, Knights Marine and Industrial Services, Inc., Eagle Staffing, Massey Contracting, Inc., S Mansour & Company and North American Labor Service, Inc.
“As you know, I have sponsored legislation … to address the unjust treatment of guest workers by labor recruiters and employers, including provisions for the prohibition of recruitment fees and the imposition of civil and criminal penalties on violators,” Miller wrote to Chao.
“I have also made clear my position that guest worker programs generally, and the H-2B program in particular, are in need of both strengthened labor protections for U.S. and foreign workers and greater labor law enforcement.”
Chao’s representatives were unavailable for comment Tuesday.
Reporter Brad Crocker can be reached at bcrocker@themississippipress.com or 228-934-1431.
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