Africans were brought to this country against their will, thus breaking the laws of God. Mexicans and Central Americans are smuggled into this country illegally, thus breaking the laws of man. The former as well as the latter have been brought here for the same purpose…cheap labor.
While the issue of slavery nearly destroyed this nation during the nineteenth century, today’s slave trade is also wreaking havoc.
The “plantation mentality” is alive and well throughout this country’s business community, which relies heavily upon a non-skilled labor force. Industries such as agriculture, landscaping, hospitality, and construction have been all but taken over by illegal aliens.
Often times, employers who frequently hire illegal aliens will place a dozen or more of their workers into a tiny sub-standard house or apartment (which the employer either rents in his name or owns).
Every morning, a company truck arrives to transport them to the job site, and brings them home in the evening. On payday, many of those same employers deduct the costs of housing and transportation from their workers’ pay. Eager to make any amount of U.S. dollars and constantly aware of his illegal status in this country, he simply accepts the mere pittance afforded him and keeps his mouth shut.
For years, we have heard American businessmen complain that Americans no longer want jobs which require hard physical labor. Those same businessmen then tell us that Mexican men will, however, perform these jobs, therefore our economy is dependent upon the use of illegal immigrants. Prior to this nation’s Civil War, Southern plantation owners were offering much the same excuse as to why it was necessary to import and enslave Africans.
For example, in 2008, the owners of a Virginia commercial fishing company paid $6.8 million in fines, after pleading guilty to hiring more than 100 illegal aliens to work as crewmen on their boats.
While the job of commercial fisherman is listed as the most dangerous job in America, it is considered to be the most lucrative amongst those jobs considered to be unskilled labor. Of course, the illegal aliens hired by the fishing company made only pennies on the dollar.
According to court documents, the family-owned Peabody Company of Newport News, Virginia, hired 126 illegal aliens mostly from Mexico between 2003 and 2007. In addition to knowingly hiring and harboring the illegal aliens, the Peabody family was accused of helping the foreign nationals obtain false identification as well as Social Security numbers. The fine amounted to the company’s profits during the period in question.
We have been constantly told by the open-borders crowd that illegal aliens only do low-wage jobs such as housekeeping, landscaping, and crop-picking. We have also been told that illegal aliens do not take jobs away from Americans because no American wants to do those very menial jobs. This indictment of the Peabody Corp. is a prime example of just how hollow that argument really is.
The fact is that illegal aliens do take jobs away from Americans. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average take-home pay for a commercial fisherman is $29,000 annually (2010 figure). Additionally, many claim that the official figure is on the low end.
The U.S. Health and Human Services agency considers the poverty line for a family of four to be $22,350 and for one person to be $10,890 (2011 figures). While it may be hard to imagine living on either of those incomes with their respective situations, it is easy to conclude that a take-home salary of $29,000 would be welcomed by many working-class Americans.
The Peabody family was able to pocket $7 million over a four-year period because they imported Third World laborers to work on their boats, basically eliminating their payroll. Unfortunately, they are not alone.
The following is a short list of U.S. companies caught with illegal aliens in their employ.
McDonald’s
In April 2011, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided two McDonald’s restaurants in Savannah, Georgia, and arrested several illegal aliens. The operation was the result of a nine-month investigation.
According to ICE officials, the McDonald’s managers stole the identities of U.S. citizens, and sold them to their illegal alien employees.
ICE Special Agent in Charge Jason Gialanella told the press: “These U.S citizens unknowing to a certain extent have been victimized, their credits have been potentially impacted, their good names have been tarnished.”
In all, fourteen arrests were made, with five suspects facing federal identity theft charges, and the rest were charged with immigration violations.
In October 2010, Beth Van Loon, director of human resources for McDonald’s Atlanta Region, issued the following statement to Fox News:
McDonald’s does not permit the employment of individuals without completing the appropriate procedures, including reviewing documentation and completing Form I-9s. Any individuals unable to meet the legal requirements for authorization to work are not employed by McDonald’s. If we subsequently determine that someone is not authorized to work, we take the appropriate action.
Though McDonald’s Corp. denies any culpability when their franchisees are found with illegal alien employees, there does seem to be a pattern emerging across the U.S.
McDonald’s restaurants in many states have been raided by immigration officials, and illegal aliens are often caught using stolen IDs and Social Security numbers.
In July 2008, two executives and the owner of Mack Associates Inc., which operates 11 McDonald’s franchises in Nevada, pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges and aiding and abetting, after investigators determined that illegal aliens were not only working at the fast-food restaurants, but had been given names and Social Security numbers belonging to others by the managers.
According to Nevada U.S. Attorney Gregory Brower, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement raids at restaurants in Reno, Sparks, and Fernley resulted in the detainment of 56 illegal aliens.
In March 2010, sheriff’s deputies in Maricopa County, Arizona, executed search warrants at four McDonald’s restaurants, turning up 50 illegal alien workers. Most were charged with identity theft and fraud.
The franchises are owned by Richard Coulston and operated by his company, R & L Management.
After the raids, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said:
It’s a shame that Friday’s arrests had to happen at the fast-food restaurant, which is more than just a business…It’s an American institution, a place that my kids and yours could always count on for their first job ever. That these McDonald’s restaurants targeted in today’s investigation are giving jobs away to people using false IDs or perhaps working here illegally is a shame.
Chipotle Mexican Grills
In December 2010, Chipotle fired about 50 workers from several locations in Minnesota, after Immigration and Customs Enforcement apparently began an investigation into the immigration status of the restaurant chain’s workforce.
In a press release, Chipotle said: “We are fully cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials in Minnesota in connection with a document request they have made.”
Workers were fired at locations in downtown Minneapolis (Skyway and Seven Corners), Golden Valley, Coon Rapids, Richfield, Stillwater, and Hudson, Wisconsin.
Chipotle has over 1,000 locations across the country and recorded a net income of $126 million in 2009.
Sizzler
In June 2010, Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) deputies raided two Sizzler steak house locations in Phoenix, in search of 23 suspected illegal alien workers. Nine were taken into custody.
The raids were precipitated after the sheriff’s office received a tip from a former manager who told them he was asked to quit when he refused to hire employees who could not produce proper identification.
According to MCSO, the former manager was offered three months’ severance pay in exchange for not reporting the information to law enforcement.
One of the illegal workers was actually deported three times from the U.S., and each time he returned, was hired back by Sizzler.
Pro’s Ranch Markets
In May 2010, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement audit of Pro’s Ranch Markets in Phoenix, resulted in the firing of 300 illegal aliens. The federal audit discovered that 20 percent of the company’s workforce were living and working in the country illegally.
Julie Pace, an attorney for Pro’s Ranch Market, claimed the illegal aliens, presented forged documentation at the time they were hired.
Pace said: “We complied with all the requirements, but they were still able to slip through.”
Pro’s Ranch Market operates six stores in the Phoenix area.
Soon after the illegal aliens were fired, local residents flooded into the stores, applying for the job openings.
Koch Foods
In February 2010, it was announced that Koch Foods was forced to pay a fine of $536,046, after a 2007 Immigrations and Customs Enforcement raid turned up 161 illegal aliens working in their Fairfield, Ohio plant.
ICE agents found 12 illegal aliens hiding in the walk-in freezer. Five of them required medical treatment.
Shortly after the raid, WCPO investigative reporter Laure Quinlivan asked Koch Foods human resources director Monty Lobb about the allegations. Lobb blamed the situation on the federal government, and their lack of cooperation in confirming the residency of potential employees.
Lobb responded: “Nobody will work with you, and I’ve been doing it on my own, cleaning up, making sure that everybody is legal. Now is everybody legal? Probably not. But by the documentation I have to have to do it, I terminated two people yesterday when I found out their papers were inaccurate.”
Despite Lobb’s claims, when the reporter asked him to provide some documentation that he tried to verify his employees’ eligibility, he declined to do so.
Koch Foods which processes chicken, has nine plants nationwide, and supplies products to several restaurant chains, including Applebee’s, Cracker Barrel, and Dairy Queen.
Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc.
In July 2009, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced that Krispy Kreme agreed to pay a $40,000 fine for hiring illegal aliens, after an inspection by ICE discovered the company had hired dozens of illegal workers at their Cincinnati, OH factory.
According to the terms of the agreement, in addition to paying the fine, the doughnut maker promised to revamp their hiring process in order to hire only those authorized to work in this country.
American Apparel
A 2009 investigation uncovered 1,800 illegal alien workers, using fraudulent documents. The company, located in Los Angeles is the nation’s largest clothing manufacturer, and the 1,800 illegal workers represented a third of their workforce. The owners of American Apparel have been outspoken proponents of an amnesty plan for this nation’s illegal alien population.
Agriprocessors Inc.
In May 2008, ICE agents executed criminal and administrative search warrants at Agriprocessors, Inc., in Postville, Iowa, which resulted in the arrest of 389 illegal aliens, of whom 305 of those arrested were also convicted of criminal offenses.
CEO Sholom Rubashkin was arrested and charged with federal conspiracy of harboring illegal immigrants and aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft. However, the U.S. Attorney’s office later dropped all 72 charges against him.
Pilgrim’s Pride
In April 2007, ICE agents arrested 311 illegal aliens working at five Pilgrim’s Pride sites. Of the 311 arrested, 91 were charged with other criminal violations.
Del Monte Produce
In June 2007, ICE agents arrested 168 illegal alien employees at their Portland, Oregon facility. In addition to the illegal workers, 13 managers and other workers were arrested and charged with various crimes, including selling Social Security cards.
Verizon
In 2007, a Virginia State Trooper pulled over a van on Interstate 264, and found 14 illegal aliens inside the vehicle. The words “Verizon Contractor” were stamped on the doors.
The 12 Mexican and two Salvadoran nationals were hired by B&B Cable to dig ditches for Verizon’s fiber-optic project.
In 2008, B&B’s owner, Robert Buttery, was sentenced to 14 months in prison for hiring illegal aliens.
According to court documents, the workers were paid $100 per day for a 12-hour shift. However, living expenses were also deducted from their weekly pay. Apparently, all of them were living in one house, which was either owned or rented by the company.
The men were making about $7 an hour for the back-breaking work.
Assistant U.S. Attorney James Metcalfe told the court that Buttery’s company grossed $1.8 million during the four-year period in which they employed illegal aliens, without ever paying a dime in Social Security or Medicare taxes.
Swift and Company
In December 2006, ICE agents arrested 1,297 illegal aliens at six Swift meat processing factories in six states; 274 of those arrested were also charged with other criminal offenses.
Golden State Fence Company
In December 2006, the company located in Southern California agreed to pay nearly $5 million in fines for repeatedly hiring illegal aliens. Two executives from the company may also serve jail time. The Golden State Fence Company’s work includes some of the border fence between San Diego and Mexico.
After a federal investigation in 1999 found dozens of illegal aliens on the payroll, Golden State promised to change their hiring practices. However, follow-up checks in 2004 and 2005 revealed that many of those same illegal workers were still on the job. U.S. Attorney Carol Lam said that as many as a third of the company’s 750 workers may have been illegal aliens
Ironically, Golden State actually built a section of the border fence separating San Diego and Mexico.
Smithfield Foods
After ICE agents raided the Tar Heel, North Carolina, plant and arrested 21 illegal alien workers, 500 workers with fake Social Security numbers were promptly fired from the factory. Another raid in August 2007, netted 28 more illegal aliens; all were from Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras.
Wal-Mart
In 2005, company officials escaped criminal prosecution when they paid the federal government an $11 million settlement, after it was discovered that cleaning contractors Wal-Mart hired were using large numbers of illegal aliens.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested 245 illegal aliens at Wal-Marts throughout Pennsylvania.
Government prosecutors claimed they had wiretaps to prove that Wal-Mart executives knew illegal aliens were working in their stores.
However, according to the terms of the settlement, Wal-Mart never admitted to any wrongdoing, and the company placed all of the blame on outside contractors.
It should be quite evident to even the most casual observer that the labor of illegal aliens is no longer confined to the landscaping business. It should also be just as evident that if illegal aliens were removed from this country (through a combination of both forced and self-imposed deportation), the current unemployment crisis would be greatly diminished.
Unfortunately, it is also quite evident that regardless of which party is in control, the federal government will likely continue to turn a blind eye to the problem of illegal alien labor.
Our corrupt politicians have, in fact, entered into a partnership with our criminal businessmen, as large amounts of money, stemming from the tremendous profits made on the backs of illegal aliens, are being funneled into both parties. Call it a donation, call it a bribe, the result is the same — the interests of American citizens are being ignored and our laws are being trampled upon.
The federal government ended slavery in this country 145 years ago, sacrificing more than 600,000 American lives to do so. Today, however, the federal government is in business with the slave masters.
It is no longer possible to consider ours a nation of laws.
With 1 in 5 Americans out of work, we simply cannot afford to allow one job go to an illegal alien. The issue of illegal immigration is now a fight for the survival of the American family.
As I always say…For every illegal alien with a job, there is an American without one.