Undocumented Workers in Houston Awarded Thousands in Wage Theft Settlement
Betzy and Juan Carlos Suarez have been awarded thousands of dollars in a wage theft settlement with catering subcontractor Uptown Staffing. The case is a small victory in a larger fight to protect the city’s undocumented labor force from wage theft and other types of exploitation.
Through legal aid from the Austin-based Equal Justice Center and support from Houston worker’s organization El Pueblo Primero, the couple were able to settle the case after months of mistreatment and not receiving overtime pay.
“In a two-week pay period, I would work 125 hours,” said Betzy Suarez in Spanish. At her job washing dishes, Suarez would work 12-hour shifts without breaking for lunch, even though she suffers from diabetes and arthritis.
“Why come for the American dream if it has you enslaved,” said Suarez.
Read more: https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2018/08/22/301297/undocumented-workers-in-houston-awarded-thousands-in-wage-theft-settlement/