April 15, 2004 

Immigrant workers recover $10,000 in wages

Settlement for 8 marks milestone $100,000 advocacy center has recovered in past year

By Juan Castillo

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Eight immigrants, seven men and one woman, began collecting a total of $10,000 in unpaid wages this week for work they did at the new Hilton Austin at the convention center and at an Omaha, Neb., hotel.

The payment is part of a settlement reached Monday between Dallas-based International Hotel Renovations, a subcontractor on the construction projects, and the nonprofit Central Texas Immigrant Worker Rights Center in Austin on the workers' behalf. The case marks a milestone, bringing to nearly $100,000 the amount that center has recovered in unpaid wages for about 115 workers during the past year.

Mike Guanaca, owner of International Hotel Renovations, confirmed the settlement but would not comment on the amount. Guanaca said the workers would have collected the wages if they had not quit in protest over payment delays.

But Julien Ross of the worker rights center said International Hotel Renovations fired the workers in mid-January at the Omaha site after workers demanded payment for three weeks of work installing furniture, pictures and entertainment centers at the hotels. The work occurred in November, December and January, Ross said.

A spokesman for Hilton, which operates the hotel for Austin Convention Enterprises, referred questions to builder and developer FaulknerUSA. A FaulknerUSA spokeswoman said the wage dispute did not involve the builder-developer.

"Once we learned about it, we tried to get involved and to have the subcontractor get things solved," Terri Dusek said."This is something we were very concerned about."

Dusek said the $177 million construction on the downtown hotel involved more than 3,000 workers. "This is the only issue like this that has come to our attention," she said.

Though the case involved a relatively small amount of money and was settled for less than the amount workers contend they were owed, Ross said it is a turning point in efforts to fight exploitation of immigrant workers. "What this case shows is how far we've come in terms of the workers being united and organized," he said.

The center's roster has grown to more than 150 immigrant Central Texas workers, volunteers and interns since a pilot project in 2002. The workers meet Tuesday nights to air grievances and talk strategy. The center's new focus involves training workers to become leaders who will inform others they can fight back.

Advocates say it's not uncommon for low-income immigrant workers to be cheated of their wages. State contract law, an agreement to do work in exchange for a salary, protects everyone, regardless of legal status. But Ross said some employers think they can get away with not paying immigrants.

The workers often are fearful and don't report the cases; they don't know they have rights and that employers can face criminal charges in some cases. That's where the center's advocacy work comes in.

"It becomes not as much about the money as much as recovering one's dignity," said Ross, whose group collaborates with the Equal Justice Center, which does legal advocacy work for immigrants, Catholic Charities and Casa Marianella, a refugee aid group.

He estimated that the center has about 105 cases claiming $150,000 in unpaid wages, much of which will never be recovered because workers have left or employers have disappeared. The claims represent "a very small fraction of what's out there," he said.

On Tuesday, at the center's offices on Congress Avenue, Joel Perez was the first to sign a release and collect his portion of the settlement, smiling broadly when Ross handed him a check. But Perez, 31, who has been living in Austin for 4 1/2 years, said he didn't consider the occasion a victory.

He said he was owed more than $5,000. The check he received was for $1,533.

"I know that we deserved more," said Perez, who moved to Austin from Mexico City and now works for a commercial cleaning business.

Perez said he and his fellow workers were a good team and responsible, toiling some nights till 4 a.m. "If they said they needed a floor finished, we did it."

In Dallas, Guanaca said he agrees with the center's cause but that his company did not take advantage of the workers. The case was complicated, he said, and involved money he contends the workers owed for tools and lodging. The center disputes that. Ross said there would not have been a settlement had the workers not threatened to sue and file a lien.

Perez said he now looks forward to working on behalf of the center. He and another volunteer want to speak at Austin churches after Sunday masses. "We want to tell workers that they can fight for justice. They're not alone. We can help them."