More than 20 immigrant workers claim they were UNJUSTLY fired from an industrial plant, after participating in the “A Day Without Immigrants” protest
These ex-employees are now taking the plant to court, claiming they’ve been “unjustly fired” by EZ Industrial Solutions in Chesterfield Township for taking part in a political protest. EZ Industrial Solutions said it acted appropriately. You be the judge!
If only we knew sooner, as long as you’re a political activist, you don’t need to go to work to keep your job!
More at Detroit Free Press:
“More than 20 Hispanic immigrant workers at an industrial plant in Macomb County say they were fired after they took part in the Day Without Immigrants protests in February.
And now, they are challenging their firings in a charge filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), saying they were unjustly fired by EZ Industrial Solutions in Chesterfield Township for taking part in a political protest. EZ Industrial Solutions said it acted appropriately.
The case illustrates the challenges some immigrant workers face as the U.S. toughens immigration enforcement. And today, the issue is expected to spring to the fore again as many immigrants take part in rallies for immigrants scheduled in Detroit, Pontiac, Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids and other cities.
In the charge filed against EZ Industrial Solutions, the workers said that on Feb. 14, two days before the Feb. 16 Day Without Immigrant protests, “the employer coercively questioned employees about any potential plans to observe, support, or participate in demonstrations surrounding a ‘Day Without Immigrants.'”
The charge alleges that on Feb. 15 the employer again questioned them, this time “threatening employees with a 1 week suspension for observing the ‘Day Without Immigrants.'”
Instead of being suspended, though, about 20 workers who took part in the protests were fired, said the charge filed by attorney Tony Paris of the Sugar Law Center in Detroit. Some of the workers marched in rallies that day in metro Detroit, while others skipped work in protest.
After they were fired, a company supervisor threatened to report the workers to immigration authorities, the charge said.
“A worker said: a supervisor came to my house asking: ‘How are you affording an attorney? Don’t you know the company is going to send ICE, have ICE be involved?'” said Paris, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the federal agency under the Department of Homeland Security that deals with immigration arrests and deportations.
According to the NLRB charge, EZ “maintains and enforces rules preventing employees from talking to one another about workplace conditions.”
EZ’s operations manager, Jordan Yoder, defended the company’s actions, saying in an e-mailed statement to the Free Press: “The law is quite clear that employees can’t just not show up to work when they’re expected, and also that they are not free to participate in political, non-work related protests during their work day without consequences. We therefore deny any wrongdoing and are confident that the charge will be dismissed.”
On its website, EZ Industrial Solutions says it “specializes in secondary operations for the automotive fastener and stamping industry. Our services include fastener vision sorting/hand sorting, fastener head painting, assemblies, and packaging/kitting.”
The workers at EZ Industrial Solutions earned just above minimum wage, about $9 to $12 an hour, assorting screws and other small items, working an informal routine that allowed for absences, Paris said. He said the NLRB investigators interviewed the workers in a church, where they felt comfortable speaking out. Some may be undocumented immigrants.
The workers fired were all Latina female immigrants, except for one Latino immigrant worker who was male, said Paris. They live across metro Detroit and most have roots in Mexico and Central American countries. Paris said the workers may have been discriminated against because of their ethnicity. All of the supervisors are white except for a Hispanic woman who acts as an intermediary between the workers and managers, he said.”
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