Foreign students say exchange program included employee attendance exploitation
What was meant to be an enlightening cultural experience turned sour for Jorge Rios and other foreign students who participated in the U.S. Department of State's J-1 Visa Exchange Visitor Program. The students paid to take part in the exchange, which gave them opportunities to improve their English, gain cultural enrichment and work for U.S. companies during a three-month stay.
However, Rios and 17 other foreign students allege they didn't get much of a change to do anything besides work because of their employer's unfair payroll practices.
As employees of McDonald's franchises throughout Pennsylvania, the students' time and attendance was either too much or too little. Supervisors didn't give them regular schedules or full-time workloads and instead required the program participants to be on call if they wanted to get more hours.
Moreover, Rios claims the franchises didn't pay them any additional wages if their employee attendance exceeded 40 hours in a single workweek. During some 7-day periods, the students put in up to 60 hours on the clock, he alleged.
"We expected to have 40 hours of work a week, but we were given as little as four hours a week at the minimum wage of $7.25 an hour," Rios said in the petition that was posted on Coworker.org. "The employer knew we were desperate for more hours, and he kept us on call to come in with 30 minutes' notice all day and night. I didn't even have time to visit the public library."
The allegations are still under investigation and the franchise owner has not yet responded to requests for interviews.
All data and information provided on this news blog is for informational purposes only. Infinisource makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis. Information regarding employment suits and other legal action is not updated after publication, and may not be current.