Exclusive: Experts believe the alleged ‘shuttle support’ program used by Uline – a company owned by billionaires Liz and Dick Uihlein – is likely illegal and exploitative of workers By Stephanie Kirchgaessner and Alice Herman in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin
Fri 20 Dec 2024
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/20/uline-mexican-workers-trump?CMP=share_btn_url
The Guardian’s investigation reveals allegations that Uline, a company owned by major Trump donors Liz and Dick Uihlein, engaged in potentially illegal practices by employing Mexican workers on tourist and B1 visas to staff U.S. warehouses. These visas, intended for short-term training or business visits, were allegedly misused for regular warehouse work, with employees earning their Mexican wages and additional bonuses while residing in U.S. hotels. The Uihleins, prominent supporters of anti-immigration rhetoric and Donald Trump‘s campaigns, have been criticized for hypocrisy, as their company profits from the labor of Mexican workers despite their political advocacy for stricter immigration controls.
The “shuttle support” program reportedly began three years ago to address Uline’s strict hiring policies and labor shortages in states like Pennsylvania. Sources suggest that high-level executives, including Liz Uihlein, were aware of the arrangement. Immigration lawyers have labeled the program exploitative and illegal, as B1 visas do not permit wage-earning work. The controversy underscores the broader challenge of labor shortages in the U.S., where businesses depend on immigrant workers, and highlights the contradiction in the Uihleins’ political and business practices. Critics argue this approach undermines wages for U.S. workers while exploiting Mexican employees.
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