Secrets of the City

A similar incident happened at a different D’Amico & Partners restaurant a few months ago; I can only assume they’re related. These squeezes put restaurant owners in an incredibly difficult spot but it’s my understanding that, unless you’re a large development and management company (like D’Amico), you’re in virtually no danger of something like this happening to your establishment. Unfortunately, D’Amico got snagged. $250-$10,000 is pretty hefty fine to pay per person, and you can hardly fault them for playing it safe by letting go of the employees in question. The article also notes that the employees were given seven months to provide the missing documentation. Looks to me like another case of litigation lawyers rallying around an emotional cause, in an election year no less.

And not to discredit your protester source, but I have to point out that nowhere in the article does it say that “only the Latino employees were fired.”

There was a write up about this Monday in Minnesota Monitor:

D’Amico’s caught up in controversy over immigrant workers :

http://minnesotamonitor.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=3575

As a small business owner, I can attest that the penalty for ignoring the “no match” letters is harsh. You’ve got a certain amount of time for the employee to produce the proper paperwork, and if you can’t resolve the problem by that date then employee must be terminated.

Rather than protesting at D’Amico’s, the protesters’ efforts would be better spent trying to get the law changed. Nobody likes the law the way it is, and U.S. citizens often get “no match” letters as well as illegal aliens (usually because of a screw-up in the SSA’s database). When that happens, a long, scary, pointless, and frustrating process ensues which basically boils down to “Get the government to admit it made a mistake.” You can imagine how intimidating that can be.

IT was also a big story in the Star Tribune last Saturday.

Anyone else read the side story about the MPS property on Lake St? I used to look at that and think why on Earth is that not a condo for me to live in?

“only the Latino employees were fired”

Who makes up 95% of any kitchen staff these days?

One of the problems with these No Match letters is that they only say there is a data discrepancy. According to this story:
Mendez argues that all of the fired workers have provided adequate documentation proving their citizenship. Many of the fired workers have worked for DAmicos, 2210 Hennepin Ave. S., for many years, she said.

In a prepared statement, Mendez said that no-match letters explicitly tell employers that the letters are not evidence that workers are undocumented, and that no action should be taken against them.

This tactic is used to create a climate of fear by intimidating business owners and employees alike.

I can also attest from personal experience that the SSA’s data is hardly 100% reliable. The first time I ever filed my taxes electronically, the IRS rejected them because the SSA had apparently had the wrong DOB on file for me since my birth. I also work in the employment screening industry, and you see this happen all the time. Wrong/misspelled name, wrong DOB, etc.

The Department of Homeland Security now is piloting the E-Verify program, which instantly electronically verifies the employment eligibility of all citizen and alien residents. Some states, like Arizona, are mandating that all employers use this program to verify their employees’ eligibility. And if someone is in a better position to check this as fact please do, but I also believe that the State of Minnesota requires all newly hired employees of contractors to go through the E-Verify process as well. I have yet to see it in action, but there are a series of convoluted electronic and manual processes in place if the system cannot correctly determine the employee’s status and the employee wishes to contest in person.

It sucks all around that the ssa has a crappy database and the process of correcting it is onerous. I like the sound of the e-verify program. Maybe we could enforce the laws we actually have and then let the results point us towards a real solution.

The undocumented workers have kept wages unnaturally low in the kitchen for years. Wages for line cooks have been pretty much static throughout my decade plus cooking(that’s probably not too different from many other industries). In my opinion it’s nice that the onus is put on the owners to comply with the law. Some owners would happily do the right thing, but many more look to cut costs anywhere they can. Restaurants have always had a bad attitude towards workers. But it’s a nasty, competitive business with small margins and economies of scale that can wreck overall product quality. Just sell booze. It’s much more profitable and you don’t need as much labor.

Rather than protesting at D’Amico’s, the protesters’ efforts would be better spent trying to get the law changed.

I second this opinion.

Unfortunately, despite the computer-based element, E-Verify is still a ponderous swamp of paperwork for the employer, probably more so than the current processes. And the fines for screwups in documentation and procedure are relatively steep.

The restaurant reportedly fired 15 Hispanic immigrant workers March 31 who could not verify their citizenship.

How is this even remotely discrimination. If I do not provide a social security card when I am hired I do not get to keep the job. Why would anyone think that they are exempt from our labor laws.

Lunch!: Undocumented workers have not kept the wages unnaturally low, the restaurant industry has.

Swandog: The article says that all of the employees provided the necessary paperwork when the were hired.

Swandog: The article says that all of the employees provided the necessary paperwork when the were hired

Well then provide them again. Why would they not have them know. That excuse is crap, I do not buy it. Do they have a drivers license a green car a social security card, I mean come on.

Lunch!: Undocumented workers have not kept the wages unnaturally low, the restaurant industry has

That flies in the face of basic economics. It is simple supply and demand within the restaurant labor market. They have kept the labor pool for unskilled workers low. The solution is some kind of compromise. If you have the proper documentation and the government can get a real system to verify legal or illegal status we then can move on. Once we have a means to allow hard working people in to this country that want to work mine the boarder and build a fence.

Just because docs were provided at hire, doesn’t mean they were valid, or that they even matched the person who presented them. It often takes months to find that a SS number does not match.

This was a flaw in the system. E-verify was supposed to close it.

I saw at least 3 Somali women in the protesting crowd.

I used to work in the Asbestos Abatement industry and one of the Contractors I worked with a lot told me that one of the guys that had been working for him for about 9 months came up to him and was all proud that he finally had his proper paperwork and SSN.

Evidently he has just used his cousins SSN when he was hired as a valid form of Identification.

I accidentally used the wrong SSN for various things (including employment) for at least 10 years. For some reason my mom got one digit wrong and we were none the wiser until the IRS called my mom and was like “your daughter doesn’t exist”. She’d been filing taxes for years using my wrong SSN, so I’m not surprised at how hard it is to match people who are actively trying to use the wrong SSN.

Just because docs were provided at hire, doesn’t mean they were valid,
But it doesn’t mean that they were invalid either.

It does seem as if D’Amico’s tried to work with the employees, but the articles seem incomplete. It very well could be that the employees are undocumented, but it’s not an easy process to get documentation if it indeed is a records mistake.

I haven’t had an actual SS card since before college as I always had license, passport, birth certificate, etc. as documentation. Recently, an almost employer asked for the actual card so off the the SSA office I go. Only to find that there were discrepencies in my information – name didn’t match card – a mistake the SSA finally said was a “glitch” in their office – like a crappy blame-the-other-person-apology kind of way: “Well if you hadn’t applied for a SS card, this wouldn’t have happened.”

It took nearly 3 months to get it all straightened out. It was maddening at how people reacted – as if it was something I did wrong or the automatic assumption that I was “illegal” or that I was trying to commit “fraud”. I feel for anyone who has to go through the process who may have access to limited resources as it is one of the most laborious processes… EVER.

The SSA system sucks, and so does the U.S. immigration policy. Employers helpless at their hands. And you can’t blame the employees for what’s going on here. I don’t know one single illegal immigrant who strutted across the border expecting citizens’ rights. They know they’re not supposed to be here, that’s why they’re generally better “citizens” than the rest of us who don’t behave irresponsibly (bus crashers aside). What grinds my gears here is that a group of lawyers have once again rounded up some illegal immigrants to rally around the cause of… discrimination?? Whatever. Even if the EEOC is using the illegals to fight for a bigger cause (i.e. change the fucked up immigration policy), they’re going about it in a very ineffective way.

The EEOC is the same group that sued Parasole for discrimination and nearly half a million dollars after all was said and done over two employees that got fired from Chino Latino. Those employees did not deserve to be fired, but the EEOC went and rounded up several other employees that had nothing to do with the original incident to give more weight to the case (and subsequently collect more money).

It was the EEOC that also attempted to sue Hooters Restaurants for $170 million dollars because they wouldn’t hire 4 men as servers in one of their Chicago restaurants.

Anyway, I hate lawyers.

Whatever. Even if the EEOC is using the illegals to fight for a bigger cause (i.e. change the fucked up immigration policy), they’re going about it in a very ineffective way.

When you think about it the eeoc has no incentive to really change immigration policy, they keep on making cash off of the existing system. I agree with you that most illegals that come to the US are great citizens. I think they are more like my Norwegian grandparents than any other group that comes to the us. Their value system and belief system are more closely related to the Scandinavian immigrants than any other group. I often call them “brown Norwegians”. The real problem is no one wants to address the boarder issue and immigration. No one has an incentive to do so. Illegal Latinos are scapegoated by both parities and used as pawns in a political chess game. I am sick of the left defending “sanctuary cities” and I am sick of the right choosing to look the other way when is suits their business interests. The only thing the current system does is exploit a lot of good people

There is no incentive for change in the current syestem for anyone except citizens employed in low skill jobs. The owners make their money, and have a docile workforce that won’t stand up for themselves. The illegals get paid more than they would at home. Mexico has an escape valve for its poor underclass. The American consumer does not have to pay the real cost for a meal at a restauarant. So I guess I should just change jobs then… Screw you. You should enforce the laws on the books and take care of your own citizens first.

So I guess I should just change jobs then… Screw you. You should enforce the laws on the books and take care of your own citizens first.

I agree whole heatedly. I would increase the penalties to employers to the point they would go out of business. I would also mine the boarder. The laws are not enforced and that pisses me off. Sanctuary cities should not get federal funding, cut them off. However, the individuals tiring to better themselves should be viewed as human and not exploited. The only way to do it is to demand better from our politicians.

Workers provided social security cards when they were hired. Workers also sent letters to the social security administration expressing a desire to clarify the issue. That, to me, is evidence that they’ve gone above and beyond what’s reasonable to address this situation. I’ve never seen an employer use such little information in taking such strident steps.

Workers provided social security cards when they were hired. Workers also sent letters to the social security administration expressing a desire to clarify the issue. That, to me, is evidence that they’ve gone above and beyond what’s reasonable to address this situation. I’ve never seen an employer use such little information in taking such strident steps

I would like some proof that they appealed to the SS office. It is real simple bring in a green car or work permit, a SS card and a license or passport. That is what is required. If you do not have them, to bad so sad you no longer have a job. Turning this into a “racial” civil liberties issue is disingenuous. Enough of the bleeding heart bullshit.

No newspaper article is going to give all the facts from both sides, and we’re not going to get the truth from emotional protesters or anonymous commenters.

What I see as fact is that a discrimination lawsuit will not hold up because D’Amico & Partners is most certainly not a racist organization. All of the restaurants employ workers of all different ethnicities, which you can plainly see when walking into any one of them. And unlike the Chino-cha-ching-Latino lawsuit, there were no racial epithets hurled. So far it appears that the employees could not provide proper documentation, and D’Amico dodged a potential $150K bullet by letting them go. It happens all the time in the big chain restaurants. They usually just hire back illegals because there’s no initial fine that accompanies the “no match” letter. It’s just a warning that calls for action but, if they don’t act, they get severely fined.

Disclaimer: I read the responses very quickly and may have misread them, forgive me if I misrepresent your opinions.

In response to “Swandog” and “Lunch”

You’re both partially right, but both completely wrong. Thanks for bringing up economics Swandog, my favorite pasttime. I don’t want to explain this in great detail, but you were right when you said “supply and demand”, however it’s NOT “supply OR demand”. You both only looked at one angle. They must both be taken into account. Low wages are a result of both supply-side and demand-side dynamics, the degree to which is the only arguable point. The restaurant and hospitality industry is not my area of expertise so I can’t claim to know the issue in depth, but I suspect both sides contribute substantially. Interesting issue though.

it’s not discrimination. it’s not d’amico’s fault either. it’s the systems fault. i guess its a surprise to some of you all, but yes, people in this country have fake ssn’s, cards, ids, etc. and yes, the majority of cooks in this town, and everywhere else are indeed of latin american/hispanic origins…and yes, it’s common speculation that a good amount of people in the restaurant industry is of illegal status, that have documentation needed to be hired. this isn’t new news!
all of the d’amicos was hit by the ‘no match’ letters or whatever. all their restaurants, and even the catering division. i am a d’amicos employee, and i personally work with someone who had to leave the company because of this whole matter, and she had worked for them for many, many years. it is indeed very heartbreaking. i don’t know all the facts, but i did hear that d’amicos did a lot for their employees to try help straighten out the matter…and there was ample amounts of time to get this all straightened out too.
reading about these protests, and that they’re making it into a discrimination matter is just irritating. its the system. the government. not the companies.

I saw the protesters outside the cafe lurcat (a d’amico restaurant) in naples, florida a few days ago … they are still at it … anyone have updates on this story?