15 stores have been raided by the Department of Homeland Security, and it’s been exposed that undocumented immigrants from Pakistan have been employed using Social Security numbers stolen from children or the dead so that they can work up to 100 hours a week at lower than minimum wage. 40 further franchises are being investigated, and about 20 people have so far been arrested.
The 7-Elevens in question are in New York and Virginia, with most of the raids taking place in Suffolk County, Long Island, as PIX 11 News reported.
“These defendants ruthlessly exploited their immigrant employees, stealing their wages and requiring them to live in unregulated boarding houses, in effect creating a modern day plantation system” said federal prosecutor Loretta E. Lynch.
“The 7-11 franchises seized today will be better known for their big fraud than their Big Gulp,” said James Hayes, who isn’t paid for his stand up comedy, but is a special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s office of investigations in New York, as reported by ABC News.
This situation has been going on since 2000, and was finally addressed after several employees reported the injustice to the authorities.
The enlarged federal probe will look into how stores are run in Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York. On Monday, 7-Eleven sent a statement to the Huffington Post:
7-Eleven, Inc. has cooperated with the government’s investigation. All of our franchise owners must operate their stores in accordance with laws and the 7-Eleven franchise agreement.
7-Eleven, Inc. will take aggressive actions to audit the employment status of all its franchisees’ employees.
7-Eleven, Inc. is taking steps to assume corporate operation of the stores involved in this action so we can continue to serve our guests.
We continue to cooperate with federal authorities in this matter.
The nine defendants on the case are being held without bail, and are scheduled to appear in court next on July 15.