Report Faults Cane Cutters Pay Policies
The Labor Department has failed to act on allegations that foreign sugar cane cutters are being exploited in South Florida, according to a House committee report to be released today.
The House Committee on Education and Labor wants an inquiry into what happens to $11 million a year that is deducted from the pay of the 10,000 field workers brought to the United States each season from Jamaica and other Caribbean nations.
The report said that most of the money was deposited in a “savings plan” and the workers have had a difficult time retrieving it.
The Labor Department challenged the report, saying pay procedures have been improved since the panel began its study.
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